Questions to Ask Before Hiring a Financial Advisor!

Written by Charles H. Curtin Friday, 30 January 2015 14:25

* Do you have fiduciary responsibility — are you bound by the “prudent-person rule?”

This means every advisor should have a fiduciary responsibility to put the interests of their clients first.  Registered investment advisers and investment adviser representatives have this fiduciary responsibility, and should have their Series 65 or 66 licenses.

* Are you working for an “independent firm or proprietary firm?”  Do you offer a variety of investment options or is the investor limited to only your firm’s investments?

* How many clients do you manage? — Too many clients may take away from the attention that you need.

* How long do you plan to be in the business?

If you are going to retire in the near future, ask what the advisor’s plans are for their clients?  You want to know if you’ll need to look for a new advisor in the future.

* How often will you have face-to-face meetings per year? — I personally meet with my clients two to four times per year.

* How will you manage my investments?

* Are the investments “active or passive” or “tactical or strategic?” — This will show how the financial adviser is involved in your investments.

* How well will you get to know my needs and wants before making investment recommendations?

* Do you have multiple strategies of investment options for me to choose from, or just a product specific investment?

* How are you compensated?  Are there management fees or commission-based-pay, or both?

Your decision in selecting a financial adviser should not be based on fees, or in finding the lowest cost investments.  You want to seek investment opportunities that get you the best total net return. Your interest is how much money goes directly into your pockets, after all of the fees and expenses are accounted for.Â

Remember that Financial Advisors are not here to make you rich – we are here to make sure that you don’t go broke.

Curtin Wealth Management is located at 25060 Avenue Stanford Suite 240, Valencia CA 91355.  For more information, please call 661-200-3423.

Securities and advisory services offered through SagePoint Financial, Inc. member FINRA/SIPC.  Insurance services offered through CURTIN WEALTH MANAGEMENT, who is not affiliated with SagePoint Financial, Inc.