[ellenwelsh]

Many financial advisors sponsor information meals at local restaurants. Attend a few and make appointments to meet privately with one or more that appeal to you.

[curtmcgee]

Matt Plunkett at Fidelity in Lake Sumter. Stay away from all the rookie advisors Edward Jones uses.
Curt

[Holly Strassle]

Highly recommend Parady. Didn't know anything about finances. They educate you before you decide what you want.

[queenpalmgirl]

We Highly recommend Blackston Financial on 466. Very friendly and knowledgeable according to your needs. Kyle is Great!!

[cjky2k]

Originally Posted by capecoralbill

I would go with Schwab, or Fidelity, maybe even Edward Jones. A friend of mine used a local Advisor (Who does host dinners here) with a small office of maybe five or 6 employees they put her into some questionable stocks, some of them even went bankrupt and she lost seven to 10 thousand dollars on two of them. He was charging her 1 1/2 per cent every month. We eventually got away from him entirely and split her assets between Fidelity and Schwab. They are both self directed accounts, which means no fees. They both offer some financial guidance at either one to two percent, if you need guidence. So just go talk to them without swapping your money there and listen to their sales pitch. But I would definitely stay away from these small outfits especially when they have relatives working in their office.
Just think if one of their principles would die, the chaos your money and income taxes Would be in.

Schedule a visit with all three! I use fidelity exclusively and have forever so I would start there. Ask to set up an informational session to go over all the advice options they have. It doesn’t sound like self directed will be comfortable you (this is what I do but I am a confident investor). Their management fees are in line with all the larger firms and there are options for levels of service. I have a very good friend who has them manage everything and he considers the fee very reasonable for how well he sleeps at night. The biggest thing is to NOT be afraid to say, after the first meeting (whichever if the big three you go to) that “we like your services but aren’t sure the person we spoke with first is the right fit. Can we speak with other advisors?” This is VERY hard for most of us to do but it is critically important that you feel understood by your financial advisors.

Good luck. Stay away from insurance and annuity salespeople. Don’t rush the choice. Go for a fiduciary with an office here so you can meet in person if desired. I would start with Fidelity.

[Stu from NYC]

Originally Posted by Holly Strassle

Highly recommend Parady. Didn't know anything about finances. They educate you before you decide what you want.

Did they somehow manage to sell you annuities?

[Stu from NYC]

Originally Posted by ellenwelsh

Many financial advisors sponsor information meals at local restaurants. Attend a few and make appointments to meet privately with one or more that appeal to you.

Before you do a private meeting ask them for their qualifications and experience. Have found many have very little of both.

[manaboutown]

I have been looking around for an independent fee-only FA for when the time comes I will be unable to manage my own accounts. I found this which I thought lays it out well.

"Research the Financial Advisor’s Background
Make sure that the financial advisor holds necessary professional credentials such as Certified Financial Planner (CFP), Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA), or other relevant titles. Also, verify their education and experience.

Search online databases like the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (NAPFA) to ensure your financial advisor is credible and competent.

Find out if they have had any disciplinary actions against them or if regulatory agencies like SEC or FINRA have ever suspended or revoked their licenses. You may use the SEC Action Lookup - Individuals(SALI) or FINRA’s BrokerCheck tool for this.

Ask Questions
A good advisor should be able to answer your questions clearly and accurately while providing specific examples of how they can help you reach your financial goals. Consider these questions:

What are your credentials?
Are you registered?
Are you a fiduciary?
How do you make your money?
What is your fee structure?
Are there any conflicts of interest I should know about?
What do you specialize in?
What other services do you offer?
When and how often will we meet?
Aside from money, how do you measure investment success?
Be sure you are confident with their answers before choosing an independent financial advisor."

From: Independent Financial Advisor | Meaning, Pros, & Cons

Beyond the above I will want to be able to meet in person, at least initially, to see if we are simpatico. Too, are we a good fit, both in the size of my accounts, age, goals and other factors.

Call me a snob but my first cut is their educational background. Did they attend and do well at a top university, majoring in economics, business, mathematics or a hard science such as physics or chemistry? I want be able to evaluate their cognitive and analytical abilities.

[CoachKandSportsguy]

Originally Posted by manaboutown

Call me a snob but my first cut is their educational background. Did they attend and do well at a top university, majoring in economics, business, mathematics or a hard science such as physics or chemistry? I want to be able to evaluate their cognitive and analytical abilities.

