8 Questions to Ask a Financial Advisor, Ep # 138

With the recent market volatility, people are looking for financial advisors now more than ever. But how can you choose a financial advisor that's right for you? I created a PDF with 8 questions to ask a financial advisor when you are looking. I'll discuss these 8 questions as well as answer 2 listener questions and discuss the retirement headlines on this episode of Retirement Starts Today. Outline of This Episode [1:42] What is the best way to take Social Security benefits? [5:15] A 60/40 question [11:55] 8 Questions to ask a potential financial advisor [19:21] Nationwide has decided to have 50% of their staff work from home permanently How to decide the best way to take Social Security benefits Often in a marriage, the Social Security benefits vary greatly between the 2 partners. One may be much larger than the other. So how should you determine which one to take when? Many people don't realize that if one spouse has a very small or even no Social Security benefit they are actually entitled to half of their spouse's benefit. Find out how to decide what to do if one of the Social Security benefits is much smaller than the other by listening to this episode of Retirement Starts Today. You can also check out one of the Social Security calculators on the Social Security website. How much bond diversity should you have in your bond portfolio? I often call the 60-40 portfolio the swiss army knife of portfolios for a good reason. The 60% in stocks is for growth and the 40% in bonds is for short term spending. A listener asks how diversified their bond portfolio should be. I think that just like your stock portfolio, your bond portfolio should be as diversified as possible. It should include short term, intermediate-term, and long term bonds. These types of bonds have different levels of volatility.  8 Questions to ask a financial advisor With the recent market volatility, people are looking for financial advisors now more than ever. But how do you find the right financial advisor to meet your needs? I created a free PDF of questions you can ask potential financial advisor candidates. Included are these questions: Are your questions truly in my best interest? Will your recommendations be focused in one area or will they be comprehensive? Do you have the knowledge and experience to help me achieve my financial goals? How many clients do you serve and how does their situation compare to mine? How often will I hear from you? What will my total investment expense be? Will you help me solve any financial problems I may encounter? Where do you keep my money and how can I see it? Download the PDF to see the full questions and my answers. A Fortune 100 company plans to have 50% of their staff work from home permanently This pandemic has shown that many people can do their jobs from a home office. One company plans to continue this trend in the long term by having 50% of their staff work from home. This is a huge benefit for the company and will save them a lot of money on commercial real estate, but the potential benefits for employees looking for flexibility is even greater. Many people looking to retire are really looking for time flexibility. If your company offered you a semi-retirement option where you could work from home and have flexible hours would you take it? How many more working years would that afford you? This may be the wave of the future.  Resources & People Mentioned Social Security calculators Download your free PDF with the 8 questions to ask a potential financial advisor Investment News article about people seeking financial advisors Biz Journal article about Fortune 100 company closing offices Connect with Benjamin Brandt Get the Retire-Ready Toolkit:http://retirementstartstodayradio.com/ Follow Ben on Twitter:https://twitter.com/retiremeasap Subscribe to Retirement Starts Today on Apple Podcasts,Stitcher,TuneIn,Podbean,Player FM,iHeart, or Spotify