10.4.6 How to find a financial professional
- 10.4.1 Case study: Building a retirement income
- 10.4.2 Calculate retirement income
- 10.4.3 Supplementing your retirement income
- 10.4.4 Professional advice for retirement planning
- 10.4.5 Types of investment advisors
- 10.4.6 How to find a financial professional
- 10.4.7 Questions to ask
- 10.4.8 Video: Choosing a retirement planner
- 10.4.9 Preparing for retirement
- 10.4.10 Summary of key messages
You may have access to retirement planning advice through your workplace, union or professional association. You can also get some kinds of advice through your financial institution (but remember that the advisor may sell only the financial institution's products, and that the institution may not be equipped to give full planning advice, just about their products). You can ask friends and family for recommendations for financial planners or advisors they have found helpful.
If you don't know anyone who can refer you to a financial advisor, try these resources:
- Industry groups—Advisors belong to professional groups in their industry. You can search for advisors on their websites.
| Group name and website | What they do |
|---|---|
National self-regulatory organization that oversees all investment dealers, mutual fund dealers and trading activity on Canada’s debt and equity marketplaces |
|
Quebec’s self-regulatory organization for financial planners and mutual fund representatives |
|
Financial Advisors Association of Canada, representing financial advisors |
|
Organization that develops, enforces, and promotes standards for financial planning in Canada |
|
Quebec organization that grants financial planning diplomas and sets rules concerning the professional development of financial planners |
|
Representative of investment counsellors and portfolio managers in Canada |
- Securities regulators—By law, sellers of mutual funds, stocks and bonds must complete training and be registered. Regulators in each province and territory have lists of people who are registered to sell these products.
Select a few advisors that you think you might like to work with and interview them. Discuss your interests and needs, asking questions like those in the next section. Be sure that you are comfortable talking with them and see who offers the most complete answers to your questions.
Make sure that you check with your local securities regulator to see if a firm or individual is registered, the kind of registration they hold and whether they have a record of any disciplinary action. To find your local regulator go to the Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) website.
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