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There are more than a few factors to consider when deciding whether to work with a financial advisor. Here’s a look at some key boxes to check before deciding.
Are they a fiduciary? Do they have a disciplinary record? That’s just for starters.
Here’s a look at several questions to put to a financial professional you’re considering.

Customer shaking hands with car salesman buying a car
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Several considerations go into selecting a financial advisory firm, especially if you are in your prime working years and have plenty of time left before you retire.
For one, think about whether the advisors are fiduciaries. More and more investors today want to work with a professional who provides advice (versus selling products) and is legally obligated to consider a client’s best interest.

Also, do the advisors have a good disciplinary record? A violation doesn’t mean an advisor is a crook. Mistakes happen. But if they have a history of not keeping their own house in order, do you really want them to manage your family’s money? Entering their name into FINRA’s online Broker Check tool is an easy way to find out.
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Another factor is personal chemistry. Remember, your professional relationship with an advisor is much like that with a doctor — it could last decades. You don’t have to be best friends, but it would be better if you liked them.
These are all important concerns. Yet one that doesn’t come up as often: How equipped are the firm and its advisors to grow and evolve? Here are five questions to ask your current or would-be advisor to help determine whether they are running in place or capable of keeping up with your ever-changing needs.

How long has their firm’s leadership been in place, and how many of them were promoted from within? It would be silly and impractical for a company — financial services or otherwise — to have a policy against bringing in outside talent. Indeed, experienced leaders who can help businesses become more efficient and offer better services are valuable, no matter where they come from. Yet, if too many leaders are new to the firm or have not been groomed from within, it could be a sign that they are short-term hired guns whose primary responsibility is to supercharge growth at all costs. That approach may produce slimmer margins, but it’s unlikely to yield investments back into the firm that improves your experience. 
How long has the staff been in place? A startup can be a great place to work. Everyone is new and has a sense of purpose, which often infuses the workplace with a positive, almost virtuous, energy. The story is sometimes different when established businesses have few tenured employees and everyone is new. It could indicate that the culture is poor. That produces a very different energy throughout the office — one that could ultimately filter down to customers like you.
When was the last time they upgraded their technology, and how integrated is it? Imagine sitting with your advisor, looking at a screen displaying your investments. You have a question about one of your holdings, but it’s not there. To find it, they have to log into a different system. While this may not seem like a big deal, it’s a huge red flag when an advisor must toggle between two platforms to see all of a client’s holdings. It means they either have outdated or substandard technology — which, in turn, suggests they care more about improving their own margins than investing in up-to-date, integrated systems.
What safeguards do they have to protect customer data and thwart cyberattacks? Most cyber and data incidents result from human error (i.e., someone internally clicking a link they shouldn’t). With that in mind, ask them how often they undergo cybersecurity awareness training. Also, ask whether they monitor potential vulnerabilities within their systems and devices. Remember, this isn’t just about sensitive information getting compromised — as bad as that is. It’s also about being able to always trade within your portfolio. If a cyberattack takes down your firm for a prolonged period, you may not be able to do that.
How many of their advisors are near or under 40? The financial services industry is facing a demographic crunch, with the average advisor about 55 years old. To make matters worse, many of these advisors do not have a succession plan. There’s nothing wrong with working with an older advisor. At the same time, if they were to retire without having anyone internally set to take their place, it would create a long line of issues for you. If an advisor isn’t planning for their future, do you want them planning yours?

Your needs will change as you evolve and different things happen in your life, whether it’s getting married, having a baby or switching careers. Therefore, you need an advisor who will evolve right along with you.

Good firms and advisors can keep up with the latest wealth management and financial planning trends. The best ones, though, stay ahead of them.
— By Donald C. Cutler, senior principal at Haven Tower Group.

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The 27 drugs that may cost less for beneficiaries are those whose price increases have outpaced inflation.
The cost savings is due to provisions in the Inflation Reduction Act, which cleared Congress last August and also ushered in other changes to Medicare drug coverage under both Part B and Part D.
The medicines on the list are all covered under Part B because they are administered by a doctor in a clinical setting.

