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Old 01-19-2021, 11:52 AM
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Question Working with financial planner/advisor?

How many out there reading this are working with a financial planner or advisor? Has it been a good experience? I'm getting close to my retirement years and I've always just managed my own 401k through my workplace online website and I've done pretty well with that. I've start looking at possibly working with a financial professional and I've interviewed three different people so far and all are very different in their approaches and how they would handle things.

The problem is that the more I look into them, the more I get the feeling that I could just as easily open my own brokerage account and keep doing things myself once I retire. It seems the more I learn, the less I like the idea of handing my finances off of another to control. The fees each charge are not prohibitive at all, so it's not that but they all do have 'products' they sell. The online brokerage companies these days have all kinds of free online resources and free call centers to answer your questions.

Anyway, just looking for those that looked into this and then either did or did not go the route of hiring a professional and if so, how is/was your experience? Or if now, how is/was going it alone? I don't have a ton of complex assets - just a 401k in good shape and then our house and some savings. We are essentially debt free, so that keeps things simple. We have no big retirement plans, just spending with the kids and grandkids and of course buying a couple high-end acoustic guitars here and there!
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Old 01-19-2021, 12:00 PM
Nimiety Nimiety is offline
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We have one. More hubby's idea than mine. I can 'do' financial, but don't enjoy it, so having someone else pull it all together is better for us. Plus, they are aware of all the little loop-holes, or time-limited offers, etc., that I wouldn't be aware of. For me, that's worth it and has more than paid for itself. Never in huge amounts, but all those small amounts add up.

My only advice is to find someone (qualified) that you like meeting up with.

Way back when we had a financial advisor that I detested. He'd talk to hubby and not even look at me, even when it was 'my' money (versus hubby's or 'ours' [yes, that's how we divided up the finances! ]) we were talking about.
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Old 01-19-2021, 12:19 PM
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I opted to use Vanguard as a brokerage. They offered an initial free evaluation/planning & I took advantage of that. Further use of a planner or a managed account was a percentage I wasn't willing to have as an expense,as it would cut into my income.

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Originally Posted by Vanguard
What is the annual fee for Vanguard Personal Advisor Services? You'll pay 0.30% of assets under management. That's $3 in fees for every $1,000 in your portfolio, which covers access to a financial advisor, your customized goals-based financial plan, and ongoing investment advice.
That amounts to $150 per year on a $50,000 managed account or $1,500 per year on a half million dollar portfolio.

I did ultimately put some money in a few of their low-expense index funds (but chose the categories myself), and into stocks that I had (or gained) knowledge about and manage myself, buying & selling through their online portal.

Essentially, I found it made sense to inform myself, and keep on learning. I do talk over various scenarios with my CPA regarding tax planning and to consider how to best utilize income, when to take capital gains, allowable deductions, social security & retirement.
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Old 01-19-2021, 12:27 PM
Kerbie Kerbie is offline
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I worked in that area for 5 years, so I still thoroughly enjoy it. I have several former contacts from that time, but one very good friend I still talk with regularly about finances. I think a financial advisor is like a lot of other professionals... they can be fantastic and they can nearly kill you. I was lucky to have worked with one advisor I wanted to continue dealing with when I left the profession.

I think good advisors working with good firms can be worth their weight in gold. Planners can help you make sound decisions, especially around retirement. They have a broad knowledge of investments. They follow markets closely which most folks don't do. Many of them have planning tools to let you know how well set you are for the future. Some of those tools are pretty simplistic... you can do it yourself if you know how. Others are very powerful programs that allow you to run all kinds of scenarios and update them regularly.

Having a good financial advisor is as important as having a good doctor, lawyer or accountant. Like the others, they can be a challenge to find. When you find a good one, hang on.
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Old 01-19-2021, 12:39 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Kerbie View Post
I worked in that area for 5 years, so I still thoroughly enjoy it. I have several former contacts from that time, but one very good friend I still talk with regularly about finances. I think a financial advisor is like a lot of other professionals... they can be fantastic and they can nearly kill you. I was lucky to have worked with one advisor I wanted to continue dealing with when I left the profession.

