absolutely.
1st off, make sure they are a CFP. not an FA, not a FP, not a ChCFP. make them show you their business card or license. if they can't produce the CFP proof - smile, stand up and leave.
2nd, take a list of exactly what you want to be done. my list...
- wills/estate review (usually farmed out to a legal firm in coop with CFP firm, that's OK)
- assessment of current financial state (income, expenses, investments, liabilities, etc) in nauseating detail
- assessment of future financial state (projections including various inflation effects)
- review/recommend investments, DCA strategy, and asset allocation
- what-if scenarios (grim but had to be done, if one spouse died, what if etc)
- retirement benefit assessment (both were federal, they earned their money here)
- health insurance/ LTC insurance asessment or recommendations
- estate assets review
- titling review (single, joint, JTWROS) of all assets - CRITICAL ITEM
- goals (near, medium, and long term) and strategy to achieve
there were probably more, but i'm almost 50 and the brain is going...LOL
we wrote all this down, they mailed me a proposal, i negotiated a lower fee cuz i am Miss Orgnaized and had most of the data "camera ready". the product was a detailed customized report that pulled everything together and the what-if scenarios were amazing. and two 2-hour sessions with the CFP to go over it all in great detail.
i accepted the proposal - they said bring ALL your stuff, drop it off and we'll contact you in 4 weeks. it took so long cuz they had to plow through both sets of fed retirement system docs (CSRS and FERS).
cost me $1500 in 2002. i was 44 at the time.
it is not my intent to be grim. it is my intent to let you know how important this exercise can be.
i never regretted a penny of that cost. life thru me a real hardball in late 2004 when DH passed suddenly. i was 100% prepared financially and document wise. had no probate to deal with except for a few vehicles and some artwork. all assets were titled JTWROS.
so, good luck and get 'er done!