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Helping you navigate the rough waters of
financial planning, providing a clearer
vision to meet future goals!
FINANCIAL NAVIGATORS, INC.
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Helping you navigate the rough waters of
financial planning, providing a clearer
vision to meet future goals!
FINANCIAL NAVIGATORS, INC.
Most Wealth Managers have one goal – to manage your assets for a fee. Granted, they are bound by the same ethical standards – to put your needs ahead of their own – but let’s face it, they want your money. Conversely, Financial Navigators was founded in 1996 as a consulting firm with the solitary goal of helping people. It’s as simple as that. We help people. We help them to learn and grow, budget and save, all while trying to maneuver life’s unforeseen challenges and successes. Everyone has a unique story, and their financial plan should also be unique.
Our consulting engagements with employers provide one-on-one financial planning services for the employees of our corporate clients. You could say our niche is in serving physicians and employees of medical providers. We also serve unions, research organizations, and educational entities. These engagements foster long-term relationships, year after year, that continue long past retirement.
Today we still see ourselves as a Consulting Firm that, by default, has become a Wealth Advisor. You see, the people we serve in our consulting relationship view the natural conclusion of our work instead of ending to continue with personalized financial planning services. This relationship lasts throughout the generations.
Whether you are an employer seeking a consultant to provide Fiduciary services for your retirement plan, or you are an individual investor seeking guidance with your financial planning, Navigate in and give us a look.
Choosing an Advisor
You deserve to work with someone who always keeps your best interests in mind. There are three basic types of advisors based on how they are paid: commission-based, fee-based and fee-only. It is crucial to understand the difference and why it matters.
We're Fee-only
This means that we provide all of our services and investment products to clients for a fee, never charging commissions or being paid through another provider.
What to look for in an advisor
Qualified – CFP®, CSLP®, CDFA®. Experienced – at least 10 years’ of experience. Transparent – no hidden fees. High-Touch. High Quality – with strong financial planning & investment processes. 100% of our advisors meet at least two of these standards.
Frequently asked questions
The average fee for a professional financial advisor's services is 1.02% of assets under management annually for an account of one million dollars (the industry average fee is 0.99% and decreases depending on the size of your account). For high-net-worth individuals, however, the appropriate fee may be lower. You can always see your fees clearly stated on the first page of your monthly statement. Please see the fee section for a list of our Asset Management Fees.
Timing varies depending on what you’re facing. Sometimes, it’s trying to determine if you are on track financially, whether you are building up an adequate retirement nest egg, whether you can afford to upgrade your home to your dream home, or for some, how to prioritize payment of your debts. For others, it might be due to an inheritance, a divorce, or another occurrence where you are facing a sudden influx of wealth. The perfect time would be before you really need one but not all of us are that clairvoyant.
When you hire a financial planner/wealth advisor it’s fair to ask where your money will be custodied (who holds your assets) and who will make the decisions about the division of your savings between different types of investment vehicles. At FNI, Fidelity Investments will “hold” your funds. We feel strongly about directing how and where to invest your savings, but we all seek the confidence of a qualified custodian to hold your assets.
We don’t like the tail to wag the dog. Having a comprehensive financial plan completed by our firm – at no additional cost – means we are making investment decisions based on calculated facts, not assumptions. Financial Planning is an ongoing process, but it will always drive the direction of the investments and not visa-versa. A financial plan provides the reassurance that you are heading in the right direction, or it might redirect your goals and priorities.
As noted in the question above, together, we will prepare a financial plan, this plan involves all the facets of your life, which includes assets we do not manage. The results of the financial plan will direct the risk level of all of your holdings, and we will make recommendations for assets “held away”. We do not charge an asset fee on those holdings.
We offer plenty of meeting options for our clients. For clients we obtain through our corporate client relationships, we typically meet at the employer site in conference rooms. We also have home offices and we are quite adept at virtual meetings which are getting to be more popular in our fast-paced electronic world. Our clients can view our screens while we talk on the phone, or we can hold meetings via Skype.
We have plenty of depth in our staff. Every client is assigned a team of people who are intimately aware of our client’s financial needs.
We are committed to our clients and back up that commitment with a fully tested continuity/succession plan. Our clients are assured to receive uninterrupted services, with little to no changes in staffing. To date, the staff and advisors who have left the firm have retired. The majority of the firm has been here for several years if not for more than a decade. Rest assured that you are in good hands at FNI.