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Personal Financial Planning : How To Find The Right Estate Planner For You
onal Financial Planning : How To Find The Right Estate Planner For You

 by: News Canada

Five must-ask questions

(NC)-Beware of estate planners charging little or nothing to draft your estate plan. They are likely earning a commission on the investment products they recommend - which could compromise the objectivity of their advice. And note that competent estate planners should offer a holistic approach to estate planning. That is, an objective and skillful adviser provides more than investment strategies or financial planning advice.

When looking for the right adviser, consider these key questions:

  • What is your previous experience and have you worked with clients like me?

  • Do you have in-depth knowledge of relevant legislation such as income tax law, provincial family law and probate acts?

  • How do you set your fees? Do you sell life insurance, mutual funds or other investment products?

  • I would like to set time lines

    Our articles continue...
Goldman Sachs closes below IPO price
Goldman Sachs closes below IPO price By Aaron Siegel November 20, 2008, 3:49 PM EST Post a Comment Shares of The Goldman Sachs Group Inc. closed below their initial offering price of $53 on Thursday, a first since the company went public in ...
As Citi nose-dives, Saudi prince buys
As Citi nose-dives, Saudi prince buys By Andrew Coen November 20, 2008, 11:57 AM EST Post a Comment Citigroup Inc.’s stock price nose-dived 30% today in the steepest percentage decline ever for the Wall Street giant, which has lost more than ...
Fidelity shakeup spotlights breakaway brokers
Fidelity shakeup spotlights breakaway brokers By Sue Asci November 20, 2008, 3:09 PM EST Post a Comment Fidelity Investment’s decision last week to replace the head of its adviser unit with an executive from Morgan Stanley is another sign ...
Paulson: No more ‘too big to fail’
Paulson: No more ‘too big to fail’ By Aaron Siegel November 20, 2008, 3:43 PM EST Post a Comment Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson Jr. today outlined a blueprint to reform the regulatory system and correct the flaws that caused the financial c...
T. Rowe launches global funds
T. Rowe launches global funds By Aaron Siegel November 20, 2008, 3:18 PM EST Post a Comment T. Rowe Price Group Inc. of Baltimore has launched two funds aimed at providing investors with exposure to the markets in Europe, Asia and the America...
Stocks dive as auto rescue stalls
Stocks dive as auto rescue stalls By Isabelle Clary, Pensions & Investments November 20, 2008, 4:39 PM EST Post a Comment US stocks plummeted today as lawmakers said a plan to save the US automotive industry is postponed until next month, ...
Economic outlook bleak, index says
Economic outlook bleak, index says By Aaron Siegel November 20, 2008, 12:48 PM EST Post a Comment The Conference Board's index of leading indicators, which measures the economic outlook for the next three to six months, fell 0.8% in October ...
More insurers set their sights on TARP
More insurers set their sights on TARP By Darla Mercado November 20, 2008, 3:29 PM EST Post a Comment This week, three more insurers announced their intentions to apply for to the Department of the Treasury’s Capital Purchase Program. The ...
Unemployment claims reach 16-year high
Unemployment claims reach 16-year high By Aaron Siegel November 20, 2008, 1:02 PM EST Post a Comment The number of Americans filing claims for first-time unemployment benefits rose by 27,000 to a seasonally adjusted 542,000 for the week ...
Traditional advice will not help retirees
Traditional advice will not help retirees By Charles J. Farrell November 20, 2008 Post a Comment Traditional investment advice won’t help retirees deal with the current market environment. Advisers need to change their strategies to meet ...
Ambac to settle $3.5B in mortgage debt exposure
Ambac to settle $3.5B in mortgage debt exposure By Darla Mercado November 20, 2008, 3:45 PM EST Post a Comment Ambac Financial Group Inc. of New York said that it has reached an agreement with its counterparties to terminate $3.5 billion of ...
SEC moves to simplify prospectuses
SEC moves to simplify prospectuses By Sara Hansard November 20, 2008, 10:37 AM EST Post a Comment The Securities and Exchange Commission voted unanimously today to require that mutual funds provide investors with simpler, plain-English ...
MFS lays off 5% of workers
MFS lays off 5% of workers By Sue Asci November 20, 2008, 3:55 PM EST Post a Comment MFS Investment Management of Boston today announced the firm is cutting 90 jobs, representing about 5% of its work force of about 1800. “The reduction is ...
Traditional advice will not help retirees
Traditional advice will not help retirees
Mavericks’ Cuban blogs his innocence
