Yes, You Do Need a Financial Planner — If You Can Find the Right One

You don’t have to be rich to use financial-planning services, but you should be smart about who you trust with your money

Erin Lowry
Forge

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Photo: JGI/Jamie Grill/Getty Images

ToTo a lot of people, using a financial planner is a move that feels like it belongs in the same category as hiring a personal shopper, or paying someone to come cook your meals for you: Sure, it’d be nice, but it’s also an unnecessary luxury that generally falls within the purview of the wealthy. You may not be a professional, but you can pick out your own clothes and make your own food just fine; same goes for managing your finances.

But while financial planning may have a reputation as a service used mostly by those who already have money, it’s not as exclusive or inaccessible as it seems. In recent years, the industry has undergone a bit of a transformation to bring itself more in touch with people from a wider variety of ages and backgrounds.

“You don’t have to be rich to use a financial planner,” says Kali Roberge, a financial writer and podcaster. “That might have been true in the past, but it’s not the case anymore. There are tons of planners out there who are in their twenties, thirties, and forties, and who want to work with their peers and understand your life stage and…

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Erin Lowry
Forge

Writer, speaker, and author of Broke Millennial: Stop Scraping By and Get Your Financial Life Together and Broke Millennial Takes On Investing.