Americans who have a financial plan of any sort not only feel more confident and are more optimistic about their futures, but are also saving more and getting into financial trouble less than those without a plan, according to a new survey.

The report comes from the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, Inc., which represents more than 60,000 financial planners. But even though the CFP Board has the vested interest of professional advisers at heart, the survey was "not specific about how that plan was created," said Kevin Keller, chief executive of the CFP Board.

The purpose, he said, was to assess the value of financial planning more globally... Read more >

Reuters
Beth Pinkster Gladstone
July 23, 2012