Financial doctor can keep your family in good health

WHAT is the medical general practitioner's role, and why do we have our own "family doctor"?


In most cases there is a close relationship between the family doctor and the members of the family. It goes a lot deeper than just medical advice.

He (or she) has been involved in births, deaths, serious illnesses and very often psychological problems. He knows how to handle each member of the family, what their likes or dislikes, hobbies and professions are, and probably sees his aim as ensuring overall family health rather than diagnosis and treatment of specific ailments.

As much as we rely on these "members of the family" they are not specialists. They may be able to perform a minor operation, but they aren't surgeons. One of their key roles is to identify where specialist treatment is necessary. They are the key component of overall health protection - not the specialist.

As the GP is part of the family and the overall controller of physical health, so too should there be a family doctor for financial matters.

This "financial doctor" must have a solid basis in knowledge of all areas relating to the family's finances.

These would include issues such as risk and debt management, investment and retirement planning, tax structuring and estate planning as well as fund manager selection. This financial doctor should also have six to seven years of training and be able to show (as a medical GP can do) he has a solid grounding in these areas.

He should also be able to call on the specialists, such as the fund managers, the tax advisers, and estate administrators, when required.

Confusion often exists over the roles of financial adviser and fund manager. It's really quite simple. If you went to a fund manager (whose skill should be in share selection) and presented him with your entire financial scenario, he would not have the expertise to produce an overall plan. Just the same as going to a surgeon to ask about a torn muscle will probably also be a waste of time.

A good financial adviser should be as close and as important to your family as a good family doctor. The real problem is that it is much more difficult to select a financial doctor as there are no minimum standards.

How do you know whether the financial adviser is a "financial doctor" or simply a retreaded insurance salesman? You need to spend time scrutinising the infrastructural support, the way his business is being run, qualifications, and most importantly, how he will make money out of you. This will tell you whether he is interested in your long-term health, or merely going to perform some surgery to separate you from your money.

Source: http://www.btimes.co.za/98/0705/btmoney/money10.htm