How to Choose a Financial Advisor
The title “Financial Advisor” has a myriad of meanings. To most, it probably means a financial “expert” to guide you through important decisions and help manage investment assets for the present and future.
However, all advisors are not the same. So, how do you pick one? Below are five factors to take into consideration when making your choice.
CHOOSE AN ADVISOR WITH FIDUCIARY RESPONSIBILITY
Make sure the advisor accepts “Fiduciary Responsibility” in writing. Fiduciary duty separates a financial advisor from a broker, who is held to a lesser ‘suitability’ standard. Fiduciary requires an advisor to put each client’s interest first and disclose any possible conflicts of interest. While a non-fiduciary advisor may have your best interest at heart, his or her tool box of investment choices is littered with products that may not be the best available.
FEE ONLY vs HOURLY COMPENSATION
Would you want to go to a doctor who gets paid by the drug companies? Essentially, that is what can happen if you work with a broker. Brokers are paid through the products they sell. A fee-only advisor has no incentive other than to search for the best investments. The amount that you pay the advisor will vary. Most fee only firms will charge a percentage of assets that they manage. This percentage varies from 0.25% to 1.5%, depending on the services offered. Some firms will work for an hourly rate.
TAKE CUSTODY OF YOUR ASSETS
Never write a check with funds intended for investments directly to an advisor or his or her firm. You should be depositing your investments into a third party custodian such as TD Ameritrade, Fidelity or Charles Schwab. You are essentially hiring the independent advisor to manage the account. This system creates checks and balances, reducing your chance of fraud.
CHOOSE A COMPREHENSIVE ADVISOR
If possible, choose an advisor who offers tax preparation and estate planning services in addition to financial planning and management. Advisors with a complete understanding of the tax implications to their investing strategy and your individual tax situation will save you money in the long term. In addition to tax planning and preparation, working with a firm that understands and offers estate-planning strategies will help you with the big picture. For example, if your assets are over the death tax exclusion when you die, your estate could be taxed at 55%. The bottom line is that if you hear “consult your tax advisor” or “consult your attorney,” you may consider looking for a firm that offers all three.
DO AN ADVISOR BACKGROUND CHECK
Click here for instructions on how to do this.
In Georgia, just about anyone can hang out a sign that says “financial advisor.” Make sure to look into the advisor’s background. Does the advisor have a finance, economics or accounting degree? Does he/she have any financial designations? (The CFP® designation is important if the advisor comes from a non-financial background, however it does not guarantee anything other than that they studied the core principles of financial planning.)
You can research independent advisors through the following link:
[Independent fee-only advisors cannot be found at a transaction-driven organization such as a brokerage firm or a bank, which depends on volume and not necessarily relationships when it comes to investing. Independent Advisors often own their own firms and are considered “Investment Advisor Representatives” (IAR) of their firms, which are registered as “Registered Investment Advisors” (RIA) with the State of Georgia or the SEC.]Hopefully, these guidelines will help you choose a financial advisor whom you can trust and best meets your investing needs.