Your wealth management team should build around your financial planner, the trusted adviser and hub of your wealth management decision-making team. Other important members of the team, include your accountant, your banker and a finance broker.
Will your banker provide you with the best mortgage to suit your financial needs – objectively and without risking a conflict of interest?
Are you confident that you have been listened to when explaining your mortgage finance needs?
Would you commit to any other investment of similar value (as that of a property purchase), with borrowings at such a high proportion of the investment, without first seeking financial advice?
Those of you who work with us with one of our ongoing advice service packages that include direct meetings with your adviser, will be familiar with our preference to work collaboratively with the other advisers that form your wealth management team: advisers such as those mentioned above, as well as insurance brokers and estate planning specialists.
The Continuum Financial Planners contract with clients is to provide you with personalised, professional services. Our mantra is that we will listen to what you say; that we will confirm our understanding of your financial needs, goals and objectives; and that we will provide solutions to your wealth management dilemmas. We back that process up with ensuring that you understand the strategy we recommend to you – and the products used to implement that strategy. How does this translate to the collaborative relationships with those other specialists?
The following diagram depicts how the wealth management team relationships work in respect of a property acquisition (or refinance) requiring funding arrangements to be put in place: in other circumstances, there may be a different professional better suited to be at the hub of the engagement and/ or participating in it –
Figure 1: Collaboration Relationship diagram
In this diagram the Broker we recommend is a Finance Broker: and the Specialist Consultant roles could well include a property agent and/ or a building inspector. (If a Bank Manager is to be involved in the process, they could either be in place of the Finance Broker or preferably, additional to the property agent.) The roles of the key advisers listed are as follows:-
- Financial Planner: determine your investor risk aversion profile; collate details of your financial needs, goals and objectives; recommend wealth management strategy bearing in mind available timeframes, liquidity and portfolio diversification.
- Accountant: confirm the financial viability of the intended direct investments; advise on taxation implications of making the investment; confirm the appropriateness of the structure in which the investment is to be made (bearing in mind the taxation consequences). Provision of financial reports to financier.
- Lawyer(s): ensure that any contractual arrangements are beneficial to you and correctly performed (in relation to the purchase and the financing); advise in relation to any estate planning consequences (including the method title is held); account for the transactions involved after liaising with the relevant parties involved.
- Finance Broker: armed with an understanding of your wealth management strategy, the financial capacity you have to service borrowing, the broker will consider the wide range of available mortgage arrangements and assist you with the loan application/ approval/ settlement process.
Through successful projects on behalf of clients over many years, Continuum Financial Planners has a range of professionals and consultants that can be recommended to undertake the various complementary roles in your wealth management team. If you already have somebody that you work with, we are always available to discuss strategies devised for you so as to ensure that an outcome in your best interest is achieved.
When next you consider a property acquisition – or a refinance of existing property – we recommend that you contact your financial planner: either by phone at (07) 3421 3456; or through our Contact-Us page on our website.
