10 Signs It’s Time to Hire a Financial Advisor
Many people assume financial advisors are only for retirement or after a major windfall. In reality, clients often begin working with an advisor when their financial lives start to feel heavier, not necessarily because something is wrong, but because more decisions, trade-offs, and consequences are in play.
If you’re wondering whether it might be time to bring in professional guidance, here are some common signs.
1. Your Financial Life Has Become More Complex
As income rises and opportunities expand, finances often become less straightforward. Multiple accounts, investment types, tax considerations, insurance decisions, equity compensation, and business interests can turn what once felt manageable into something fragmented. At that point, the challenge isn’t effort; it’s coordination.
2. Financial Decisions Are Taking More Time Than You’d Like
Managing money can start to feel like a second job. Tracking investments, staying current on tax rules, reviewing insurance coverage, and revisiting financial plans year after year adds up. Many people hire an advisor not because they can’t do it, but because they’d rather spend their time elsewhere.
3. You’re Worried About Making Costly Mistakes
As balances grow, small missteps can have larger consequences. Timing a decision poorly, overlooking tax implications, or reacting emotionally in volatile markets can be hard to undo. The right financial advisor provides a framework for decision-making that helps reduce the odds of avoidable errors.
4. You Need Better Coordination Across Financial Areas
Investments don’t exist in a vacuum. Neither do taxes, estate plans, insurance, or charitable goals. When these areas aren’t coordinated, well-intended decisions in one place can create friction somewhere else. Many people reach out to a financial planner when they want everything working in concert rather than as disconnected pieces.
5. Taxes Are Becoming a Bigger Variable
At higher income levels, taxes are no longer just a filing exercise; they’re a planning issue. Questions around timing income, managing gains and losses, selecting charitable strategies, and completing multi-year planning start to matter more. This is often a turning point for seeking professional guidance.
6. You’re Navigating a Major Life Transition
Certain moments introduce decisions you may only face once: a business sale, inheritance, divorce, career change, early retirement, or loss of a spouse. During these periods, the stakes are higher, and the margin for error is thinner. This leads many people to want an experienced perspective.
7. You Want More Flexibility in How You Use Your Money
Eventually, the question shifts from “Am I saving enough?” to “How should I draw from what I’ve built?” Deciding which accounts to use, how to fund major purchases, or how to create optionality around work, travel, or giving often requires more nuanced planning.
8. You’re Thinking About Risk Differently
Risk stops being about beating benchmarks and becomes about protecting lifestyle and long-term goals. Concentration risk, sequence-of-returns risk, liquidity needs, and downside scenarios matter more. A wealth manager can help frame risk in practical, real-world terms rather than abstract metrics.
9. Your Finances Feel Overbuilt or Disorganized
Over time, accounts and strategies accumulate. Old employer plans, overlapping investments, legacy insurance policies, or half-finished ideas can add complexity without adding value. Many clients come in simply wanting clarity around what they have and why they have it.
10. You Want Help Staying Disciplined During Uncertain Markets
Even confident investors can struggle during periods of volatility. Having an external decision partner can help keep actions aligned with long-term priorities instead of short-term noise—especially when emotions are running high.
How Parkshore Wealth Management Can Help
At Parkshore Wealth Management, we work with clients facing exactly these kinds of questions. As a fee-only, fiduciary firm, our advice is focused on helping clients make informed decisions across investments, taxes, retirement planning, and broader financial strategy, without product sales or commissions.
We serve individuals and families virtually and from our locations in Granite Bay and Folsom, California, and Lehi and Logan, Utah.
If you recognize yourself in several of the signs above, it may be a good time to have a conversation. We regularly help clients organize complexity, evaluate trade-offs, and bring structure to financial decisions as life evolves.
If you’d like to explore whether working with a financial advisor makes sense for your situation, we invite you to schedule a chat. The goal is simply to see whether we’re a good fit and whether we can add value to the questions you’re already asking.
Schedule a complimentary, 15-minute chat with a fee-only, fiduciary financial advisor to discuss your personal situation.
This material was written in collaboration with artificial intelligence (ChatGPT) derived from sources believed to be accurate. This information should not be construed as investment, tax, or legal advice.
Parkshore Wealth Management is an independent, fee-only Registered Investment Advisor with offices in Granite Bay and Folsom, CA, and Lehi and Logan, UT. We partner with financially responsible individuals and families who are eager to take positive steps that will allow them to use their money to build the life they desire. The firm is led by Daniel Andersen, CFP®, a member of NAPFA, the country’s leading professional association of fee-only financial advisors.