What to expect from a financial advisor

[StormyLandCloud]

Hi
im about to set up an appointment with a financial advisor. I’m about to retire through ill health, will get a lump sum and monthly sum. I also have a mortgage, loan and questions about investments. Would a financial advise be able to give me advice on my ‘life’ needs ie what to do with lump sum,
payoff loans/mortgage, remortgage etc?
sorry if I sound a bit dippy but it’s not really been something I’ve had to approach before as I’ve always had a good income to lifestyle and just invested any monies before in my house / extensions etc

It might be a financial planner you need.

To get the most out of the advice it's probably best to have a think about your attitude to risk, and make sure you understand what 'risk' actually means wrt finances and investing.

The Meaningful Money podcast did a session on this very recently. Pete Matthew, the main presenter has also written a book about preparing for retirement, which could be useful.

Also look at the financial flow chart and identify what you can do in preparation, eg set a day to day budget.

https://ukpersonal.finance/flowchart/

Plus whether you will be planning anything that needs a lot of money in the short term like moving house.

But there's no rush, when you get your lump sum, put it in the best paying accounts, bearing in mind tax, so this will probably include a cash ISA and possibly premium bonds as the prizes are tax free.

Thank you @Bjorkdidit- that’s great. I had thought of premium bonds actually for some of it, a friend does pretty well, and randomly, with approximately 6 bonds to my name that I’ve had since I was born, I won £25 last month 🤣 … I think it was a sign to park some money there 🤣

Is the financial advisor able to advise on full market or just tied to certain products. Make sure you are clear about fees. Is this advisor been recommended to you? It might be worth thinking about reducing the mortgage.

@StormyLandCloud Premium Bonds? They are not an income or savings strategy.

Most people use a lump sum to sort out their properties, if needed. Get everything in tip top order and ensure everything is serviceable for years to come. Then invest - you need to look at all the investment advice and work out what you need in order to live as you would wish to live. If the sums don’t add up, you might need to move. Our investment adviser goes through our needs and you certainly should pay off loans. You need to consider household expenses, car, holidays, socialising etc. So now is the time to take stock of everything and decide what you need and if your investments will meet it.

We do have an advisory service where they invest on our behalf and we pay a fee. It’s a mix of share ISAs and other investments. We choose to be medium/high risk but we have valuable property too. So take everything into account.

I'd suggest a Chartered Financial Planner rather than an Independent Financial Adviser. CFPs look at the "bigger picture" including things like capital gains and inheritance tax planning, and are more likely to advise rather than "sell" products such as premium bonds, etc. IFAs are mostly all about selling products such as pensions, life insurance etc. though some will also offer more general financial advice.

Thank you all for the advice -
im out of my depth so really grateful! ☺️

It might help to look at Wealth Management. The company we use does everything through our personal adviser. Advice and investment strategy that they manage.