Do any young people use a financial advisor? What makes them worth the money?

I was in my mid-30s when I first started working with a financial advisor. And the reason I didn’t start to use one sooner boiled down to ignorance and laziness on my part.

In my 20s, long-term financial goals weren’t really on my radar. I was eager to pay off my pesky student loans and build up a solid emergency fund. I also wanted to save money to buy a house. And the path toward those goals was pretty straightforward.

At the time, I was also putting money into a retirement account, but I could’ve done better. And I didn’t invest much in my 20s because despite earning a nice salary, I lived in an expensive city.

In my 30s, I realized it was time to buckle down. By the midpoint of that decade, I had three children, a home I owned, and financial objectives I knew I needed help tackling despite my strong background in finance.

So I decided to hire a financial advisor and haven’t looked back. And it’s something I would recommend for young people without hesitation.

Starting out young is a good thing

In this Reddit post, an interesting question is posed about whether young people under age 35 actually use financial advisors. I can’t speak to the number of people in that age group who go this route. But I can say with confidence that starting to work with a financial advisor in your 20s or early 30s is a smart thing. And it’s a thing I wish I would’ve done myself.

One big financial advisor myth I hear all the time is that it doesn’t pay to work with one if you don’t have a lot of money. And a lot of people don’t have as much money, by nature, when they’re younger, because their careers are less established and they haven’t gotten as many raises and promotions.

But just as investing from a young age can result in a lot of wealth, so too can getting the right guidance from a young age. So to that end, I’d say that it can be especially wise to use a financial advisor once you’re working full-time and have access to a steady paycheck. And that could mean hiring an advisor at age 22, or 23, or 24.

Why financial advisors are worth the money

I’ve heard people say that they don’t want to pay a financial advisor for guidance when they can look up different savings and investing strategies on the internet. But here’s my response to that.

It’s true that you can find plenty of financial advice — and even good advice. But all of that is going to be general advice. It’s not going to be customized to you.

When you hire a financial advisor, on the other hand, it’s their job to review your income, your expenses, and your goals to come up with a long-term plan. It’s also their job to educate you and address any fears or concerns you might have.

To put it another way, I spend my days writing about how to invest and save for retirement. So I think it’s fair to say that I know more about these topics than the average person.

But I still use a financial advisor. So if it makes sense for me, it could definitely make sense for you, too.

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