Raleigh, NC – April 24, 2012 – When it comes to retirement planning, it can be a jungle out there. No one knows that better than Rick Parkes CRFA (r), co-founder of Diversified Estate Services. With more than thirty-five years experience, he’s seen a lot over his career.

To help people navigate through the retirement jungle, Rick has a weekly radio show on WZTK 101.1 FM, the largest radio station in North Carolina. The show, aptly named “Financial Safari”, has been on the air for five years.

Rick doesn’t just dispense advice on the airwaves and then leave listeners to fend for themselves— he offers free follow-up consultations at his firm, Diversified Estate Services (DES).

DES is an independent financial planning firm in Raleigh, North Carolina. According to Rick, the “independent” part of the firm’s description is very important. “DES is not owned by a brokerage firm and there are no hidden fees. The large brokerage firms don’t have fiduciary duty, meaning that a broker is not legally obligated to put his clients’ interests first. At DES, we are legally obligated to put our clients’ needs ahead of our own. Of course, we would do that anyway.”

Rick specializes in working with people who are either within ten years of retirement or already retired. According to Rick, “For retirees, it’s all about preservation and distribution rather than growth. If they’re invested in something too high risk, a downturn in the market can be devastating.”

A typical DES client is someone who’s starting to think about retirement, but doesn’t have a plan. “They have accounts, but don’t know what to do with them”, says Rick. “The first thing I do is make sure we have your guaranteed income covered. Then we take a look at other areas: their long-term goals, insurance needs, mortgage and long-term care. Finally, we take the discretionary funds and put it in investments that work for them.”

Rick’s favorite part about his job is helping people. Fortunately for him, he’ll be able to increase the number of people he helps with his first book, Help! I’m Retiring, which will be released in January 2012.

Rick says, “I can’t think of anything else I’d rather do. I want to be known as someone who helps as many people reach their goals as possible.”

Read more at http://www.rickparkesradio.com/about-rick-parkes-crfa%C2%AE/