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Some Medicare beneficiaries will begin paying less next month for 27 prescription drugs whose prices have increased at a rate that outpaces inflation, government officials announced Wednesday.
Depending on their individual coverage, beneficiaries could save between $2 and $390 per average dose for these drugs starting April 1, according to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. The reduced cost applies to certain drugs and biologicals that are administered in a hospital or other clinical setting — medications that treat cancer, arthritis and chronic kidney disease, for example — and are covered under Medicare Part B.

“Some of these drugs are life-saving for various conditions and situations like organ transplants,” said Elizabeth Gavino, founder of Lewin & Gavino and an independent broker and general agent for Medicare plans.
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“It’s heartbreaking to hear stories from clients about life-saving medications that are financially out of reach because of fixed income,” Gavino said. “Lowering the costs may help some folks.”
Beneficiaries who typically pay 20% coinsurance under Part B will see their share decline based on a lower inflation-adjusted price for the drugs on this list. And, the list of drugs impacted by this coinsurance adjustment may change quarterly.

The change is due to legislation adopted last year

The cost reduction for these 27 drugs is due to implementation of provisions in the Inflation Reduction Act, which Congress passed last August.

The law requires pharmaceutical manufacturers to pay a rebate to the Medicare program if their drug prices rise faster than the rate of inflation — which is not uncommon. Half of all drugs covered by Medicare had list price increases that outpaced inflation between 2019 and 2020, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation.

It’s worth noting that the law applies to drugs under Part D as well, although information on which ones are subject to the inflation rebates won’t be available until later this year, said Juliette Cubanski, deputy director of the program on Medicare policy at the Kaiser Family Foundation. Additionally, those rebates in Part D will not result in lower costs to beneficiaries — that reduction only applies in Part B.

More changes to Medicare drug coverage are in effect

This isn’t the only change to drug coverage that Medicare beneficiaries may notice this year.
The Inflation Reduction Act also capped monthly cost-sharing for insulin delivered through Part D at $35, which took effect Jan. 1. Part D deductibles — which vary from plan to plan but cannot be more than $505 in 2023 — also won’t apply to the covered insulin product.
For beneficiaries who take insulin through a traditional pump (which falls under Part B), the benefit starts July 1.
Additionally, as of this year, there is no longer any cost-sharing for recommended vaccines under Part D, including the one for shingles. 

More changes will happen in future years

Other provisions that are intended to reduce Part D spending take effect in later years.
This includes eliminating an existing 5% coinsurance in the so-called catastrophic phase of coverage, which takes effect in 2024.
Additionally, beneficiaries’ annual out-of-pocket Part D spending will be capped at $2,000 beginning in 2025. Currently, there is no out-of-pocket limit, regardless of whether you get your coverage as a standalone Part D option or through an Advantage Plan.
Medicare also will be able to start negotiating the price of some drugs beginning in 2026.

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This year, the school named by the highest number of students as their “dream” college was Massachusetts Institute of Technology, according to The Princeton Review. For parents, it was Princeton.
The colleges that are considered the most desirable are also among the most selective and most expensive.
With National College Decision Day just weeks away, affordability remains the top concern.

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) campus in Cambridge, Massachusetts
(Photo: Bloomberg / Getty Images)

With an acceptance rate of just under 4%, Massachusetts Institute of Technology is considered the ultimate dream school, according to a new survey of college-bound students and their families.
However, it’s not only one of the hardest schools to get into but also among the nation’s priciest institutions — tuition and fees, room and board and other student expenses came to more than $79,000 this year.

At the same time, most college-bound students and their parents now say affordability and dealing with the debt burden that often goes hand-in-hand with a college diploma is their top concern, even over getting into their first-choice school, according to The Princeton Review’s 2023 College Hopes & Worries survey.

Most of the colleges at the very top of students’ wish lists are “perennial favorites,” according to Robert Franek, The Princeton Review’s editor-in-chief. They are also among the most competitive: Stanford’s acceptance rate is also just below 4%; at Harvard, it’s about 3%.
Coming out of the pandemic, a small group of universities, including many in the Ivy League, have experienced a record-breaking increase in applications this season, according to a report by the Common Application.
The report found application volume jumped 30% since the 2019-20 school year, even as enrollment has slumped nationwide.
“There’s a subconscious consensus that it’s only worth going to college if you can go to a life-changing college,” said Hafeez Lakhani, founder and president of Lakhani Coaching in New York. 

