Do I need a financial adviser? Seven reasons you may need a Chichester based adviser to help you achieve your goals

Financial planning involves sitting down and working out what’s important to you and your family and strategically planning how you will meet your financial goals. It requires an honest look at how you are doing and where you see yourself in the future so you can build a comprehensive plan to get there.

Financial Planning Tip 1: Make time for establishing your financial goals

Perhaps the most important financial planning tip we could give you is to take the necessary time for financial planning. This involves establishing your short, medium and long-term goals. You need to know what you want to achieve and by when. This exercise will help you understand your own needs and expectations, and it will also help you realise when your goals have been achieved. You need something to use as a quantitative yardstick to measure success and progress.

This stage of financial planning may involve looking at what large purchases you expect to make, such as purchasing property or renovating your home. You might also consider the later stages of life and when you’ll retire. It’s best to discuss your goals with those you’re closest to and make plans together so that you are well-aligned.

Financial Planning Tip 2: Evaluate your current financial position

A brutally honest evaluation of your assets, liabilities, incomings and outgoings will provide you with a starting point. You’ll be able to see clearly how you’re doing and may find areas you can improve on. One example is debt. Debt can often have high interest, so when you begin your financial planning journey, you may decide that now is the right time to pay it off.

The reason this financial planning tip is so important is because many of us are out of step with regards to our financial planning. Financial risk protection plays a vital role in any financial plan as it helps protect you and your family from unexpected events. You should ensure you have adequate protection that, if needed, can help your loved ones in the case of an emergency.

Financial Planning Tip 3: Check you’re using all of your tax allowances

Utilising your tax allowances and reliefs are an effective way of reducing your tax liability and making considerable savings over a lifetime. The UK tax system is complex and its legislation often changes, so it’s best to work with a financial planner who can consider how your individual circumstances affect the benefits you may be able to find and take care of your tax planning. They can ensure you’re making the most of tax allowances, so you don’t end up paying more than you need to.

Financial Planning Tip 4: Create a financial plan

At this point, you’ll have a good idea of what your goals are and where you currently are. The next step is to plan for where you want to get to, which will likely involve looking at how much you need to save and invest on a regular basis to achieve your goals.

A financial planner can help to make recommendations on the ways you can invest your money across the most suitable asset classes for you.

There are other elements to include in your plan:

– Putting in place a will to protect your family

– Thinking about how your family will manage without your income should you fall ill or die prematurely

– Creating a more efficient tax strategy.

If you are just getting started and you’re doing this on your own, remember that your financial plan doesn’t need to be perfect. What’s most important is that you get everything down on paper so you can better visualise your plan, which will make it more real for you.

Financial Planning Tip 5: Set a budget and stick to it

When you are trying to get ahead financially and achieve your financial goals, budgeting is hugely important. If you want to know where your money is going and how much is being saved, you need to budget. If you set a realistic budget and make an effort to stick to it each month, you stand to save hundreds (or even thousands) of pounds each year. What's more, budgeting will really highlight how prone you are to impulse buying, which will help you curb your habit.

Financial Planning Tip 6: Plan for retirement

Retirement is a time that many look forward to, where your hard-earned money should support you as you transition to the next stage of life. Unfortunately, when it comes to retirement planning, not everyone has concrete plans in place.

The number of options available at retirement has increased with changes to legislation, which has brought about pensions freedoms over the years. The decisions you make regarding how you take your benefits may include tax-free cash, buying an annuity, drawing an income from your savings rather than pension fund, or a combination.

Beginning your retirement planning early gives you the best chance of making sure you have adequate funds to support your lifestyle. You may have several pension pots with different employers, as well as your own savings to withdraw from. This financial planning tip can be hugely effective at giving you peace of mind when you need it the most.

Financial Planning Tip 7: Monitor and review your financial plan

There is no point in making a plan and never returning to it. You should expect to make iterations as life changes.

Set a formal yearly review at the very least to check you are on track to meeting your goals. Meeting with a financial planner for this is highly beneficial as they can provide an objective third-party view, as well as the expertise to help advise you with financial planning issues. While this will carry a cost (which will be outlined before any chargeable work takes place), it’s highly likely that this will be more cost-effective in the long term.

Financial planning can be a lengthy process which some people find intimidating. Though these financial planning tips will help you get started, you might want some extra help or questions relating to financial planning.

Capital at risk

If you would like to know more then please get in touch with one of experts at our Chichester office: Email: [email protected]

Telephone: 0203 995 5925. Address: 2 Chapel Street, Chichester, PO19 1BU