Why Choose a CFP®?

Did you know that today almost anyone can claim to be a “financial planner”? It’s true. But not just anyone can call himself or herself a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional.

As a consumer, it’s important to understand the difference. Allow us to take this opportunity to explain why.

We have earned the right to call ourselves a CFP^® professional because we have voluntarily agreed to meet the education, examination and experience standards. We participate in ongoing professional education. And we have agreed to follow a strict code of professional conduct in order to help maintain the CFP^® designation.

The standards we adhere to are promulgated and enforced by CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ Board of Standards Inc. CFP Board refers to these standards as “the 4Es.”

• Education. We completed an education requirement to demonstrate to CFP Board that we have the theoretical and practical financial planning knowledge to practice personal financial planning. In addition, every two years, we also complete a minimum of 30 hours of continuing education to stay current with developments in the field.
• Examination. We passed an exam administered by CFP^® Board to test our understanding of the financial planning process, tax planning, employee benefits, retirement planning, financial estate planning, investment management and insurance.
• Experience. Before earning the CFP^® certification, we fulfilled a minimum of three years’ experience in the financial planning process.
• Ethics. We agree to abide by CFP Board’s Code of Ethics and Professional Responsibility. The Code of Ethics requires CFP^® certificates to act fairly and diligently, with integrity and objectivity, when providing financial planning services to clients. We also have agreed to submit to background checks by the CFP Board and have promised to disclose any investigation or legal proceedings related to our professional or business conduct.

If you are looking for a way to possibly measure a financial planner’s commitment to ethical behavior and adherence to high professional standards…if you are looking for a financial planner who commits to putting you and your needs at the core of every financial planning engagement…we suggest that you look for a CFP^® professional.

But don’t just take our word for it. Interview several financial planners to choose the one with whom you feel most comfortable and who best meets your needs.

It’s never too early and never too late to take charge of your financial future. To learn more, we encourage you to visit CFP Board’s Website at CFP.net/learn. We would be pleased to meet with you and answer your questions.