What to Expect

When you contact O’Donoghue Financial Planning, you can expect the process to proceed as follows:

Initial Inquiry

At the time of your initial inquiry, we will provide a description of our services, philosophies, and fee structure, as well as obtain a general understanding of your financial advisory needs and goals. If we both feel O’Donoghue Financial Planning offers the services that meet your needs and you would like to proceed, we will schedule a no-obligation "Get Acquainted" meeting. This meeting can take place in person or over the telephone based on your preference and generally lasts one half hour.

In order to better serve you, we ask that you complete the Confidential Questionnaire, downloadable from the client forms section of this website, prior to the Get Acquainted Meeting. This document outlines your goals, your current financial status, and provides us with a general understanding of your risk tolerance. Please fax this form to us in advance or bring it to the Get Acquainted Meeting.

Get Acquainted Meeting

During our half hour Get Acquainted Meeting we will discuss your goals and key financial issues as outlined in the Confidential Questionnaire. This is a good opportunity for both of us to decide if we will make a good financial team. You should make sure I am someone you are comfortable and confident working with. I will make sure I have the appropriate skills to meet your advisory needs.

At the conclusion of our Get Acquainted Meeting, I will provide you with a Service Agreement and fee estimate based upon the financial services you request. The Get Acquainted Meeting does not obligate you to retain our services. If you decide our philosophies are in line with yours and we can help guide you toward achievement of your goals, then we will need a signed Service Agreement and a deposit of one-half of the fee estimate or $500, whichever is less.

Plan Development

Once we agree to proceed, we will identify additional documentation required to complete your plan. A list of frequently required documentation is included in the Client Forms section of this website. If time permits and you have brought this documentation to the Get Acquainted Meeting, we can continue work on your financial plan. Otherwise, you can gather the specific items and fax or courier copies to our office. During this time we may have one or two phone conversations for clarification and fact checking.

Once all documentation has been received and issues clarified, we'll start developing your financial recommendations in the area(s) we've agreed upon. Your plan will be prepared based on your specific circumstances taking into account your risk tolerance. We do not believe in "get rich quick" schemes. We will plan for realistic financial progress toward your goals or advise you if goal modification needs to be considered. You can expect your plan to be ready in two to four weeks.

Presentation of Your Financial Plan

During this meeting we will fully discuss your financial plan for those areas agreed upon in the Service Agreement. Please feel free to ask questions. We encourage a two way discussion of your plan. You can expect the meeting to last about two hours depending on the complexity of your situation.

You will leave the meeting with a written, personalized financial plan covering those areas agreed to in the Service Agreement and a detailed action plan to implement the recommendations.

We expect that you may have additional questions after the meeting; therefore, an hour of follow-up can be included in your financial plan, as discussed below, if you wish.

Payment of the remaining fee is due at this time.

Implementation and Follow Up

You will implement your financial plan by following the detailed action plan provided at the conclusion of our meeting. Don't forget your hour of follow up to be used during the first two months from the presentation of your plan if you choose to include this service. You can use this time to clarify recommendations or to request a check up. If you require further assistance implementing your financial plan, we'll be glad discuss an additional engagement of project hours.

We do recommend you schedule regular financial check-ups similar to scheduling regular doctor check-ups or for major life events; however, there is no requirement or obligation to do so.