"It's never too late or too soon to strive for a cherished goal," says Brooke A. Salvini, CPA, and founder of her own firm, in San Luis Obispo, Calif. For Salvini, it took her some 20 years to accomplish her goal and that was to make financial planning her principal practice focus. "I was originally introduced to financial planning in my early twenties while attending an engagement encounter session at church. The planner was actually a representative for IDS, primarily selling life insurance, but he was knowledgeable, helpful, and made a lasting positive impression. Amazingly, he sold us a good term policy with no pressure to purchase whole life."

Guides Down the Right Path

At the time Salvini was working for Deloitte, Haskins & Sells-her first job fresh out of Pepperdine University. She was focused on obtaining her CPA license and following the audit and tax career path normal for most new CPAs in the early 1980s, but she still harbored the thought of helping young couples sort through financial decisions."The idea of personal financial planning germinated in the back of my brain for years while my career went in other directions: public accounting, then to the automotive industry, then to advertising, and finally back to public accounting."

Salvini says that she realized her strength and interest was with her individual clients and the multitude of financial decisions faced by every family. "Financial planning was a natural extension of my practice and brought me full circle to my early ideas. I was fortunate to locate the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors and The Garrett Planning Network as well as the personal financial planning section of the AICPA. These three groups provided the guidance and support necessary to add financial planning services."

GENERAL PRACTICE WITH SPECIALIST ACCESS

From the beginning, Salvini knew she wanted to focus on a fee-only hourly practice. "Fee-only as opposed to commission or fee-based financial planning is the most transparent method of payment for financial planning services and the only method that makes me comfortable."

She stresses to potential clients that the financial plan will be based on objective financial advice. "I strongly believe the best way to remain objective is to offer services on an hourly or per project fee-only basis. Fee-only means that I do not accept commissions or sell any investment products. This frees me to offer the best advice for the client's unique situation, without regard to someone else's agenda." She emphasizes that her background as a CPA has instilled the concept of establishing and maintaining a fiduciary responsibility in all client relationships and points out that less than one percent of financial planners actually adhere to this hourly, as-needed, fee-only relationship with their clients.

According to Salvini, there are also challenges in this niche, the biggest of which, she says, is staying current on the breadth of issues that arise in a financial planning practice. "I equate my practice to that of a family physician or general practitioner as opposed to a specialist. It is important that I work closely with my clients' other accountants, estate attorneys, and insurance agents. Sometimes the best decision I can make for my client is to refer them to a specialist."

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