My dh and I met with a financial planner today that was recommended by a friend. We don't have a lot of money but I feel we need to manage finances and other money matters better. Does anyone have experience with using a financial planner?

Yes, we've had two. The first one wasn't very good. He didn't really listen to our needs and had us invest everything in aggressive growth funds. We changed because we felt he treated us as less important because we had less money.

Our new person is really good. She was SHOCKED that he only had us in one investment and all in an aggressive growth one. Fortunately it happened in a good couple of years and we doubled the whole thing but it could have easily gone the other way. They can be good but if you aren't happy with the service or if you feel pressured into buying things to make him more money, it's ok to switch. I felt guilty switching until we found out just how bad the first one was.

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Yes, we've used one. I think it's important to shop around; find someone who you trust and feel very comfortable with. Ask around to get some good recommendations, and even interview prospective planners before you decide who to use.

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We met with one several years ago. I was pg and planning on being a SAHM. My income was less than 20% of our overall income - and we knew we'd have at least our car payments done before baby arrived - they tried to convince me we couldn't make it with me staying home. We've not tried another one yet.

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Stephanie (27) & Virgil (31)
Caden 3 y.o. 11/28/04 29w preemie
Wyatt 17 mos. 9/25/06
#3 due 8/24/08

Where do you find a good financial planner???

I see mybank has them, wondering if it would be a good idea to talk to one of them about what we need.

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Meghan8.Samantha7,Cameron4

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dh had one b4 we were married. he basically managed dh's money from his dads insurance settlement. I knew he sucked when he was not happy about dh using money for college.
well we went to see him right after we got married and we was not happy again b/c we don't have large grandious retirement plans. we were planning on dropping him and he dropped us first b/c we didn't want to invest in our own future.

we actually found one at a home and garden show. it's a small firm, three people. they are the same age as us and understand the needs of just starting the family and the smaller amounts we are able to invest for now.

allgirls

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allgirls, mom to 3 girls

we have one...we got him through a recommendation of someone we really trusted. he manages dh's 403(b) account

Thanks for your advise everyone. We decided to try this one and give him a year to see how he does. My dh wanted to speak with his cousin who has a masters degree in accounting and finance to see what he thought. He said to try the group out and not to be afraid to tell them no if you're not happy with how situations are being handled. We have financial goals that we are trying to achieve and have yet to be able to do so. We have been married for 17 years this year and seem to be just making it by each month. Wish us luck and I'll keep you posted!

We just started working with one.
We agreed that the first year we would mostly be focused on paying off consumer debt and getting more into IRAs and investments next year, and she was perfectly fine with that and gave us tons of free resources for debt repayment excel sheets and is helping us make a plan.

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:love: Our second baby is due April 7th 2007!! :love:

I've used a financial planner for over 10 years, mainly because I was clueless about anything other than a simple savings account. Now my dh explains things to me.
If you're still looking for a planner, see if you can get recommendations from people whose advice you trust and who seem to be in a similar financial situation as you are. When you do meet with someone, be leery if he or she suggests putting all your eggs in one basket. A good planner should be able to put together a nice balance for you and justify each choice in language you can understand.

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~Jeweled