Resources

Have questions? Talk to someone licensed.

planbend gives you the numbers and the vocabulary to understand your own plan. It does not give personalized financial, tax, or legal advice. When you want guidance for your specific situation, here's where to find qualified, independent help — and the authoritative sources behind the rules planbend estimates.

Find a financial planner

If you want help building or reviewing a plan, consider a fee-only fiduciary planner. Two terms worth knowing:

Fiduciary means they're obligated to act in your best interest.
Fee-only means they're paid by you directly, not by commissions on products they sell you — which removes a common conflict of interest.

These independent directories let you search for planners and filter by how they're paid:

NAPFA — the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors; all members are fee-only fiduciaries.
Let's Make a Plan — the CFP Board's directory of CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professionals; you can filter by compensation type.
XY Planning Network and Garrett Planning Network — fee-only networks, including planners who work hourly or on a flat fee rather than managing your assets.

Tax questions

For questions about filing status, conversions, withdrawals, or how a life change affects your taxes, a CPA or enrolled agent can advise on your specifics.

IRS — Choosing a Tax Professional, which links to the IRS directory of credentialed preparers (CPAs, enrolled agents, attorneys).
Your state's CPA society also maintains a referral or "find a CPA" service for local help.

Legal questions

For estate planning, divorce, or how a settlement or inheritance works, a licensed attorney is the right resource.

Most state bar associations run a lawyer referral service that matches you with attorneys by practice area (estate, family law) in your area. Search "[your state] bar lawyer referral service," or start at the American Bar Association.

Go straight to the source

planbend's estimates are based on published federal and state rules, which change over time. For the authoritative, current figures, these are the primary sources:

IRS — tax brackets, contribution limits, RMD rules, conversion rules.
Social Security Administration — retirement, spousal, and survivor benefit estimates (create a my Social Security account for your own figures).
HealthCare.gov — ACA marketplace plans and premium-subsidy eligibility.
Your state's department of revenue or taxation — for state income tax and any pension or retirement-income exemptions.
A note on these links: planbend isn't affiliated with these organizations and doesn't receive payment for listing them — they're here because they're reputable, independent starting points. Always do your own due diligence before hiring anyone. planbend is a planning tool, not a financial, tax, or legal advisor.