Credentials Matter
CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER PRACTITIONER®
Why hire a CFP®?
4 key reasons; Education - Ethics - Exam - Experience.
When you hire a CFP® professional, you work with an advisor who has met rigorous qualifications for financial planning. The course load is extensive, the exams are thorough and they must extensive experience working in the practice areas. Most important, a CFP® professional has made a commitment to the CFP Board to act in the best interests of their client. CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNING PRACTIONERS have demonstrated the knowledge required to deliver holistic financial planning. They meet the legal standard of a fiduciary.
CFP® practitioners are rigorously trained in 72 areas of financial expertise. They must accrue thousands of hours of experience. They have to master every topic on integrated financial planning. There is also a CFP Certification Examination of 170 questions that tests their ability to apply their financial knowledge in an integrated format. Based on regular research of what planners do, the exam covers the financial planning process, tax planning, employee benefits and retirement planning, estate planning, investment management and insurance. Only those who have fulfilled the certification and renewal requirements of the CFP board can display the CFP® certification marks. When selecting a financial planner, you need to feel confident that the person you choose to help you plan for your future is competent and ethical. The CFP® certification can help provide a sense of security by allowing only those who meet the education, examination, experience and ethics requirements the right to use the CFP mark.
CFP Brochure
Chartered Financial Consultant® (ChFC®)
A Chartered Financial Consultant is a designation earned by experienced professionals upon completion of a comprehensive course of financial education which includes estate planning and employee benefits. The designation is granted by the American College upon completion of all coursework. Those who earn the designation are understood to be knowledgeable in financial matters and to have the ability to provide sound advice and have a mastery of more than 100 integrated advanced financial planning topics, including:
- Estate Planning
- Insurance Planning
- Retirement Planning
- Financial Planning Process and Environment
- Income Tax Planning
- Employee Benefits Planning
- Asset Protection Planning
- Estate Tax, Transfer Tax, and Gift Tax Planning
- Comprehensive Financial Planning and Consulting
The curriculum helps financial professionals work with the unique needs of alternative families, divorces, and special needs planning.
Chartered Life Underwriter® (CLU®)
The Chartered Life Underwriter (CLU) is widely regarded as the gold standard of life insurance professionals and insurance planning. It is a designation that shows expertise in life insurance, estate planning, and business planning.
CLUs must complete a series of courses and exams to earn the designation granted by The American College of Financial Services.
The CLU designation is one of the oldest and most respected credentials in financial services, dating back to the late 1920s. It represents a thorough understanding of a broad array of personal risk management and life insurance planning issues. The program also stresses ethics, professionalism, and in-depth knowledge when delivering advice in the areas of life insurance, business planning, and estate planning.
CLU professionals analyze the client's financial life and identify life and health insurance needs as well as personal property and liability risks. They determine ways to achieve greater financial security through life insurance and annuity products. They are astute at helping successful businesses with strategic organizational and preventive planning, such as buy-sells and key man insurance. A CLU can help enhance estate value, conserve existing assets, and provide for financial security during retirement.
Retirement Income Certified Professional® (RICP®)
A Retirement Income Certified Professional (RICP) refers to a financial professional who specializes in retirement income planning. The educational courses are available to experienced professionals who already have an appropriate degree plus another broad-based financial planning designation. This designation is earned once the program is completed at The American College of Financial Professionals which is a not-for-profit college located in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania. RICPs provide advice to retirees and near retirees as to the best way to use the assets they have accumulated for retirement to live comfortably within a realistic budget and not run out of money prematurely. This designation and specialty is important because the tactics used to build an investment portfolio are inherently different than those employed to make those funds last a lifetime.
Chartered Advisor for Senior Living® (CASL®)
Chartered Advisor for Senior Living (CASL) is a professional certification earned by financial advisors who help clients near and in retirement work towards achieving financial stability. To qualify, an advisor must first demonstrate a commitment to helping clients preserve assets through prudent wealth management, preservation and estate planning.
The CASL is granted by The American College after 300 hours of study, five college-level courses and 3 - 5 years of relevant work experience, in addition to continuing education exams every two years. The program provides further training to help advisors become more proficient at crafting income and investment strategies that are more relevant to older clients, such as long-term health care planning and legacy planning. Coursework includes:
- Aging successfully
- Family relationships and living arrangements for older individuals
- Health care needs
- Health insurance coverage prior to age 65
- Medicare coverage
- Medicaid planning
- Types of property ownership
- Trusts
- Tax planning and estate taxes
- Ways to transfer assets
It also covers types of investments; the risk and return associated with different types of securities; how investment markets work; portfolio building; planning for retirement distributions; claiming Social Security; continued investment throughout retirement; and retirement housing.
The five required courses to obtain the CASL designation, which take an average of 18 months to earn, are:
- Understanding the Older Client
- Health and Long-Term Care Financing for Seniors
- Financial Decisions for Retirement
- Investments
- Fundamentals of Estate Planning
Chartered Leadership Fellow® (CLF®)
The CLF® educational program is offered by The American College of Financial Services. It provides financial services managers with the knowledge and tools needed to achieve key organizational goals, such as recruitment and retention, setting performance standards, and developing business plans. The curriculum features an effective mix of courses fine-tuned for leadership and organizational success. Graduates and designees of The American College of Financial Services have studied, passed rigorous exams, and proven that they not only have the technical knowledge to serve their clients, but have sworn to practice ethically and in the best interest of the people they serve.