Tell us what you're working through
Answer a short set of questions about your retirement stage, priorities, location and preferred way to meet.
HUMAN GUIDANCE
Some retirement decisions deserve more than an answer.
Skyline helps you understand retirement questions through straightforward education and intelligent tools. When your situation calls for individualized professional guidance, we can help you look for a financial professional who may fit what you're trying to solve.
You can continue using Skyline's educational resources whether or not you decide to connect with a financial professional.
YOUR RETIREMENT QUESTIONS
A more informed path to human guidance
Skyline
QUESTION
How do taxes, income and investments fit together as I retire?
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UNDERSTAND
Clarify the decision
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ANALYZE
Explore your context
WHEN HUMAN GUIDANCE MAKES SENSE
A conversation with more context
Bring the questions you've already been working through.
START WITH BETTER QUESTIONS
You don't need to know what kind of advisor you need.
Start with the retirement decision you're trying to understand. Skyline can help you move from questions toward useful next steps.
01
Ask
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Start with what you're trying to figure out.
02
Analyze
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Explore the factors that may matter to the decision.
03
Understand
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Get clearer on tradeoffs, questions and possible next steps.
04
Connect
Bring professional judgment into the conversation when useful.
WHEN HUMAN GUIDANCE CAN HELP
Retirement decisions rarely happen one at a time.
An educational answer can help you understand an issue. A personalized analysis can help reveal relevant considerations. A financial professional may add value when several decisions begin interacting with your specific circumstances.
Explore Retirement Answers →
Am I financially ready to retire?
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How should I create retirement income?
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Could a Roth conversion make sense?
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How should taxes affect my retirement strategy?
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When should I claim Social Security?
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How should Medicare affect my planning?
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How should my investments change as retirement approaches?
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Could guaranteed income have a role?
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How should I think about estate and legacy planning?
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A BETTER STARTING POINT
You shouldn't have to explain everything from the beginning.
The work you do before an advisor conversation can matter. Where Skyline features are available and you choose to share relevant information, that context can help make a future conversation more focused.
Skyline will not assume that using a tool automatically gives permission to share your information with a financial professional. Information-sharing choices should be presented clearly when applicable.
POTENTIAL SKYLINE CONTEXT
A more useful first conversation
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Retirement stage
Where you are in the retirement journey
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Questions and concerns
The areas you want help understanding
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Topics explored
Relevant Skyline education you've used
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Meeting preference
How you prefer to connect
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Relevant Skyline activity
Where supported by the active Skyline experience
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Consumer-approved analysis context
Only where appropriate permission has been provided
HOW MATCHING WORKS
A short path from your questions to a potential fit.
Skyline's matching experience is designed to understand what you're looking for before asking you to connect with someone.
Skyline looks for an appropriate fit
Matching can consider relevant eligibility, capabilities, geography, meeting preferences and other factors related to whether a professional may be able to help.
You decide whether you'd like to connect
A potential match is a next step—not an obligation. Review the available information and decide whether a conversation makes sense to you.
THE SKYLINE ADVISOR NETWORK
Meet financial professionals through a more informed process.
Advisor profiles are intended to help you understand the person, firm, service area and retirement topics they work with before deciding whether to connect.
Learn About Our Advisor Network →
START WITH FIT, NOT A DIRECTORY
Tell us what you need help understanding.
Instead of asking you to sort through a long list of names first, Skyline begins with your retirement questions, priorities, location and preferred way to meet.
Start Advisor MatchingCHOOSING A RETIREMENT ADVISOR
What should you look for in a retirement advisor?
Titles alone don't tell you whether a financial professional is right for you. Understand how they work, what they actually do, who they typically serve and how the relationship will operate.
A useful first question:
“How would you help someone with the retirement decisions I'm trying to make?”
Relevant retirement experience
Ask whether the professional regularly works with people at your stage of retirement and with the decisions you need to address.
Services actually provided
Clarify whether the relationship includes retirement planning, investment management, income planning, insurance services, tax-aware planning or coordination with other professionals.
Credentials and professional background
Understand which credentials, licenses and registrations the professional holds and what those designations do— and do not—mean.
How the professional is compensated
Ask how the advisor, firm or other professional is paid and whether compensation varies based on the services or products involved.
Planning capabilities
Retirement often involves taxes, income, investments, Social Security, Medicare and estate considerations. Understand which areas the professional can address directly and which require coordination.
Investment approach
If investment management is part of the relationship, ask how portfolios are built, monitored and adapted to a client's objectives and circumstances.
Communication style
Consider how often you expect to communicate, whether you prefer virtual or in-person meetings, and how complex topics are explained.
Minimums and relationship requirements
Some firms have investment, account-size or service minimums. Understanding these early can help determine whether the relationship may fit.
Who will actually provide the advice
Find out whether you'll work primarily with the person you meet, a broader advisory team or another professional after the relationship begins.
COMMON QUESTIONS
Retirement advisor questions, answered.
Understanding the role of a financial professional can make it easier to decide whether—and when—you want human guidance.
When should I work with a retirement advisor?
Professional guidance may be useful when retirement decisions become highly dependent on your personal circumstances or begin affecting one another. Examples can include coordinating retirement income, investments, taxes, Social Security, Medicare, insurance and estate decisions. You do not need to wait until retirement to begin asking these questions.
How does Skyline advisor matching work?
Skyline begins by asking what you want help with, where you are in your retirement journey, where you live and how you prefer to meet. The matching process can then consider relevant eligibility, capabilities, geography and other fit factors before presenting a potential next step.
How do I choose a retirement advisor?
Compare more than a title or biography. Consider relevant experience, services, credentials, compensation, planning capabilities, investment approach, communication style, minimums, professional registrations where applicable and who will actually provide the advice.
What should I ask a retirement advisor?
Useful questions include who the professional typically works with, which retirement decisions they help address, how they are compensated, what services are included, how investments are handled if applicable, how often you'll meet and which other professionals may need to be involved.
Does an advisor match mean the advisor is right for me?
No. A potential match is intended to help identify a professional who may fit the information you've provided. You should review the professional's background, services, disclosures and other relevant information before deciding whether to establish any relationship.
TRANSPARENCY MATTERS
Understand the network before you use it.
Learn how the Skyline Advisor Network is intended to work, how participating financial professionals may differ, what to expect from the matching process and which questions you should ask before beginning a professional relationship.
YOUR NEXT STEP
Ready for a more informed conversation?
Tell Skyline what you're trying to work through. We'll use that information to help look for a financial professional who may fit what you need.
Skyline educational content is not individualized financial, investment, tax or legal advice.