Typically, a plan will encapsulate how to make the best use of your income, cashflow and capital, all of which will affect your lifestyle. It will also highlight investments and savings opportunities, providing you with a sound understanding of your financial position and what can be achieved in relation to your appetite for risk and capacity for loss.

The first step would be to meet up with an adviser and be prepared to bare all things financial during a fact find. The stages of planning are then completed together via the following 3 stages:

FACT-FINDING

Together we need to prioritise your financial life according to your goals and aspirations. This will include details on health, lifestyle, assets & liabilities as well as income & expenditure so that we can accurately and realistically advise how you can achieve your goals.

ANALYSE & PLAN

We analyse your answers and recommend a plan to help you reach your expectations and goals.  We will also look to determine the order of your major life steps. The agreed plan can then be implemented and revisited annually.

ONGOING

Financial Planning is a long-term exercise. We will provide regular reviews to help identify what’s working for you and what is not, because things can change in a matter of months or even days. Your plan will be a living, breathing and moving feast, and we will share the journey with you.

We have access to the entire range of investment solutions offered by a range of fund managers. The investment strategy recommended will be tailored to you and could range from a low cost model portfolio solution to a more bespoke discretionary managed portfolio containing direct shares, bonds and structured products.

We assess our own Centralised Investment Proposition (CIP) against other strategies offered by discretionary fund managers and when our CIP is appropriate, we will recommend it. At all times we remain totally independent and will only recommend an investment which we believe offers you the best chance of achieving your desired return.

As part of our regular review process we will ensure that the investment solution recommended is working for you. We analyse the performance of your investments compared to your financial plan and when something isn’t working, we have no hesitation in recommending a change. By regularly monitoring the returns achieved by your investments we ensure that your financial plan remains on track to achieve your desired goals and objectives.

Buying a home will probably be the biggest financial commitment you make in your lifetime. It can be stressful as well as daunting – particularly for first-time buyers, so whether buying your first home, looking for a new one, downsizing or looking for an investment, planning is essential to ensure a smooth path to your eventual goal.

AFFORDABILITY

Before starting the home buying process, we need to establish the affordability of monthly payments, and therefore the amount you can borrow. We will need to complete a secure financial statement of your income and expenditure to see how much lenders are likely to offer you.

ESTIMATE & PLAN

We will help you to establish the overall costs of borrowing and buying your house. We will then search the whole of market to find the right fit for you and your circumstances and help you through the mortgage application process. We will stay with you through to a successful offer.

ONGOING SUPPORT

The mortgage market changes all the time. Whilst you may be very happy with your mortgage provider, there may be times when something better comes along that is perhaps more suitable to your economic or personal circumstances at that time.

Planning ahead of time makes family finances considerably easier to manage. Whether getting ready for a baby, for your children leaving home or getting married, you can make sure you have a plan in place for all eventualities.

In the same way you prepare for the good things, you can ensure you are always ready for the bad. Nobody plans a divorce, but if you find yourself in that situation, re-working budgets and finances is important to make sure both parties get a fair outcome.

ASSESSING THE RISKS

Whether you’re just starting a family or are already well into family life, we need to assess your requirements going forward. To develop a sustainable plan we need to understand the family dynamic, giving you both an idea of approaching costs, and peace of mind when they arrive.

PROJECT & PLAN

Based on your expectations, we will help you look forward into your timeline to anticipate costs of events and help construct a plan to ensure each one can be financed. It’s difficult to predict unexpected events, but unless the expected events are covered, the unexpected will dominate your available funds.

ONGOING SUPPORT

Because it’s impossible to know what will happen in the future, we can provide you with an ongoing review of your family plans and the events that have happened, and can still be expected. This will allow you to keep in touch with your finances and enable you to keep on track.

When the day comes to finally hang up your working shoes, you’ll need to know the best way your pension can work for you and your new found freedom. There’s a lot to think about; how to access it, whether to move it, can you keep adding to it? Maybe you need to plan what to leave as inheritance, and how to avoid inheritance tax for your nearest and dearest. It would also be useful to establish how to write a will, and how to plan your funeral.  It may seem drastic and a little depressing, but we all need later life planning!

ASSESSING NEEDS

There is no wrong time to start a pension plan. Whatever your age, we need to build an in-depth appreciation of assets & liabilities, so we can begin to piece together an accurate picture of your personal balance sheet. With this, we can put together your plan to build up your nest egg for the future.

RETIREMENT PLAN

Based on your net wealth, we will be able to help you put together a retirement plan based on your goals, needs and desires for your lifestyle in retirement. This will involve establishing the size of the pot required to achieve, and the cost of funding it from the remainder of your working life.

ONGOING SUPPORT

Regular reviews of your pension, its projected worth and the contributions you are making, will be needed to ensure your retirement lifestyle is still on track. Of course it may change over time, as inevitable circumstances arise, so contributions may need to increase or reduce accordingly.

However, when up and running, it can be incredibly rewarding, delivering a service that you are passionate about. It pays dividends to employ the services of an independent financial adviser to navigate your way through the financial requirements and responsibilities you will have as a small business owner.

FACT-FINDING

Together we need to prioritise your financial milestones according to your business plan, goals and aspirations. This will include details on Assets & Liabilities as well as Income & Expenditure so that we can accurately and realistically advise how you can honour your responsibilities as a business owner.

ANALYSE & PLAN

We analyse your plan and its implications so that we can recommend a financial plan to help you achieve your goals, and determine the order of the steps you need to take. Your agreed financial plan can be actioned for all involved in the business to follow.

ONGOING

Financial planning is a long-term exercise. We will provide regular reviews to help identify what’s working for you, and what is not, because in business, circumstances often change in a matter of months or even days. Your plan will be a living, breathing and moving feast, and we will share the journey with you.