I think good advisors working with good firms can be worth their weight in gold. Planners can help you make sound decisions, especially around retirement. They have a broad knowledge of investments. They follow markets closely which most folks don't do. Many of them have planning tools to let you know how well set you are for the future. Some of those tools are pretty simplistic... you can do it yourself if you know how. Others are very powerful programs that allow you to run all kinds of scenarios and update them regularly.

Having a good financial advisor is as important as having a good doctor, lawyer or accountant. Like the others, they can be a challenge to find. When you find a good one, hang on.

What Kerbie said

We've been working with the same advisor for over 13 years now. He helped us very early on the process, when our ducks weren't even talking to each other, let alone in a row. He was with Edward Jones at the time, but was soon snapped up by a small local private wealth management firm. He (and his colleagues) guided our overall strategy, through hiccups and windfalls, and has been invaluable in the lead up to, and entry into, retirement.

I'm sure I could have done it myself, but I doubt I could have done so well, and it would have been a chore, not a pleasure. I think I have better things to spend my time on - like those two Emeralds over there
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Last edited by David Eastwood; 01-19-2021 at 12:42 PM. Reason: clarification
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Old 01-19-2021, 01:10 PM
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I used to manage my own retirement account when I was working. Not really managing it, choosing which funds I wanted to put it in and what percentage. But I thought I was quite the financial whiz.But some financial managers aren't doing anything more than that and I don't consider that as someone I want to entrust my retirement with.

I also had a farm that I was renting out at that time I retired and I sold it because it was all taking up a lot of my time and attention. I ended up dividing my retirement and the money from the farm between two investment managers. They each have a slightly different approach and they both do about the same when it comes to growth. They get their fees and all, but they are making me more money than I need to live the way I want to and I don't have to think about it all the time. Some people like to stay in control of things though and that is okay too. Whatever gives one peace of mind. But one of my investment managers told me that if I'm laying awake at night thinking about money something needs to change and to give him a call. That was exactly what was happening to me. I was just thinking about it all the time. I sleep like a baby now.
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Old 01-19-2021, 01:48 PM
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Investing is about dealing with things when the market drops. Anyone can deal with it when things are up.

I don't use a financial adviser. One thing that I looked into when I was dealing with and learning about what to do with my 401k was what a financial advisors job really is. Not what they tell you they do for you but what the crux of what their job entails. I have nothing against a fiduciary financial advisors. Once you learn what their job tasks are you may find that they are not necessary for you. That being said I believe that a person that does not have the gumption to learn that most likely is the type of person that probably should have one.

I am not the type of person that could accept another's advice of what I should do with my life savings at face value. I need to know why, how, when, what for and what if along with what about. Something as important as my life savings is something I need to control.

I rolled my 401k over into Vanguard. So I am an indexer. By choice. I move my money through my computer. Once I put in a move it is accomplished the next day.
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Old 01-19-2021, 02:28 PM
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I don't have one, but I have a pension. I see that as my main source of income in retirement.

I manage my other investments on my own. For me, it's a bonus if they do well and could possibly lead to an earlier retirement by a few years. But, it's not required. Since the pressure is not really on those investments, I feel I can do an adequate job on my own.

Now, if I win Megamillions tonight... problem solved.
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Old 01-19-2021, 03:04 PM
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Look for someone who is fee only—nothing to sell—and follows a fiduciary standard....
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Old 01-19-2021, 03:15 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Mr. Jelly View Post
Investing is about dealing with things when the market drops. Anyone can deal with it when things are up.
Sorry, Mr. J, I have to disagree. Anyone who waits for market drops to deal with things is behind the 8-ball. I think the secret is stay on top of your portfolio regardless of what the market is doing.

I would be very curious to learn what exactly you feel a financial adviser's job really is. I can't imagine how learning what their job is could prevent me from wanting their advice.