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National College Decision Day is coming up

As acceptance letters trickle in, students have just a few weeks to figure out their next move ahead of National College Decision Day on May 1, the deadline for high school seniors to choose which college they will attend. 
At that point, they must pay a non-refundable deposit to secure their seat at the school of their choice. 
But the biggest problem remains how they will pay for their degree. A whopping 98% of families said financial aid would be necessary to pay for college and 82% said it was “extremely” or “very” necessary, The Princeton Review found.
“Financial aid is more a necessity now than ever,” Franek said.  

Arrows pointing outwards

Don’t base your decision on sticker price alone

Still, “never cross an expensive school off of your list of consideration based on sticker price alone,” Franek said. Consider the amount of aid available, since private schools typically have more money to spend.
“Many of those schools are giving out substantial scholarships — this is free money.”
For example, MIT offers generous aid packages for those that qualify. Last year, the average annual price paid by a student who received financial aid was less than $20,000, according to the school. 
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A recent Zillow survey found 9 in 10 recent first-time home sellers feel they could have sold their homes for more money if they had done something different.
Experts say it is still a seller’s market.
As we head toward the best time of the year to list a home, these tips may help if you’re thinking of putting your home on the market.

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Timing is everything, especially when it comes to real estate.
But finding the perfect time to sell your home — especially if it’s your first time — may be a challenge as the residential real estate market fluctuates.

A recent survey from Zillow finds 84% of first-time home sellers wish they had done something differently regarding the timing, pricing or marketing of the transaction.
Notably, 9 in 10 first-time sellers think they could have sold their home for more money if they had made different decisions.
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The findings are based on a poll of first-time sellers who completed their transactions in the past two years. The November survey included more than 2,000 adults.
The real estate market has had notable shifts in the past couple of years, with mortgage rates climbing from 3% to more than 7%, noted Ted Jenkin, a certified financial planner and the CEO and founder of oXYGen Financial in Atlanta. He is a member of CNBC’s Financial Advisor Council.

Recent bank failures prompted mortgage rates to tumble, with the average rates on 30-year fixed mortgages dropping to 6.57% versus a recent high of 7.05%.
Yet experts say it is still a seller’s market.

“Even in a really strong seller’s market, people still have regrets,” said Amanda Pendleton, Zillow home trends expert. “They second-guess their decisions.”
The best time to list a home for sale nationally to maximize your sale price is the last half of April, according to Zillow data.
Here are four regrets from recent sellers that homeowners ought to be aware of before listing their homes this spring.

1. Not having a winning pricing strategy

To get the best deal on your home, you want to list it for the most competitive price.
“If you price it competitively, you’re going to be able to sell it a lot quicker,” Jenkin said.
Competitively priced listings that find a buyer go under contract in 31 days, Zillow data finds. Meanwhile, other homes may linger on the market for a median of 73 days.
“That speaks to the power of pricing,” Pendleton said.

If you price it competitively, you’re going to be able to sell it a lot quicker.

Ted Jenkin
CEO of oXYGen Financial

To find out what your home may be worth on the market now, see what comparable homes in your area have sold for in the past six months, Jenkin said. Getting a good independent appraisal can also help set expectations.
While most homeowners will not face capital gains taxes on the transaction, keep in mind that may be a possibility, Jenkin said. An exemption on primary residences is available for the first $250,000 for individuals and $500,000 for married couples.
But the exemption may only be used once every two years. Notably, it will also not apply if you did not live in your home for at least two of the last five years, Jenkin said.

2. Ignoring curb appeal

To increase the amount of money you get for your home, you may want to make investments that will improve first impressions.
New flowers and shrubs and a fresh coat of paint may help prospective buyers to see themselves living in the home, Jenkin suggested. Having your home staged may help show it off in the right way for it to sell, he said.
Online curb appeal is also crucial, particularly now that virtual home selling standards have changed since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, Pendleton said.

Curb appeal is important in getting the right price from the right prospective buyer.
Dreampictures | Photodisc | Getty Images

“People want to be able to tour homes from the comfort of their living room,” Pendleton said.
Keep in mind prospective buyers may eliminate your home from their search based on just a photograph.
Homes that get more saves and views on Zillow have virtual, three-dimensional home tours and interactive floor plans, Pendleton said. Investing in professional and drone photography can also help show off your listing, she said.

