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07.09.08, 12:39 PM General Topics
23 replies
Anyone have a financial planner? If so, do they actively manage your money, or just help with allocation, insurance decisions and the like? How much do they charge? Are you pleased? Can you recommend anyone? REally want to someone to help with strategy and allocation more than someone who is going to sell me a buch of stuff and churn an account to generate fees. [ Reply | Watch | Flag ]
General Topics 07.09.08, 12:39 PM Flag
 

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too bad: I had a great planner to rec. who does lots of churning and sells me tons of useless crap. Dammn. [ Reply | More
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General Topics 07.09.08, 12:41 PM Flag
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aren't you witty! [ Reply | More
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General Topics 07.09.08, 12:42 PM Flag
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well why would anyone want a Planner like that? Kind of dumb to post this imo [ Reply | More
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General Topics 07.09.08, 12:43 PM Flag
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My brother is one and he is SO smart and not cheesy. I wouldn't post his name here but I can maybe set up a fake email and put it on here if you would like. [ Reply | More
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General Topics 07.09.08, 12:42 PM Flag
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there are many different kinds of financial advisers/planners out there and they all work in different ways. the most improtant thing is that you find someone you are comfortable with, whose general philosophy matches your own. although the media would ahve you think that how they are compensated is of utmost importance, in the end it's not. someone who is going to not treat you well is going to do it regarldess of their compensation scheme - whether they charge you a flat fee and then brush you off with a "canned" plan or whether they put you in poorly suited investments with high fees or whether they churn your account for high commissions. A good adviser will disclose everything up front, offer you options, spend a lot of time with you and make recommendations that you feel comfortable with. [ Reply | More
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General Topics 07.09.08, 12:43 PM Flag
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Do you have someone to recommend or can you point me to a source of such people? [ Reply | More
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General Topics 07.09.08, 12:45 PM Flag
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np: we've been very happy with a woman at Ameriprise. We're not wealthy and she's been great with helping us make the most of what little we have. They charge $600/yr, flat fee. I think you can interview people until you find someone you're comfortable with. [ Reply | More
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General Topics 07.09.08, 12:49 PM Flag
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Can you describe the type of advise she has given you? Does she also recommend specific securities? Is she knowledgable about college and retirement savings, estate planning, etc. [ Reply | More
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General Topics 07.09.08, 12:51 PM Flag
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Like I said we don't have much, so her advice has been focused on maximizing what we have for retirement and college savings. She goes into in-depth descriptions of the different stock/funds she reccomends and why, and she's very knowledgeable about everything you asked about--college/retirement/estate planning. We've been with her about 6 years. [ Reply | More
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General Topics 07.09.08, 12:56 PM Flag
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no, unfortunately, this is what I do, so I can't recommend anyone. you look for this the same way you look for anopther professional, ask your friends or colleagues whom they use and what they like/don't like about them. your lawyer or accountant might also be able to recommend someone. but keep in mind that what works for one person may not work for you. one person may want someone who makes aggressive recommendations and calls them weekly, whereas another person may liek someone low key who only contact thems quarterly or in the event of something significant. and no one adviser can be all things to all clients. [ Reply | More
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General Topics 07.09.08, 12:49 PM Flag
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Meaning you are a financial planner? If so, can you describe the services you provide and the related fees? [ Reply | More
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General Topics 07.09.08, 12:52 PM Flag
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i was on here eating my late lunch so i can't stay and go into this. personally, i work for a large financial services firm (like Merril Lynch, but not Merril Lynch). In general, I offer my clients conservative, asset allocation type planning (inc education and estate planning), with a buy and hold philosophy. for most clients i work on commission because i find that it is the lowest cost alternative if you are following buy and hold. that being said, i work with "middle market" and mostly younger clients (ll try to come back to this after work. [ Reply | More
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General Topics 07.09.08, 01:03 PM Flag
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np: I've also been working with someone at Ameriprise for 7 - 8 years and am very happy with him. Their fees are reasonable and they give a lot of personal service. I would interview some of their planners and see what you think. [ Reply | More
