Military Support Organization of the Month: MFAA

With a motto of “military veterans and spouses serving military and veteran families,” the MFAA’s qualifications and standards exceed those of most financial services organizations—but more importantly, they know the life. You don’t need to explain what SBP (Survivor Benefit Program) and BAH (Basic Housing Allowance) mean to them. They already know.

Andrea Clark, CFP®, AFC®, one of the founders of MFAA, has a special connection to The College. She is a previous scholarship recipient from the American College Center for Military and Veterans Affairs, having been awarded one by The College to pursue the CFP® Certification Education Program around the time her husband retired from the military. Along with several other Center of Military and Veterans Affairs scholars, Andrea went on to found MFAA: a non-profit professional association of independent financial planning experts specializing in financial advice and planning services for military and veteran families.

MFAA realizes the military community has long been overlooked by financial planners, and there is now a greater need than anyone in the industry can possibly satisfy on their own. They believe that only by working together can we all accomplish our objective of providing military and veteran families with the highest quality financial advice.

All MFAA members must meet these standards:

• XY Planning Network member in good standing
• Sign a fiduciary oath to act in the best interests of our clients at all times
• Operate as a fee-only financial advisor, meaning that we don’t collect any kinds of commissions or other earnings for the recommendations we make to clients
• Offer a fee structure other than assets under management 
• Have no derogatory marks on our records as financial professionals
• Primary focus on providing comprehensive financial planning, not just investment management
• Prior service as a military member or a military spouse
• Committed to continually furthering our education in order to better serve clients
• Own or work at an independent Registered Investment Advisory (RIA), avoiding the issues that may exist among advisors at large broker-dealers or insurance companies
• Have a positive reputation among local professionals in our industry, as membership in MFAA is by invitation only
• Maintain their status as a CFP® professional or a candidate currently pursuing the designation (members may also maintain additional certifications related to financial planning)

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