An IFA Can Do That? I Wish I’d Known That Years Ago!’ Six Things Our Clients Tell Us During Their First Meeting With A Talis IFA

We wrote recently about common financial myths that hold people back from starting on their journey towards financial freedom. One of those was the commonly held belief that IFAs are only for people who already have wealth to manage.

We showed how financial advice is not just for the wealthy. It’s for anyone who wants help to make wiser financial decisions with clarity and confidence.

But many people don’t realise that Independent Financial Advisers (IFAs) can play a crucial role in helping you plan for and navigate life’s biggest milestones.

This article explores the areas where new clients tell us that professional financial guidance could have made all the difference when they were younger—if only they had known to ask.

Planning for parenthood

When starting a family, it’s easy to become consumed by immediate expenses like childcare and baby gear, and planning your financial future feels like something ‘for later’.

In fact, this is a time when an IFA can help you in a myriad of ways from restructuring life insurance, considering the tax implications of paying for childcare, and setting up investments for school and university.  These decisions build a foundation of security and future opportunity—not just for your children, but for the whole family.

Buying your first home

First-time buyers commonly rely on friends, an estate agent’s mortgage broker or comparison websites when looking for their mortgage. But an IFA can offer far more nuanced insights—explaining mortgage types, clarifying the other costs involved, and helping you integrate your new monthly payments within your overall financial plans.

Far from just recommending the most appropriate deal for your circumstances, they can also manage the application process, avoiding common pitfalls and ensuring that you have provided all the necessary documents, first time. Many IFAs have built good relationships with various lenders, often giving you the benefit of a real, human contact rather than relying on an online platform.

Your IFA will also remind you that making the biggest purchase of your life also comes with financial responsibilities – and will help you to put in place the appropriate financial protections for your investment and your family.

Understanding workplace benefits

Many employees unknowingly miss out on making the most of valuable workplace schemes—from pension matching to share plans and salary sacrifice arrangements. Your IFA can explain in plain English what’s available to you, and highlight how these perks could become powerful financial tools in support of your long-term goals.

Navigating career changes and redundancy

Changing jobs or facing redundancy often triggers urgent financial decisions. Your IFA can help with making the most of redundancy payments, understanding pension entitlements and the impact a change in employment might have, and identifying possibilities for bridging income gaps. Seeking professional advice during these transitions could mean better outcomes and fewer regrets.

Navigating inheritance and gifting

When older relatives want to gift money or assets, families often hesitate, unsure about tax implications or future consequences. Your IFA can guide everyone involved—clarifying inheritance tax rules, gifting allowances, and trust structures—while also helping you to have sensitive conversations and preserve family harmony.

Starting retirement planning early

Many people believe that pension planning begins in midlife. Our advice? It’s never too early to start saving for retirement. Yes, you can start in your 40s. If you reach your 50s, or 60s and aren’t happy that you’ve planned enough, we can usually help improve the outlook in some way.

But starting to save for your retirement in your 30s or even your 20s can make a huge difference. When you’re just starting out in your career, the temptation to spend your income is a powerful one. And for many young families, it is simply a matter of having to prioritise paying the mortgage, the bills and regular living expenses. It is common to feel that there isn’t enough in the monthly budget just now to start making pension contributions. An IFA will show you that you can afford to start saving, and demonstrate how the power of compounding makes even a small monthly contribution well worth it.

Put another way, if you’re in your 20s, according to Standard Life, delaying starting your savings by just five years could reduce your retirement funds by tens of thousands of pounds.

What would you like to know about how an IFA can help?

IFAs aren’t just about numbers – at Talis IFA we often talk about our ‘life first, money second’ approach. We want to hear about your life and financial goals, to help you plan your journey towards financial freedom, and to give you more confidence in making financial decisions at all stages of your life.

If you’re in the ‘I wish I’d known that sooner’ camp, we know we can’t change the past and we’re not here to judge you for past mistakes or omissions!

What we can do is help you to get a clear picture of where you are now, where you want to be, and the steps that you could take to help you get there. We’re on your side, looking together into the financial world as we inform and guide the decisions that will make your money work for you.

If that sounds like the sort of financial advice you wish you’d found sooner, find a Talis IFA here.