- If you just got a pay raise, it may be a good time to review your finances with a professional.
- Mary Beth Storjohann, a certified financial planner, says a raise or promotion can mean three things for your money: increased cash flow, a new tax bracket, and new benefits.
- If you don't already have an adviser and decide to seek professional advice, make sure to hire a fee-only financial planner.
- A fee-only financial adviser must be a fiduciary, meaning they are legally required to make recommendations in the best interest of their client, and they only earn money from client fees.
- If you're looking for help with your money, SmartAsset's free tool can help find a licensed professional near you »
If you just got a raise at work or landed a new job with a bigger paycheck, congratulations! Call your mom, text a friend - share the good news. And then, call your financial planner.
In an article published on Iris, an advice platform for business and finance professionals, Mary Beth Storjohann, a certified financial planner, author, and founder of the firm Workable Wealth, explained why a promotion, or simply a standard pay raise, is one of the top reasons to get in touch with your financial planner.
"Promotions, in particular, can be challenging to go through alone because there are so many different moving parts," Storjohann wrote. A bigger paycheck can mean three things for your money, she said: more cash flow, possibly a new tax bracket, and new benefits to consider.
"You may be excited about the increased pay and responsibility, but feel unsure about next best steps to maximize your wealth," she continued. "A financial planner can help you navigate your new financial situation, set goals, and take advantage of any new benefits or compensation options you've received."
Sure, it's possible to navigate the change on your own, but a professional may be worth the money. A new survey of 2,000 Americans by Northwestern Mutual found that 66% of the respondents who work with a financial adviser feel very financially secure, compared to 31% of those who don't work with an adviser.
If you don't yet have a financial planner on call and decide to seek professional advice, make sure you hire a fee-only financial planner - they act as fiduciaries, which requires them to put their client's interests first.
Fee-only financial advisers do not get paid commissions, whereas fee-based advisers do. Their only objective is to provide sound financial advice to the client, who is paying them an hourly fee, flat retainer fee, or asset under management fee. They cannot accept kickbacks from insurance companies or brokerage firms if that's where their client chooses to put their money.
In other words, a financial planner can help ensure your hard-won paycheck is put to the best possible use.
Disclosure: This post is brought to you by the Personal Finance Insider team. We occasionally highlight financial products and services that can help you make smarter decisions with your money. We do not give investment advice or encourage you to adopt a certain investment strategy. What you decide to do with your money is up to you. If you take action based on one of our recommendations, we get a small share of the revenue from our commerce partners. This does not influence whether we feature a financial product or service. We operate independently from our advertising sales team.
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