3. Bad timing

A quarter of recent sellers felt they got their timing wrong, Zillow found.
Yet timing the real estate market is not a good idea, Pendleton said. People who sold their homes and then rented, with the expectation home prices would come down, are now finding that while prices are a bit lower, mortgage rates have skyrocketed.
“It’s so hard to time it,” Pendleton said.

The idea of getting out at the top of the market also means you’re anticipating a crash, which is not in experts’ forecasts.
“Our economists are just not seeing that,” Pendleton said.

4.  Ignoring repairs

About a quarter of recent first-time sellers think they could have gotten a better price if they had paid more attention to home repairs. But some improvements may pay off more than others, according to Pendleton.
Massive projects such as a kitchen renovation or roof replacement typically do not provide a significant return, Zillow has found.
The most common projects homeowners complete before listing their home include interior painting, carpet cleaning and landscaping.
“That’s for good reason,” Pendleton said. “Those are the projects that give you the most bang for your buck.”

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The New Road to Retirement

Generally, individual retirement account contributions require “earned income,” such as wages or salary from a job or self-employment earnings.
But a spousal IRA allows you to contribute based on your spouse’s earnings if you file taxes jointly.
There’s still time for make a spousal IRA deposit for 2022 before the federal tax-filing deadline.

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One of the ground rules for individual retirement account contributions is you must have “earned income,” such as wages or salary from a job or self-employment earnings.
But there’s a special exception, known as a spousal IRA, which allows you to contribute based on your spouse’s earnings if you file taxes jointly — and there’s still time to save for 2022.

“That’s probably the thing that surprises people the most,” said certified financial planner Malcolm Ethridge, executive vice president of CIC Wealth in Rockville, Maryland.

More from The New Road to Retirement:

Here’s a look at more retirement news.

How a spousal IRA works

A spousal IRA is a separate account, meaning both spouses can contribute to their own IRAs. But collectively, annual IRA deposits for the couple can’t exceed joint taxable income or two times the yearly limit.
For 2022, the annual IRA contribution limit is $6,000 for 2022 or $7,000 for savers age 50 and older. The limit jumped to $6,500 for 2023, with an extra $1,000 for investors age 50 and up.
Ethridge said many clients don’t realize they can still make 2022 IRA contributions until the federal tax filing deadline, which is April 18 for most Americans.
And many couples aren’t aware of spousal IRA contributions, according to Julie Hall, a CFP at Vision Capital Partners in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

For example, one spouse may have experienced a layoff or may have taken a break from the workforce to care for family. “They can still continue to save,” she said.
For 2022, couples can still make a combined contribution of up to $12,000 or $14,000, assuming one spouse had at least that much taxable income for the year.
Roth IRA eligibility depends on earnings and your deposits won’t offer a tax break. But you can still score a deduction for pre-tax IRA contributions, assuming you qualify based on income and workplace retirement plan participation.
Of course, the decision about whether to make pre-tax or Roth IRA contributions hinges on more than just the current year’s tax break, Hall added.

Spousal IRA contributions in retirement

Ethridge said many clients don’t realize spousal IRA contributions are also possible when one spouse retires. 
For example, it may make sense if one spouse wants to retire early, and the other plans to keep working. In that scenario, the couple can make spousal IRA contributions from the working spouse’s earnings, he said.
Depending on the retired spouse’s age, it may be an opportunity to replace some of what’s withdrawn for required minimum distributions. “There are a lot of ways to go,” he added. More

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The failures of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank bring up old questions about just how safe your cash is at the bank.
Here, experts answer what a bank run is, how FDIC coverage works and whether your deposits are still secure.

Despite the 2008 financial crisis, bank failures are considered extremely rare.
However, the unexpected shutdowns of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank have many consumers concerned about their deposits, their bank and the U.S. banking system.

“Every American should feel confident their deposits will be there if and when they need them,” President Joe Biden said Monday in an address aimed at easing fears as the U.S. Federal Reserve, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and U.S. Department of the Treasury moved quickly to prevent a broader contagion.

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Here are more FA Council perspectives on how to navigate this economy while building wealth.

