\n Financial planners report fewer upbeat clients as cost-of-living worries mount, echoing a pre-midterms poll of voters\n <\/p>\n
Financial advisors are heading into year-end with gloomier clients, according to new data from CFP Board.<\/p>\n
CFP professionals surveyed for the board\u2019s Fall 2026 CFP Professionals Sentiment Indices, released Tuesday, said just 38% of their clients hold a positive financial outlook, down\u00a0from 50% in the summer survey.<\/p>\n
CFP Board said client sentiment has fallen to its lowest level since spring 2025, citing persistent global political instability and concerns about affordability.<\/p>\n
Planners\u2019 own moods have also dimmed. Some 52% of those polled described their personal financial outlook as positive, compared with 61% in summer 2026 and 54% a year earlier.<\/p>\n
The slide in the latest sentiment snapshot reverses the summer reading, when client optimism rebounded in spite of inflation pressures weighing on households<\/a>.<\/p>\n Financial planners\u2019 economic outlook darkens<\/p>\n Planners are also less sure about the US economy, with a similar share of respondents expecting conditions over the next year to hold steady (38%) or deteriorate (35%). CFP Board said the pessimistic share is near a record for the survey\u2019s two-year history, registering near the 36% high in bearishness that was set in last year’s fall pulse check.<\/p>\n Planners\u2019 views of their own finances over the past year are split. Nearly half, 47%, said their outlook had been stable, while 28% grew more optimistic and 26% more pessimistic.<\/p>\n Business remains healthy despite the mood, however, as almost two-thirds (64%) of planners said their client bases expanded over the past year, and nearly three-quarters (73%) expect further growth in the next 12 months.<\/p>\n CFP Board said client conversations centered on four themes:<\/p>\n
Read more:\u00a0AI investing takes hold far beyond Wall Street, new data shows<\/a><\/p>\n Cost of living tops voters\u2019 list<\/p>\n The affordability concerns planners are hearing match the national mood ahead of the Tuesday midterm elections. In a Reuters\/Ipsos poll<\/a> of more than 1,700 adults in the days leading up to the vote, 48% of registered voters named cost of living as the top issue shaping their ballot.<\/p>\n
\n\tInflation<\/a> and the rising cost of living, including groceries, gas, healthcare, and housing;
\n\tPolitical dysfunction and geopolitical uncertainty;
\n\tAdvisors\u2019 efforts to keep clients grounded in the face of political headlines;
\n\tArtificial intelligence as both an opportunity and a risk, weighing expectations around productivity and economic growth against bubble concerns and its impact on jobs and society.
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