Mavericks’ Cuban blogs his innocence By Aaron Siegel November 19, 2008, 12:25 PM EST Post a Comment Entrepreneur Mark Cuban, owner of the NBA’s Dallas Mavericks, is defending himself on his website against insider trading charges that the ...
Fidelity names new head of RIA unit
Fidelity names new head of RIA unit By Sue Asci November 19, 2008, 5:26 PM EST Post a Comment Fidelity Investments of Boston today named Michael Durbin as president of its institutional wealth services division, which provides trading, ...
The Detroit solution
The Detroit solution By Evan Cooper November 19, 2008 Post a Comment It’s taken decades of hard work, but Detroit has managed to ruin the reputation of practically all its brands. I’m old enough to remember the “forward look” and “extra ...
Slow road to recovery, Fed says
Slow road to recovery, Fed says By Aaron Siegel November 19, 2008, 5:22 PM EST Post a Comment The Federal Reserve significantly cut its outlook for economic growth as the slowdown in growth abroad and incoming information on economic ...
Schwab not interested in E*Trade buy
Schwab not interested in E*Trade buy By Jed Horowitz November 19, 2008, 1:39 PM EST Post a Comment The Charles Schwab Corp. is not interested in buying competitor E*Trade Financial Corp., at least not before any potential bankruptcy, a ...
A suspicious Cuomo eyes AIG bonuses
A suspicious Cuomo eyes AIG bonuses By Darla Mercado November 19, 2008, 12:23 PM EST Post a Comment New York Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo queried AIG in a letter yesterday about what the insurer was planning to do about bonuses. Since ...
Tamed energy prices prompt 1% CPI drop
Tamed energy prices prompt 1% CPI drop By Aaron Siegel November 19, 2008, 1:30 PM EST Post a Comment The consumer price index, a key indicator of inflation, fell 1%, marking the largest monthly decline since the index was first computed in 19...
Morningstar database to provide new analytics
Morningstar database to provide new analytics By Aaron Siegel November 19, 2008, 2:14 PM EST Post a Comment Morningstar is creating a database for US pensions, endowments and foundations, providing the public with insight into private and ...
US stocks fall over more recession concerns
US stocks fall over more recession concerns By Isabelle Clary, Crain's Pensions & Investments November 19, 2008, 4:38 PM EST Post a Comment US stocks plunged today, with the Dow Jones industrial average closing below 8,000 on news that ...
State regulators to feds: 'Don't marginalize us'
State regulators to feds: 'Don't marginalize us' By Dan Jamieson November 19, 2008, 12:56 PM EST Post a Comment State securities regulators today warned federal policymakers not to enact regulatory reforms that might cut state powers. “...
FundQuest builds platform for Sigma
FundQuest builds platform for Sigma By Sue Asci November 19, 2008, 11:38 AM EST Post a Comment Sigma Planning Corp. and FundQuest Inc. today announced the launch of a managed account platform for Sigma’s network of 500 advisers. The ...
Citigroup's fall from grace: no longer No. 1
Citigroup's fall from grace: no longer No. 1 By Aaron Elstein, Crain's New York Business November 19, 2008, 4:48 PM EST Post a Comment Citigroup Inc., which not long ago ranked as the largest bank in the world, as of Wednesday slipped to ...
Bettinger: Schwab layoffs could continue
Bettinger: Schwab layoffs could continue By Jed Horowitz November 19, 2008, 1:47 PM EST Post a Comment The financial services industry’s problems have not yet reached bottom, Charles Schwab, the founder and chairman of the eponymous San Franc...
Consumer-directed health plans gain traction
Consumer-directed health plans gain traction By Darla Mercado November 18, 2008, 2:01 PM EST Post a Comment There are more enrollees in consumer-directed health plans this year than last, and those individuals are more likely to have higher ...
Index annuities see third-quarter uptick
Index annuities see third-quarter uptick By Darla Mercado November 18, 2008, 6:01 AM EST Post a Comment Index annuity sales crept up during the third quarter, hitting $6.7 billion, according to data from AnnuitySpecs.com of Pleasant Hill, Iow...
Barclays hops on no-bonus bandwagon
Barclays hops on no-bonus bandwagon By Aaron Siegel November 18, 2008, 12:11 PM EST Post a Comment Barclays PLC said that it won’t pay its top executives an annual bonus this year, following similar announcements by the The Goldman Sachs ...
Oppenheimer & Co. charged with ARS fraud
Oppenheimer & Co. charged with ARS fraud By Sue Asci November 18, 2008, 2:34 PM EST Post a Comment Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth William Galvin today charged Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. with fraud and unethical conduct in the sales ...
Execs charged with multimillion-dollar fraud
Execs charged with multimillion-dollar fraud By Andrew Coen November 18, 2008, 3:18 PM EST Post a Comment The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged four financial services workers with engaging in a fraudulent scheme to overvalue ...