Still, recent events bring up old questions about just how safe your cash is at the bank. Here, experts answer what a bank run is, how FDIC insurance works and whether your deposits are still secure.

What is a bank run?

Since banks take customers’ deposits and invest those funds, that cash is not regularly on hand.
“When everyone wants to withdraw money at the same time, the bank doesn’t have the reserve to do that and they go belly up, essentially,” said Tomas Philipson, a professor of public policy studies at the University of Chicago and a former acting chair of the White House Council of Economic Advisers.
In a moment of panic, customers would literally run to the bank, Philipson explained. Now, that happens electronically. And because electronic transactions are made at high speed, bank runs are faster than ever — in the case of SVB, it was a dizzying 48 hours.

While SVB also had an unusually high percentage of uninsured deposits, there are other midsized banks that could be at risk of large withdrawals.

Could this happen at other banks?

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The short answer is “possibly,” according to Stacy Francis, a certified financial planner and president and CEO of Francis Financial in New York. She is also a member of the CNBC Financial Advisor Council.
“This is happening, in part, because of the Federal Reserve’s sharp rise in interest rates,” Francis said.
Banks own long-term bonds that are currently paying low interest rates, she said. When the interest that banks are getting on these longer-term bonds is lower than the interest rate that they are offering depositors on their savings accounts, less money is coming in than they are paying out.
Further, “many banks are seeing large withdrawals from cash depositors who are looking [for higher rates] to make more money,” Francis added. “All of this is creating stress.”

What about the cash at my bank?

This doesn’t seem like a financial crisis, yet.

Jude Boudreaux
senior financial planner at The Planning Center

“You may have a short time without access, but the government has very speedy processes to get you back to using your cash in short order,” said McClanahan, who is also a member of the CNBC Financial Advisor Council.
However, if you have more than $250,000 in deposits at any one bank, you may want to reach out to a private banker at your institution or split it into accounts at different banks, she advised.
“Another alternative is to move some to a brokerage account and use mutual funds that are invested in government-backed securities,” she added. Some Treasury bills, or T-bills, are now paying 5% after a series of rate hikes from the Fed. 

How is this different from 2008?

“This doesn’t seem like a financial crisis, yet,” said Jude Boudreaux, a CFP and senior financial planner at The Planning Center in New Orleans. Boudreaux is also a member of CNBC’s Advisor Council.
“The two banks we are talking about right now specialized in riskier assets,” he noted, particularly, crypto and tech startups. “The likelihood that this becomes a national wave of bank issues seems low.”
In 2008, irresponsible lending fueled a widespread housing bubble and when borrowers defaulted on their mortgages, the country’s biggest banks were left with trillions of dollars in nearly worthless investments.
Those institutions are in a stronger position now because of new rules imposed after the financial crisis, including higher capital requirements and annual stress tests. 
Last year, all of the largest banks passed.
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The cryptocurrency market dropped by nearly $1.4 trillion in 2022 and has been volatile in 2023.
Despite the downturn, Douglas Boneparth, a member of CNBC’s Financial Advisor Council, said he’s “still bullish on the technology.”

It’s been a tough time for cryptocurrency but, despite volatility, you still need to know how the technology works, said Douglas Boneparth, a certified financial planner based in New York.
The digital currency market dropped by nearly $1.4 trillion in 2022, following a cascade of bankruptcies and liquidity issues, including the high-profile collapse of crypto exchange FTX. In March, crypto-focused Silvergate Capital announced plans to wind down operations and regulators shut down crypto lender Signature Bank.

Although the crypto market rallied at the start of 2023, assets recently tumbled again, with bitcoin falling below $20,000 on Friday, triggered by a stock market sell-off in the U.S. But bitcoin surged by 10% on Monday, following the news of U.S. regulators’ plans to safeguard depositors and financial institutions associated with Silicon Valley Bank.

More from Ask an Advisor

Here are more FA Council perspectives on how to navigate this economy while building wealth.

Boneparth, who is president of Bone Fide Wealth and a member of CNBC’s Financial Advisor Council, said the recent events and crypto market volatility have made him even more “bullish” on learning about the technology.
“Clearly, the decentralized financial world is interconnected to the traditional financial world more so now than ever before,” he said.
An early adopter of digital currency since 2013, mostly in bitcoin, Boneparth said there’s plenty to learn about the technology we’ll inevitably see more from in the future.

