While most Americans are more concerned about their personal finances now than they were two years ago, they're not necessarily seeking out financial planners for help, according to a poll released today.
Nearly two-thirds of those surveyed said they believe the economy will improve but are more worried than they were at the beginning of the financial meltdown in 2008, according to the survey by the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Inc.
But the survey showed that only 28% of the respondents have a financial planner, nearly the same number as before the crisis.
The recent financial turmoil offers an opportunity for financial planners to provide the security that Americans are seeking, according to Robert Glovsky, president of Mintz Levin Financial Advisors and chairman of the CFP Board.
“People want certainty, they want direction,” Mr. Glovsky said. “They are yearning for something to be done that will get us back to some sense of ‘normal.'”
About 46% of those surveyed expect that their financial situation will neither improve nor deteriorate over the next six months, while 37% said that their circumstances will improve, according to the survey by the CFP Board.
When asked to characterize how they feel about the financial future, 33% of respondents said “cautious,” while 26% said “calm” and 25% “concerned.”
“The confidence of Americans in their personal finances still remains shaky nearly two years after the start of the current financial crisis in the late summer of 2008,” said Mr. Glovsky.
The CFP Board commissioned the poll of 1,002 people conducted on July 7 and 8 by Penn Schoen Berland, a Washington, D.C., firm. The survey was conducted as part of the CFP Board's recognition of its 25th anniversary, which is Saturday.
“While the views of Americans are trending positive, the survey does find that there are still scars that remain to be healed,” said Jay Leveton, managing director of Penn Schoen Berland. “People remain on guard and in some ways on edge.”
Mr. Glovsky said that a lack of
trust in planners is one obstacle the sector has to overcome to increase its number of clients. The other problem is a misperception that planners only serve the wealthy.
“CFP professionals are interested in putting together soup-to-nuts financial plans for middle-class Americans as well as those who have a high net worth,” Mr. Glovsky said. “There are a lot of talented certified professional planners who do [target] the middle class and their needs. Most advisers are in that market.”
In order to bolster the planning profession, the CFP Board is advocating tighter federal regulation. It backed a provision in the financial regulatory reform bill that calls for a Government Accountability Office study of the sector that could lead to another CFP priority — a federal oversight board.
CFP hopes that the enhanced rigor will reassure potential clients about the soundness of the advice they're getting from planners.
“These survey findings show that financial planners in the U.S. have their work cut out for them,” Mr. Glovsky said. “We will play an important role in helping restore the confidence of Americans in the financial market.”
