There are lots of financial Advisors/ sales representatives in TV that are looking to sell retirees products that they may or may not need. Sometimes these commissions are 5% for A shares and above 10% for some insurance products.
I have mentioned this many times in the TOTV forum. If you hire an advisor, please make sure that they are a low cost, fee only advisor and a fiduciary for you 100% of the time.
Fee based is NOT the same as Fee Only! Please get your advisor to sign the below pledge.
The Pledge Most Advisors Won’t Sign!
Sadly, you will find that most of the Advisors mentioned in this thread will NOT sign this pledge. They will give you all sorts of excuses but they won't sign it. For those of you who love your advisors at the local bank, Edward Jones, Morgan Stanley, Wells Fargo, Fross, Parady, Baum and others, please let the forum know if your advisor will be a fiduciary for you 100% of the time and sign the pledge.
Typically when we do a free 2nd opinion for clients above $500k in portfolio value, we find that there are many hidden fees and total investing expenses are much more than clients realize. If you need help, give us a call.
TOTV - Understand how you pay for financial services
PS: For all of the Vanguard "do-it-yourself" fans, I like Vanguard. They are cheap and offer great exposure to market beta. That being said, building a market cap weighted 60/40% bond portfolio may not be your best strategy. Over the last 15 years (2000 to 2014), Vanguard LifeStrategy Moderate 60/40 (VSMGX) has returned 4.88% per year. Vanguard LifeStrategy Conservative 40/60 (VSCGX) has returned 4.94% per year. These returns are much lower than many investors expect. The major problem today is that future expected returns for both stocks and bonds are lower than historical averages. By targeting other asset classes, value companies, small cap companies, companies with high profit, companies with high investment and companies with momentum, you can potentially increase returns. If you want to learn more, check out our
Why DFA page. Watch some of the DFA videos at the bottom of the page.
It is easy to be a good investor in a raging bull market. As of 8/5/15, the SP500 has been up 15.66% per year (5 year compound rate of return). We have also had a 33 year bull market in bonds. The next 5 and 10 years will surprise many investors. A competent, low cost, fee only, fiduciary Advisor can add value to your portfolio. Most people need a coach.
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Good luck,
Todd Moerman
We are a low-cost, fee-only fiduciary for our clients, no commissions
352-205-4377
CLICK HERE FOR WEBSITE
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To my Advisor,
Given the current volatility of stock and bond markets, I wanted to make sure that I understand the foundation of our relationship. I have worked hard for my retirement savings and I want to make sure that my investments are aligned with my best interests and my goals.
Please answer the following:
Are you currently a fiduciary for me 100% of the time?
How do you and your firm get paid for my account? Please list all sources.
What were my total fees for 2014 & 2013 for my accounts? Please break out by Advisor fees, mutual fund expenses, 12b-1 fees, commissions, other fees.
What percent of my portfolio has commission products and 12b-1 fees? Mutual funds with A, B or C shares, UIT’s, closed-end funds, non-traded REITs, insurance?
Will you sign and agree to the following?
• I will be a fiduciary for you 100% of the time.
• I shall always act in good faith and with candor.
• I shall always put the client’s best interest first.
• I shall be proactive in my disclosure of any conflicts of interest that may impact you.
• I will provide to each client full and fair disclosure of all important facts, including full transparency of how we are paid by the client or other financial companies.
• I shall not accept any referral fees or compensation that is contingent upon the purchase or sale of a financial product.
• I shall disclose my advisor fee, any commissions, all operating expenses and any trailing advisor fees or 12b-1 fees.
FIDUCIARY \DEFINITION\: A person legally appointed and authorized to hold assets in trust for another person. The fiduciary manages the assets for the benefit of the other person, rather than for his or her own profit. (source: Investopedia.com) \USAGE\: A registered investment advisor, who is held to a “fiduciary standard of care”, looks after the assets of another person on that person’s behalf, is fully transparent, and required to disclose any potential conflicts of interest
_____________________________ Name of Advisor (print)
_____________________________ Signature of Advisor
_____________________________ Date
