If you’ve ever received a surprising health diagnosis, you’ve probably considered getting a second opinion from another doctor. A second opinion, backed by a different set of experiences, knowledge, and insight, might have helped you make a better, wiser health decision. For some people, that second set of eyes can even save their life.
While your finances may not seem as critical as your physical health, tax, investment, or savings decisions can be life-changing, both for you and your family. When it comes to making major financial decisions, like selling your business, preparing for retirement, or estate planning, getting a second opinion on your situation and next steps can save you from making a costly mistake. Even having an experienced CPA who takes the time to review your taxes can reveal areas of significant savings your existing CPA may be unaware of.
Why should you consider seeking out a financial second opinion?
A second expert may notice something your primary advisor or CPA has missed
Your trusted expert is probably highly qualified, knowledgeable, and takes great care to manage your financial situation well. Getting a second opinion doesn’t mean you don’t trust your professional or that you doubt their abilities. But if they are overlooking something, you could be missing out on significant savings or a great investment opportunity. Seeking out a second opinion protects you from over-relying on one expert who might be neglecting a key detail that will cost you.
At Cook, our advisors and CPAs work as a team to protect against this very situation. A variety of perspectives, approaches, and experiences mean every one of our clients automatically receives a second opinion. It’s just another way we help clients make better, wiser decisions.
You may have outgrown your professional’s expertise
If your business, investments, or earnings have grown since you first started working with your CPA or wealth advisor, it might be time to get a second opinion on your plan. As your situation grows, it will require increasingly complex planning and strategizing. The more assets you have to manage, the more important it becomes to work with an advising team experienced in complex situations like yours.
From tax planning and cash flow optimization to insurance review and investment management, the Cook Wealth team can review your financial plan to grow, protect, steward, and share your wealth.
Your new goals/risk tolerance/investing preferences may no longer align with those of your advising firm
If you’re looking for new investment opportunities, like cryptocurrency or ESG investing, but your current advisor doesn’t offer these newer investing options, it might be time for a financial second opinion. Likewise, if your firm is overly conservative or doesn’t offer expertise that aligns with your financial goals, discussing your situation with a more specialized advisor can unlock new opportunities you wouldn’t otherwise have access to.
At Cook Wealth, some of our clients come in with specific goals that particularly benefit from a financial second opinion:
- Their “side-hustle” became a full-time business, and now they need help scaling quickly and keeping up with significant financial and tax changes.
- They run a thriving consulting business and need a CPA who can accurately file taxes on income from a dozen different states and multiple countries.
- They want to give a significant portion of their income to their church or favorite charity and need a tailored strategy to maximize that giving.
- They’re selling a business but aren’t ready to retire.
- Their last CPA misfiled three years of taxes, and now they need a thorough financial review.
These are just a handful of the situations our clients find themselves in when they engage our expert team. And we’re more than happy to help each and every client optimize their situation and create the financial future they want.
Second opinions aren’t all we offer at Cook Wealth. When you work with our team, you get more. Check out a full list of Cook’s included financial services here.
At Cook, we offer our financial second opinions at no charge
Our goal is to help investors like you live life empowered. That means we’re happy to have a conversation about your unique situation and offer our own recommendations. If it saves you from making a costly mistake, we believe it’s worth our time and effort to help.
There’s really no downside to having a second qualified expert review your situation. It could be just the review you need to discover a significant tax filing error, avoid hefty fines, rebalance your investments, or set up a more realistic retirement plan. At worst, you’ll walk away with the peace of mind that comes from knowing you’re already on the right track.