Where Can You Get Qualified Financial Help In Retiremen

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By Larry Klein

The needs of people in retirement or about to retiree are
different than those of baby boomers. Yet all you see in
articles is advice for baby boomers on how to prepare for
retirement. What about help for those age 60+ who have already
cashed in their chips or about to do so?

Good news. There has been increased education, albeit slowly,
for financial advisors to help people in retirement. But be
careful about the several designations you may see.

The most widely held senior designation, Certified Senior
Advisor (CSA) is not a financial training at all. Although many
financial professionals gain this designation, so do nurses,
gerontologists, funeral home directors and others dealing with
older people. The designation is really a training in
communication skills and issues of aging and not in financial
issues.

The Certified Retirement Financial Advisor designation (CRFA)
is ONLY for financial professionals that have at least 2 years
experience in financial services. The enrollees seek to polish
their retiree-specific financial knowledge and the course
covers every aspect of financial concerns to someone in their
retirement years: how to avoid tax on social security income,
how to liquidate assets for the lowest or zero capital gains
tax, how to utilize section 72 rules for early retirees who
need to tap their retirement funds before age 59 ½, IRS
sections 1035 and 1031 exchanges for tax deferral, Roth IRA
conversions, how to minimize taxes on IRA distributions, how to
build retiree portfolios for greater secure income, how to
create low risk equity portfolios, training in estate planning
and asset protection, long term care planning and related tax
issues, trusts, advance directives, integration of your
retirement plan and estate plan, asset titling issues,
beneficiary selection for retirement accounts and other assets.
Fifteen hours of continuing education is required annually to
maintain the designation.

The other legitimate designation is Chartered Advisor for
Senior Living (CASL). However, of the 5 courses that graduates
must complete, 2 of them are general and not retiree specific.
Fifteen hours of continuing education is required every 2 years
to maintain the designation.

Be cautious of any other designations held by a financial
advisor who contends that the designation has prepared him to
give appropriate financial advice for people in retirement.
There are several designations that have no substance and are
programs designed to make a financial sales person look like a
professional.

Here are some simple questions you can ask a retirement
planner. If the professional cannot answer them easily, then
move on:

How can IRS section 1031 help me (it helps people divest real
estate without current taxation)

What is the lowest possible rate on capital gains that I could
possibly qualify for (5% currently, 0% starting in 2008)

Can anyone convert their IRA to a Roth IRA (their modified
adjusted gross income must be under $100,000 currently)

If I want to leave my IRA to my 3 children, do I need to split
it into 3 accounts (no, the children can split the IRA after
your death into 3 accounts)

Will a living trust help me save taxes (no—the benefits of a
living trust that cannot be accomplished otherwise is the
avoidance of probate and privacy)

What’s the difference between an annuitant driven and owner
driven annuity (all annuities are owner driven—if the owner
dies, the owners beneficiary gets the proceeds)

Can I lose money with an equity indexed annuity (yes, if you
withdraw funds during the surrender period, the surrender
charge could be larger than anything you have earned resulting
in a loss)

Why shouldn’t I put my sons name on my accounts as joint tenant
so he inherits them directly if I die (you can be deemed to have
given a gift which may have tax consequences and you have
exposed jointly held assets to your son’s creditors).

About the Author:Larry Klein CPA/PFS, CFP(r) is president of the Society of Certified Retirement Financial Advisors. He has several educational web sites for retirees linked from Retirement Financial Advisor.
Source: http://www.isnare.com