| Making House Calls | ||
| Working from home can give a lot of freedom to financial planners. Mary Lacey Gibson has been advising clients from her home office since 1993 after closing down a retail shop and moving into business consulting and financial planning. Although there are some distractions by working from home - she's never looked back. "I'm five steps from my kitchen," says the CFP who is based in San Juan Bautista, California. "But when I meet with clients I have an offsite office. I tell them that's so I don’t have to have a 'House Beautiful' all the time." A home office can be an ideal work situation for planners who can switch from home to work life by just turning on the computer. The short-commute, low overhead, and flexibility on hours can be great. But sometimes a home isn't set up to receive clients. A living room full of children's toys isn't an ideal way to meet investors. And not everyone has an extra bedroom or garage where he or she can set up a private place to work. Not a problem, says Jeff Zbar, a consultant and owner of ChiefHomeOfficer.com, who has been advising people on how to transition from an office space to a home space since he started working from his home in Coral Springs, Fla., in 1989. Zbar says having a separate work space is important, especially for financial planners who must have occasional face time with their clients. But hotel lobbies, and the proliferation of executive suites that can be rented by the day have made that less of a concern. "I work from the fifth bedroom in my home," he says. "But when I do have to have meetings, I rent office space as I need it. I tell my client I am meeting at my remote office. There's a receptionist who walks them to where I am and they are none the wiser." Some financial planners do have qualms that by not having an office - and a big name attached to their business card - they may look like small potatoes to prospective clients. "But in my opinion a client who is concerned about that doesn't have the right impression of what can be done from a home office," says Zbar. "You could start right off by telling them you're saving them money by working from home - and not passing along the overhead in fees." Another option is to go to a client's home when it's time to restructure their portfolio. "That's commonly done," says Gibson. In an age when doctors won't even make house calls, a financial planner who will is almost a luxury if not a walking advertisement for true personal service. Planners do have to take other things into consideration as well before hanging an "open for business" sign outside their home. A good computer, high-speed Internet connection, and a separate phone line for work are essential. And if an adviser is considering hiring an assistant or bringing other planners into the practice, he or she should first check with zoning laws in their residential neighborhood. Many restrict people from conducting business in their homes. "Plus having a number of employees on site can become unwieldy," says Gibson. "Or hire a virtual staff, and have them work from home too." |
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