How to Discover a Housing Counselor in Your Location
You may be looking for a housing counselor, but consider the greater breadth of services an NFEC financial counselor is qualified to provide. Above housing counselor certification requirements, the nationwide network of Certified Personal Financial Wellness Consultants represents the top-qualified counselors to help clients reach their individual personal finance goals. They are trustworthy, standards-adherent, and passionate about your financial health.
Financial counselors trained and certified by the NFEC are dedicated to educate and guide people to increase their money management capabilities – giving first priority to your success. A NFEC Financial Coach will tailor a training, support, and educational plan to your specific needs, which they will clarify through detailed empirical analysis. The counselor will help you outline distinct milestones and actionable steps to reach them.
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Qualifications of a NFEC Financial Coach – As Opposed to a Housing Counselor
You can find housing counselors by searching government sites like MakingHomeAffordable.gov. But if you want to ensure that you hire a housing counselor with the ultimate qualifications and abilities, you would do well to consider an NFEC-trained Financial Coach. These counselors have proven backgrounds in education, ethics, and experience, which makes clients feel more secure. A NFEC Financial Coach has made a firm commitment to assume fiduciary responsibility to you. Certification requires completing hundreds of educational hours, passing a strict background review, and earning high marks on a difficult test. In addition, NFEC Financial Coaches complete mandated implementation activities and performance evaluations. They must practice their counseling skills under guided supervision and carefully detail the results.
The standards for qualifying NFEC Financial Coaches were informed by the precepts of four industries: counseling psychology; financial and consumer safeguarding; consultation and coaching; and education. The NFEC consulted these industries because financial counselors are dealing with clients’ money issues, which brings up vivid emotions for many. A NFEC Financial Coach faces the demanding task of determining people’s needs and goals, distinguishing objectives, and then providing support, resources, and direction to move them toward improved financial wellness.
What a Housing Counselor Does Versus a NFEC Financial Coach
When you do research to find a housing counselor, you’ll discover that the ordinary service involves talking with clients. The NFEC Financial Coach, in comparison, provides assistance across the whole gamut of the personal finance profile. To draw this contrast, we did research – we scraped Google using the keywords ‘financial counseling’ and ‘financial coaching.’ In the top 50 results pages, 137 websites met those search terms, and 26 of those sites showed package/price data in an easily located position on the page.
The top service available was counselor contact by phone (some had email options). Second was financial education resources (like lessons, training, or reading material). A scant number would prepare personal finance plans; and only two would re-plan or re-report when new circumstances came up for the client.
Clarify and Plan = Phase 1
The NFEC Financial Coach process occurs across phases. At Phase 1, the financial counselor will have a detailed meeting with you to uncover all aspects of your financial situation, lifestyle goals, and future needs. This phase involves exploring your income, assets, liabilities, credit profile, insurance needs, etc. – your full financial outline.
This phase is vital because the NFEC Financial Coach will use the data to create a thorough Personal Finance Plan just for you. You’ll get the report in written form so you can refer to it ongoing. It will lay out action steps in order of priority, and your counselor will guide and support you through taking these actions.
Instruct and Guide = Phase 2
Another piece your NFEC Financial Coach will undertake at this phase is keeping your data updated. Using key measures and reporting features, the counselor will give you written progress reports so you can monitor your accomplishments and the NFEC Financial Coach can give you empirically-driven suggestions to refresh your financial plans on an ongoing basis.
Maintain and Support = Phase 3
The next phase is a point where you’ve got your plan in place, your original problems are addressed, and the NFEC Financial Coach has guided you to build a firm financial foundation. That’s when your counselor makes the segue into a maintenance/support role. You have momentum toward making your own decisions, and the NFEC Financial Coach stands by for those times when you need a little guidance.
Continuing education will be part of this phase, on an as-needed basis. Your NFEC Financial Coach will help you stay on top of changes in the financial environment and marketplace that have impact on your specific circumstances. The counselor also may remind you of dates and deadlines and point you toward new resources that might boost your decision-making ability.
Access to a Team of Industry Experts = Phase 4
Finally comes Phase 4, the last part of a NFEC Financial Coach process. At this stage your financial counselor can hook you up with industry experts in particular niche areas where you need specialized guidance. All counselors certified by the NFEC are capable to help you build a solid base. But you’re likely to reach life stages where you need the help of a specialist. For example, you might be considering a home purchase for the first time – the NFEC has an expert for that. Are you worried that these experts might try to sell you something? Rest assured they will not – they’re completely independent and answerable only to you.