Yearend tax issues
Yearend tax issues By Michael Eisenberg November 18, 2008 Post a Comment Situation:This is the perfect time for your clients to fine-tune their 2008 tax situation and make certain moves to save money. As the end of the calendar-year approache...
Bummed builders look to government for aid
Bummed builders look to government for aid By Janet Morrissey November 18, 2008, 3:36 PM EST Post a Comment Homebuilder sentiment in November sank its lowest level since January 1985, as shaken builders seek assistance from a higher power. ...
Paulson nixes Big Three bailout
Paulson nixes Big Three bailout By Andrew Coen November 18, 2008, 12:55 PM EST Post a Comment The federal government’s Troubled Asset Relief Program should not be used to pull back America’s top three automakers from the brink of bankruptcy, ...
BlackRock latest firm to slash jobs
BlackRock latest firm to slash jobs By Aaron Siegel November 18, 2008, 2:03 PM EST Post a Comment BlackRock Inc. will cut jobs this week for the first time in the company's 20-year history, making it the latest asset management firm to ...
Art with a wine twist
Art with a wine twist By Maureen Wilke November 17, 2008 Post a Comment Background: This month, we’ve been concentrating on giving thanks by giving back. Our focus, specifically, is on holiday events that give back to your communities and ...
Putnam shakes up lagging equity division
Putnam shakes up lagging equity division By Sue Asci November 17, 2008, 12:29 PM EST Post a Comment In a bid to boost its lagging fund performance, Putnam Investments of Boston announced today that they are merging six equity funds, moving ...
Stocks drop on recession fears, Citigroup cuts
Stocks drop on recession fears, Citigroup cuts By Isabelle Clary, Pensions & Investments November 17, 2008, 4:41 PM EST Post a Comment US stocks fell today on fears of a global recession while Citigroup Inc. announced plans to cut 52,000 jobs...
Wall Street giants' estimates slashed
Wall Street giants' estimates slashed By Andrew Coen November 17, 2008, 3:09 PM EST Post a Comment Morgan Stanley and The Goldman Sachs Group Inc. both had their fourth-quarter estimates cut by analysts in research notes published today. ...
Four carriers take refuge under TARP
Four carriers take refuge under TARP By Darla Mercado November 17, 2008, 11:24 AM EST Post a Comment Four more insurers have lined up to become banks in the hopes of qualifying for some money from the Treasury’s Troubled Asset Relief Program...
Merril reps overwhelmingly go for BofA deal
Merril reps overwhelmingly go for BofA deal By Dan Jamieson November 17, 2008, 5:06 PM EST Post a Comment More than 90% of Merrill Lynch & Co. Inc. of New York reps who were offered a retention bonus by Bank of America Corp. of Charlotte, NC ...
Citi's Pandit to ax 52,000 jobs
Citi's Pandit to ax 52,000 jobs By Aaron Siegel November 17, 2008, 11:32 AM EST Post a Comment Citigroup Inc., the financial services behemoth, will cut up to 50,000 jobs as the company aims to lighten its balance sheet amid poor credit ...
Schwab’s Goldman exits as RIA unit reorganizes
Schwab’s Goldman exits as RIA unit reorganizes By Jed Horowitz November 17, 2008, 1:54 PM EST Post a Comment Charles Goldman, 47, executive vice president of Schwab Institutional, who has run the registered investment adviser business of The ...
People
People November 16, 2008, 6:01 AM EST Post a Comment Transamerica Retirement Services of Los Angeles has named Jennifer Giampaolo, 32, regional vice president of the New England office, which is based in Needham, Mass. She has more than 10 yea...
Investor and adviser viewpoints
Investor and adviser viewpoints November 16, 2008, 6:01 AM EST Post a Comment Surveys conducted between Nov. 3, 2008 and Nov. 12, 2008. Investor data was gathered by an unaffiliated third party, TNS Custom Research, Inc., on behalf of ...
Tax-managed funds ranked by YTD performance
November 16, 2008 Tax-managed funds ranked by YTD performance Click column headers to sort fields Rank Fund Ticker Assets ($M) % change YTD % change 1-year % change 3-year Expense ratio Toll-free number Portfolio manager 1 Alpine ...
Redefining long-term diversification
Redefining long-term diversification The market slump forces financial advisers to rethink retirement allocations
SEC takes a step backward on disclosure
SEC takes a step backward on disclosure November 16, 2008 Post a Comment In a move that has received scant public attention, the SEC this month put into place changes that could harm investors. Specifically, an SEC interpretive release on ...
Investing for social impact lures investors
Investing for social impact lures investors Aim is to identify underserved communities in the United States and internationally By Scott J. Budde November 16, 2008 Post a Comment Community and proactive investing refers to [socially ...


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