Why choose a financial adviser who is a STEP member?
It can be tricky to choose a financial adviser – particularly if you are working through complex financial arrangements, hold a power of attorney, or are making more complicated plans around inheritance and succession planning. It’s obviously important to ensure that the adviser you choose to work with is suitably qualified for the type of financial planning you need, which is why memberships of bodies like STEP and SOLLA are important.
What is STEP?
STEP is the global professional association for practitioners who specialise in family inheritance and succession planning. Members are financial advisers, lawyers, accountants and other professionals who help individuals make the best plans for their future, and the criteria for membership is exacting, so you know that it is worth using someone who has taken the time to become a member. For individuals and families in Farnham for example, Sebastian Elwell from Switchfoot Wealth is the only financial adviser in the area who has STEP membership and a STEP Diploma in Advising Vulnerable Clients*.
Why should I look for a STEP member?
STEP members are experts in helping families plan for the future, often advising two or three generations at the same time, to ensure that everyone has the advice they need for a secure future for themselves, their children and their grandchildren.
In particular, STEP members can advise on inheritance planning, trusts and legacies, long-term care planning and charitable giving. Your advisers can work together – so your financial planning may impact on the conditions of your Will, for example. Or you may want to look at succession or exit planning for your business, and your financial adviser can work alongside your accountant, solicitor and tax specialist to ensure that all requirements are met.
Aligning our values
The STEP values are very clear:
- Promote professional educational attainment.
- Act transparently.
- Uphold professional standards.
- Serve our members, whatever their professional background, wherever based.
- Recognise our responsibility to the public interest.
They align well with our own values, which are:
- Being ethical
- Being qualified
- Being independent
- Being technology smart
- Being collaborative
As a STEP member, Sebastian must work to the organisation’s values and commit to upholding its high standards of competence and advice. Being a member of STEP means that the clients we give financial advice to in Farnham and the local area can be confident about the standard of advice and planning they receive, and that they are choosing a financial adviser who can work closely and comfortably with your other professional advisers.
You can find out more about STEP and what it means to be a member, or simply contact us today for an initial chat about the plans you need to make and how we can help.
*Source STEP Member directory October 2020
https://content.step.org/search/members/?f%5B0%5D=specialism%3AInvestment&f%5B1%5D=city%3AFarnham