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“This doesn’t necessarily mean you should be allocating your money there,” he said. But he believes you should be investing your time and energy to see where the technology may be heading.

“I’ve learned a lot in my journey without having to take an exorbitant amount of risk,” Boneparth said.
When it comes to cryptocurrency, he said the “best thing you can do” is learn about the technology and how decentralized finance works. “A little bit would go a long way,” he added.

I’ve learned a lot in my journey without having to take an exorbitant amount of risk.

Douglas Boneparth
President of Bone Fide Wealth

“That’s powerful stuff,” Boneparth said. “It’s not always putting your money into the latest craze of crypto; it’s learning what it’s all about.”

How crypto may affect investing goals

While many advisors won’t recommend clients buy or sell digital currency, Boneparth said investors may come to his practice looking for guidance on existing crypto allocations.
“Some people have amassed quite a bit of money in cryptocurrency,” he said. “And it’s my job to show them what the risks are, how that concentration and that asset can impact their long-term goals and their portfolio.”
Boneparth said it’s important to know how owning any particular type of asset may affect your financial goals, especially “volatile assets” like cryptocurrency. More

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There are various parts of financial planning that should be influenced by a person’s health, says certified financial planner Carolyn McClanahan.
Someone in poor health or with medical problems should have an entirely different plan from a person who is healthy, she says.
For example, your life expectancy — and therefore how much you need to have in retirement savings — should reflect your health.

Natalia Gdovskaia | Moment | Getty Images

When you consider health as part of a financial plan, you may think in terms of insurance premiums and related out-of-pocket costs like copays.
While those expenses matter, your health should influence far more than a single line item in a budget, according to certified financial planner and physician Carolyn McClanahan, founder of Life Planning Partners in Jacksonville, Florida. 

“It’s way more than that,” said McClanahan, who also is a member of CNBC’s Financial Advisor Council. “A healthy person needs a totally different [financial] plan from someone who has health issues.”

For example, McClanahan said, someone with significant medical problems — and therefore lower life expectancy — likely doesn’t need to plan to stretch out their retirement savings until age 100.
“That’s asking them to save too much, and they’re missing out on life now,” she said.

Insurability can become a problem

Additionally, there are types of insurance that can be hard to get — if not impossible — once you have a health condition, McClanahan said.
“A person with health issues or at risk for them needs to think more deeply about their insurance,” she said.

For instance, if you are young but have, say, a significant risk factor for diabetes, life insurance generally would be less expensive now than it would be if you were to apply after developing the disease. 

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The same goes for short-term and long-term disability insurance, which replaces lost income if you experience a health event that makes you unable to work. Even if you can get this insurance after developing a medical problem, insurers sometimes impose coverage exclusions for preexisting conditions. 
Additionally, many people who consider long-term care insurance don’t do so until they are near or in retirement, McClanahan said. Long-term care involves help with everyday living activities, such as bathing and dressing, which many older people end up needing later in life.
However, by that point, they may have developed a health condition that makes such insurance coverage cost prohibitive or impossible to get. It’s best to think about those possible expenses further in advance — ideally in your 40s or 50s, McClanahan said.

Estate planning is crucial if you have health issues

Also, while everyone can benefit from having an estate plan so that your wishes are carried out, a person with health issues needs to prioritize end-of-life planning, McClanahan said.
In addition to having a will that says who gets your belongings and other various assets — and confirming beneficiaries on accounts are the intended recipients — an estate plan should include a living will. This document outlines the health care you want and don’t want if you become unable to communicate those desires yourself.
You also should have powers of attorney assigned to trusted individuals for health care and, separately, your finances. Those people would make decisions on your behalf if you were to become incapacitated.
“Everyone needs those documents, but especially if you have significant health issues,” McClanahan said.

Your use of health care should be considered

As for budgeting for expenses directly related to tending to various aspects of your physical and mental well-being, it helps to think about what type of health-care user you are. 
“You have people who rarely go to the doctor about anything, but then you have people who go to the doctor for everything, so that [use] drives health-care costs more than anything,” McClanahan said.
“If you know how you use health care, you can better build that into your cash flow projections,” she said. More