EDITOR'S NOTE: As Americans continue the uphill climb to economic recovery, deciding where to invest is only part of the battle. In our special report, "Build Your Financial Life Plan," we offer a complete strategy for all aspects of your financial well-being. We've also developed an interactive tool to help you create your own plan. To get your customized strategy, go to www.smartmoney.com/lifeplan.

The nation's 175,000 financial advisers are increasingly focusing on comprehensive planning -- helping clients with taxes, college savings, or even comparison-shopping for a car, says Don Philips, a managing director at Morningstar. Of course, potential customers should comparison-shop among planners, too. Here are some key questions to cover.

How are they paid?

The most common kinds of pay arrangements are "fee-only" and "fee-based."

Fee-only planners generally charge a flat fee; that can be a percentage of the client's assets or a fixed dollar amount. Typical management fees range from 0.8 to 1.5 percent per year, says the Financial Planning Association.
Fee-based advisers are paid through a combination of the fees they charge you and the commissions from mutual funds and other products they sell to you.

How much help do you need?

A couple who are relatively confident about some or all of their life plan may need only occasional check-ins with an adviser who gets paid by the hour, says Rockville, Md., financial planner Karen Schaeffer. Choosing such consultations over a full-time relationship could save a lot on fees.

Will you get your face time?

Bigger advisory firms often have greater resources available, like an in-house estate-planning attorney, but it's easier for a client with fewer resources to get overlooked. Big firm or small, clients will want an adviser who's willing to meet regularly -- and it's even better if the adviser initiates contact. The fee-only firm Stepp & Rothwell in Kansas City, Kan., for example, schedules quarterly appointments with all of its clients.

Do they pass the smell test?

A little extra due diligence is justified these days, says John Grable, director of the Institute of Personal Financial Planning at Kansas State University. Find the adviser's disciplinary record with the SEC at www.adviserinfo.sec.gov, required for anyone managing more than $25 million.

That document will contain details of the adviser's education and disciplinary history going back 10 years. (Advisers with less money under management must file similar documentation with their state's securities regulator.)

Can't you all just get along?

You want to actually like this person, if only to the point you're likely to meet once or twice a year. Beware an adviser who does all the talking; an adviser should be able to explain everything he or she is suggesting in a way you thoroughly understand. A final litmus test: Ask the adviser, "How do you invest your money?" If the adviser doesn't want to discuss his or her personal investing, says accountant and planner Carol Cantrell, "I would pick up my bags and walk out."