Our process
This section outlines a typical financial planning client experience. We may add or combine some of the meetings described to tailor our service to your needs.
Our 6 stage process
First meeting
The first meeting is at our expense. This is when we find out whether we can help you. It also gives you a chance to evaluate if we are the right firm for you.
The meeting is usually held at our offices here in Bury St Edmunds where there is plenty of parking.
We work on a no surprises philosophy. At the end of our meeting we can tell you exactly what any work will cost and how long it will take. You can then decide whether you want to engage PageRussell as your financial planners.
If you are happy to proceed, we issue our Terms of Business and a Client Agreement for the work agreed. We will also ask you to complete an investment risk questionnaire, an expenditure analysis and provide details about any financial products you own before the next meeting.
Discovery meeting
Between one and two weeks later we hold the Discovery meeting. The aim of this meeting is to establish your lifestyle goals and objectives to use in your financial plan.
We ask what’s important to you. How do you feel about money? What you’d like to achieve before and after you stop working? What does financial independence mean to you? World travel or daytime TV and baked beans on toast?
We then discuss the results of your investment risk questionnaire and conduct a simple (and painless) “stress test” to double check how you feel about investment volatility. We talk about how investments work and how we can expect different types of investment to perform differently throughout your financial plan.
We will ask you to sign letters of authority to enable us to write away for the detailed information we need on the financial products you own.
Finally, we’ll ask for a few extra details to enable us to construct your financial plan and provide the initial advice. If you can come to the meeting with as much information as possible that’s great. But it’s not an exam! We will have time to chase any outstanding details later.
After the meeting, we get busy gathering the information we need from you and your financial product providers. Then we analyse that information to build your plan. The time for this depends on how long it takes to get the information back from your product providers. (For example, final salary pension schemes can take over six weeks). But typically we would expect to present the diagnostic plan to you within a month.
Diagnostic plan
This is where we check we understand your financial situation correctly. Your diagnostic plan sets out where you are now financially, where you want to get to and highlights any gaps that need to be filled to get to your goals.
Depending on how complex your situation is, we may present your diagnostic plan separately or at the same time as the strategy meeting.
Strategy meeting
This is the fun bit and where the really valuable financial planning is done.
Before the meeting we construct a base plan and run through a few scenarios to get a feel for your situation. The decision on what strategy to follow is made in collaboration with you.
We use our cash flow modelling tool to show you how well the different strategies work and answer any “what if” questions.
By the end of the meeting we will have answered important questions such as: How much do you need to save? How much can you spend? When can you stop work? How much volatility risk you need to take with your investments? Or, how much can you safely give away now?
Depending on how complex your case is, we may also cover our recommendations for any tactical solutions we recommend. This is where we start talking about the detail and which ISAs, pensions, insurance, wills or other solutions we think you need.
After the meeting, we get busy again and confirm the agreed strategy (and tactics) in writing. Where necessary, clients can view their cash-flow model online.
Implementation
There is no point in having a plan if you don’t take action.
You can choose to implement our recommendations by yourself, although most clients ask for our help and we agree the cost of any work with you before we start.
We help you with the inevitable rain forest of paper that come with financial matters. We liaise with your accountants and solicitors where necessary. We stay in touch to ensure things go to plan and everything is implemented as you want.
And … you walk away confident, relaxed and happy that you know you are on track.
Review
Life has this irritating habit of changing things, whether it is tax or pension legislation, or your own goals and objectives. Financial planning only works if you check regularly that your plans are still on track and make the necessary changes if not.
We provide a review service at a cost agreed with you in advance.
This usually takes place a year after everything has been put in place. The process is similar to the financial planning process but a lot easier now that your plan is up and running.
If you are looking for a long-term partnership with a trusted guide to help you on your financial journey, call us to set up the first meeting 0845 345 6282.