When I was in that business, I always preferred clients who wanted to learn about investments and how to understand markets. I thought those clients were easier to deal with and advise than others.
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Old 01-19-2021, 03:29 PM
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Another vanguard member. Have both an IRA and non retirement brokerage account with them. They offer sound financial advice that requires no additional fees unless you opt to use a money manager. Never felt the need for a full time financial advisors and most (Non vanguard) advisors that I talked to try to sell me on putting my money into annuities even before An in-depth conversation. Big red flag for me.
For the last 3 years I have also been a member of Motley fool (fool.com - around $300 a year) Following their suggestions/advice I have added around 30 stocks to a few of the ETFs and traditional funds I have had for 20 years. I have seen my retirement fund almost double. It was an educated risk that fit my plan. As I get closer to retirement (10 more years tops) I will decrease the risk.....but as the old cliche goes...got to be in it to win it.

On a side note, there are loads of good books for those seeking financial advise, particularly in the retirement years.
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Old 01-19-2021, 07:44 PM
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I have always managed my own finances, and I've done reasonably well, I think. But we're reaching the point of trying to calculate against an early retirement, balancing when we can retire vs. how much we will need to support that timeline.

We have been debating whether to reach out to a financial advisor, given our unique circumstances (current high costs of living, cost of healthcare to cover the gap, two young kids still in high/elementary school, foreign real estate / vacation rental business, etc.). It's complicated with some high variability, so I've been taking a conservative path, which means we may end up working longer than necessary.
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Old 01-19-2021, 07:57 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Kerbie View Post
Sorry, Mr. J, I have to disagree. Anyone who waits for market drops to deal with things is behind the 8-ball. I think the secret is stay on top of your portfolio regardless of what the market is doing.
My statement is more or less a standard statement of investors. It means that anyone can be a good investor when the markets are doing well. But if you don't know what you are doing you'll lose when markets drop. And you sell. Staying on top means one is reacting and not following a plan that takes into account that the markets will drop, unexpectedly. And I guarantee they will drop.
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Old 01-19-2021, 08:16 PM
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Scott - for twenty years (and before), I pretty much handled our investments. I had been heavily invested in mutuals, but after the 2000 downturn, I asked my accountant, "Why should I trust these MBA analysts at the mutual funds when they just lost 50% of my portfolio?" And from then on, I ran a self-administered IRA. I did fine - over 20 years, I came close to hitting the mean.

Forward to 2018- My wife is a teacher and she wanted to be sure that we handled her retirement pension properly. She also felt out of the loop, as she trusted my financial acumen, but really wanted an independent eye on the investments.

We found a good advisor. We see eye to eye in our strategy (value investing); he is gradually shifting us into dividend bearing stocks.

Most importantly, this has given my wife peace of mind. It also protects us somewhat if my acumen fades, or worse yet, I am dead wrong and we lose big. One thing that impressed me about this advisor is that he ran large numbers of simulation runs on our portfolio and was not afraid to start it at 1999 or 2008. So, fingers crossed, he assures us that we will have enough to live on til age 100.

I believe that he is offering a good value for what we pay him. He is easily covering his costs. And when the next downturn comes, we'll see how it works out. Honestly, it's one less worry that I have. As you get into retirement, the portfolio principle becomes very precious - I know many retirees who fret as they see that number decrease. At least this way, we have a structured plan and we know where we stand and how much we can use going forward.

best,

Rick
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Old 01-19-2021, 08:46 PM
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My financial advisor works for Edward Jones. He is worth his weight in gold. The amount of money I have made due to his advice has far exceeded his fee. It is important to find one that you trust, one that is a fiduciary, and one that you can form a bond with. My financial planner takes a holistic approach to money management - he looks at my entire family situation, not just how much assets I have in my portfolio. Things like social security income, insurance, estate planning, tax planning. He has mapped out my financial future for the next 30 years, which is very comforting feeling.
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