How to Evaluate Your Financial Expert

Here's a tip for Financial Literacy Month that's worth your time: Give your financial planner a check-up. As retirement account balances went down with the market, many investors began to question how well their money was being managed. Here's your chance to find out the answer.

To put your worries to rest and your money in capable hands, theNational Association of Financial Planners (NAPFA) offers a freediagnostic tool anyone can download to assess their financial adviser.

The tool is a seven-page guide broken into two parts. The first part provides a questionnaire for your adviser to complete and sign. The rest of the tool gives investors a detailed answer key that covers the most common responses and how to interpret them.

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Also see our guide to Getting the Best Financial Advice, a primer for who's qualified to do what with your money.