Tough customer. . . but fair. .

I would also ask to see some of his customer portfolios:

1) by percentage weightings, similar to what s/he would recommend for you
2) how often is the portfolio rebalanced?
3) what is the portfolio sharp ratio for the life of the portfolio?
4) what is the inception to date annualized return?
5) what was the largest drawdown and when was it?
6) what is the annual average drawdown?

If he can't answer those questions, s/he can't quantify what they are recommending.

good luck

and remember, annuities are purchased index funds with a very long term hedge as insurance against a market collapse, and a portion of the gains/dividends/index are sent to you each month. .

[Caymus]

Originally Posted by manaboutown

I have been looking around for an independent fee-only FA for when the time comes I will be unable to manage my own accounts.

Over the past few years, I talk to more than two dozen firms without finding a good fit. Many of them charge AUM's or required large retainers. Some firms gave me to the "kid" or were reading from some type of script. Others were not taking new accounts.

It seems one of the main benefits to a conventional adviser is for "hand holding" which I don't need at this time.

[capecoralbill]

"Caymus Others were not taking new accounts."

Would you mind telling us who was not taking new accounts?

[Boomer]

6% has always been too much, and as house prices shot sky-high, those commissions became an obscenity. I don’t even want to start thinking about what those commissions would come out to be in an hourly wage. Yeah. I know. They work soooo hard. But c’mon — thousands and thousands and thousand — for how much time???

It’s been so wrong for so long, but this so-called solution does not make sense.

Here’s an obvious question — or maybe it’s a dumb one. But why not have buyers’ agents work for an hourly wage?

Next obvious, or dumb, question: Wouldn’t it make sense to just call each listing agent? (Not easy to find out with TV houses but with the MLS it is.) Savvy buyers know how to do their homework and should be comfortable without someone who is “representing” their interests because some buyers can do that themselves.

Maybe I am being obtuse, but this whole thing looks like a convoluted mess of stress for buyers and sellers. Am I missing something?

Boomer

[retiredguy123]

Originally Posted by Boomer

6% has always been too much, and as house prices shot sky-high, those commissions became an obscenity. I don’t even want to start thinking about what those commissions would come out to be in an hourly wage. Yeah. I know. They work soooo hard. But c’mon — thousands and thousands and thousand — for how much time???

It’s been so wrong for so long, but this so-called solution does not make sense.

Here’s an obvious question — or maybe it’s a dumb one. But why not have buyers’ agents work for an hourly wage?

Next obvious, or dumb, question: Wouldn’t it make sense to just call each listing agent? (Not easy to find out with TV houses but with the MLS it is.) Savvy buyers know how to do their homework and should be comfortable without someone who is “representing” their interests because some buyers can do that themselves.

Maybe I am being obtuse, but this whole thing looks like a convoluted mess of stress for buyers and sellers. Am I missing something?

Boomer

Boomer, I think you posted to the wrong thread.

[Stu from NYC]

Originally Posted by wolfie

I am quite a few of my friends use West financial group. Our contact is Skip. We have been using him for a few years and have been very satisfied with the results located here. The Villages telephone number is 33524610645 and my name is Peter Wolfinger, and I am not easy to please when I play with my money I get good returns from them and to me that's what counts

Guess they talked you into buying annuities

[Aces4]

Originally Posted by Boomer

6% has always been too much, and as house prices shot sky-high, those commissions became an obscenity. I don’t even want to start thinking about what those commissions would come out to be in an hourly wage. Yeah. I know. They work soooo hard. But c’mon — thousands and thousands and thousand — for how much time???

It’s been so wrong for so long, but this so-called solution does not make sense.

Here’s an obvious question — or maybe it’s a dumb one. But why not have buyers’ agents work for an hourly wage?

Next obvious, or dumb, question: Wouldn’t it make sense to just call each listing agent? (Not easy to find out with TV houses but with the MLS it is.) Savvy buyers know how to do their homework and should be comfortable without someone who is “representing” their interests because some buyers can do that themselves.

Maybe I am being obtuse, but this whole thing looks like a convoluted mess of stress for buyers and sellers. Am I missing something?

Boomer

Not obtuse but maybe oblivious to the subject. I think you posted this under the wrong thread. It happens to most of us sooner or later.