Can your clients afford vacations?

For most of your clients, a summer vacation is an annual fixture on their calendars.

And while they do work hard leading up to their getaway, it’s crucial to find out if they’re saving enough to expense all travel and luxury costs.

If not, they risk coming back to a pile of bills and extra stress.

Saving for a splurge requires a plan, a budget and discipline, says Connie-gay Boyce of Valley First, a division of First West Credit Union.

“[Tell your clients] to map out where they want to go, for how long and what they’d like to do,” says Boyce. “Doing so will provide a pretty good outline of how much it will cost altogether.”

Read: Advice for client’s vacation dollars and “It pays to research before your trip“, by Preet Banerjee of Globe and Mail, for tips on how he plans vacations

She adds, “Adding 20% to the final figure brings the total closer to the real bottom line.”

Also, developing a budget and building up savings will help clients avoid using high-interest credit cards or dipping into their long-term savings accounts while away.

Read: Help clients play their cards right

Setting a realistic budget prior to planning and booking helps reveal if a trip is affordable at all, and having a less extravagant plan B in place makes it easier to scale down expenses if needed.

Read: Help clients understand trade-offs and Making the most of vacation homes

Staff

The staff of Advisor.ca have been covering news for financial advisors since 1998.