Yes, South Florida, in this debt-bulging, market-crashing moment, you are being offered a metaphoric free lunch.

In reality, it's even better than food: a free Financial Planning Clinic on Nov. 15, sponsored by the city of Miami and organized by the CFP Board of Standards, a nonprofit organization that sets professional requirements and oversees certification for the nation's 58,000-plus certified financial planners.

Ninety-five certified financial planners have volunteered to give financial advice -- free of charge.

Before you dismiss this clinic at the Hyatt Regency at Miami Convention Center as a marketing gimmick, read the fine print: The planners are prohibited from giving out their business cards (though their names are listed in the clinic program). And event organizers won't be collecting anyone's phone numbers, addresses or credit-card information for future contact, said Chris Wloszczyna, a spokesman for the Washington, D.C-based CFP Board.

''Our mission is to help educate the public and uphold our standards of excellence,'' Wloszczyna said. ``It's our reputation on the line.''

The clinic will feature 16 50-minute workshops, including four in Spanish, on such topics as Young Professionals: Launching Your Financial Plan, Managing Debt, Investment Planning for Retirement Assets, Financial Planning for Small Businesses and Living Beyond Paycheck to Paycheck.

Certified financial planners also will meet one-on-one with attendees in 15-minute sessions to answer any of their financial planning questions.

`OBJECTIVE ADVICE'

''What's priceless about the clinics is the objective advice,'' said certified financial planner Elaine King, director of the Wealth & Well-Being Center at Gibraltar Private Bank & Trust in Coral Gables.

She will be giving a presentation in Spanish geared to young professionals, as well as meeting individually with attendees. ''You can even ask the same question to five different CFP professionals,'' she said.

Walk-ins are welcome, but those who register in advance at www.CFP.net will be admitted first, Wloszczyna said. As of Thursday, 250 people had registered for the clinic, he said.

Miami is the fourth city in three years to be chosen for the CFP Board's free clinics. The others were held in Los Angeles in 2006, Boston in 2007 and Washington, D.C., in September.

''In addition to the overall size of the metropolitan area, we were looking for a city with a strong multicultural population,'' Wloszczyna said. ``Miami fits the bill on both counts.''

BRING STATEMENTS

Certified financial planner Jason Whitby, senior financial advisor at Investors Solutions in Coconut Grove, is another clinic volunteer. He said attendees should bring financial statements, ''whatever they're comfortable carrying,'' so planners will have good information on which to base their advice.

''It's a pretty amazing deal,'' Whitby said, ``to be able to meet one-on-one with a qualified certified professional in a no-hassle, no-sales environment. It would be a shame for people with so many questions and concerns not to take advantage of it.''

Wloszczyna said many people think only the wealthy need a financial planner. The clinics are one way the CFP Board is trying to counter that misconception, especially in these trying economic times.

''Everything is in turmoil and people don't know where to turn,'' Wloszczyna said. ``There's no question that consumers can use professional help to make sense of it all.''

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