Military families who work with financial advisers are twice as confident as those who don’t that their financial lives will improve over the next year, according to a survey by First Command Financial Services Inc., a financial network for military families.
Sixty-three percent of the 530 plus surveyed work with advisers. Fifty-nine percent of those are confident in their ability to retire comfortably, while only 25% of those without professional advisory feel confident.
“Career military families who work with a financial adviser are out-saving their do-it-yourself counterparts, reinforcing the value of working with a professional,” says Scott Spiker, CEO of First Command Financial Services.
Seventy-three percent of military families who work with an adviser contributed to savings and retirement accounts during the period the survey covered. Only 48% without advisers were contributing.
Additionally, those with a financial adviser report $22,000 more in accumulated savings and retirement funds than those without an adviser. And those with an adviser carry nearly $58,000 less in debt on average.