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General Topics 04.13.10, 09:19 AM Flag
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Yes, my financial planner works on a percentage of holdings basis, about 1% of the assets that she manages annually go to her fee. That way she is incented to risk balance the portfolio and grow the bottom line, not churn the account. She uses Schwab to execute trades, so they tend not to cost much. I would HIGHLY recommend her - she works for a small, private firm with an incredible local reputation, but they're located near San Francisco, CA. They are licensed to have clients in other states, but you'd probably interact largely via phone (assuming you don't live out there). If you're interested in hearing more, go to http://www.grossmanfinancial.com/staff.htm . Again, they are an independent firm, so they do not have any corporate doctrines about what funds, etc. to sell to clients. I like that a lot. Also, Frances specializes in real estate and college planning for families. [ Reply | More
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General Topics 07.09.08, 12:52 PM Flag
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thanks [ Reply | More
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General Topics 07.09.08, 12:54 PM Flag
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I can't imagine paying someone 1% of my portfolio. That's a huge amount of money...I do it all myself. Why can't people do this themselves???? [ Reply | More
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General Topics 04.12.10, 07:06 PM Flag
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NP: ultimately people need to assess whether they can do it well enough themselves so that they would end up with better results than a financial planner would, minus his/her 1% fee. [ Reply | More
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General Topics 04.12.10, 08:18 PM Flag
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nnp: for the same reason people can't or don't do their own dental work, probate an estate, take out their appendix, sell their own home, put an addition onto their house, etc. it's not that they aren't able to learn and develop the requesite skills, but they usually ahve their own full time job to attend to, plus a family or a partner and they'd rather outsource it then spend their time on this. i had a fried who would never hire an accountant bc Turbo Tax was so great. but he didn't have the time to follow up on every change in the tax laws and how to best take advantage of it and how to change his investment plan to save taxes, etc. and 10 years later, the few hundred dollars he saved each year "doing it himslef" he paid a thousand times over in lost opportunities to save taxes. [ Reply | More
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General Topics 04.12.10, 09:20 PM Flag
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I have an accountant...although I know the tax code quite well I do see the need for an accountant. very differeent from a financial planner. I can do my own financial planning and hae been doing it for many many yrs. Financial planners very often arte trying to make $$$ themselves which involves putting their interests before yours. Stupid to compare financial planner to dentist, doctor, lawyer. [ Reply | More
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General Topics 04.13.10, 07:21 AM Flag
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that's where i disagree. all professionals are trying to make $ for themselves - it's called work. and many have said "lawyer just does it to up billables" or doctor likes c-sections bc they pay better or dentist insisted i needed expensive dental work that could have been avoided. the fact is that an eithical professional, will do what is in they client's interest and get paid for it. and unethical professional will put his or her own interests first. just bc YOU feel qualified to do your own financial planning and investing, does not mean everyone is. and just bc you are willing to take the time to be educated about it, does not mean everyone is. [ Reply | More
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General Topics 04.13.10, 07:27 AM Flag
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And do you realize that you and your family benefit from the tax revenues that my earnings generate. Can I opt to fund your benefits that my tax dollars fund? [ Reply | More
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General Topics 04.12.10, 07:00 PM Flag
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One can get financial planning from a standalone financial planner or from someone (e.g. a broker) who has some training in that area. The former seems cleaner to me, and I'd expect to pay a fixed or hourly fee for the service. The latter would take a percentage of assets. If you don't know anyone, the standard recommendation is to get one who is a Certified Financial Planner(?) [ Reply | More
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General Topics 04.12.10, 08:16 PM Flag
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If you are looking for overall financial life direction and planning, I recommend Frank Astorino of Astorino Financial Group: http://www.astorinofinancialgroup.com. Yes, his office is in NJ but he is in NY all the time. He is one of the honest ones in the industry. If for any reason you don't click with him, you can check out the Certified Financial Planner web site to see profiles of others in your area, including fee structures: http://www.cfp.net/search/. [ Reply | More
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General Topics 04.12.10, 08:51 PM Flag
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