Tony Robbins recently released his latest book on investing and financial planning called Unshakeable: Your Financial Freedom Playbook. This is a much better book than his first book on investing called Money: Master the Game. In Unshakeable, Robbins addresses topics such as hidden fees, 401(k) plans, and Registered Investment Advisors. He gives specific advice on how to choose a financial advisor, […]
Selecting An Advisor
Wells Fargo Incentive Structure Leads to Epic Scandal
If you have been reading the financial news lately, you have probably heard about the recent Wells Fargo scandal. Employees of Wells Fargo had an internal goal to sell “at least eight financial products per customer,” according to CNN Money. This led employees to create over 2 million fake credit card and bank accounts without the consent of its customers. Wells Fargo […]
Tony Robbins promotes fiduciary model
Tony Robbins’s book “MONEY: Master the Game” has met with mixed reviews. Some critics believe it is contradictory and confuses readers, while others believe Robbins’s book moves the ball in the right direction. One thing is for certain, it is increasing inquiries to fiduciary financial advisors.
New Ruling Holds All Financial Professionals to a “Fiduciary Standard”
The fiduciary standard is receiving significant press in light of the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) approved expansion to the “investment advice fiduciary” definition under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA). In broad terms, fiduciary duty means putting the interests of the client first, ahead of profits. It means that the advice a client receives serves the client’s best interests, […]
Do You Need a Financial Advisor?
“It’s the best check my wife writes every quarter.” That’s what Professor Ken French says when asked why someone like him would need a financial advisor. French is the head of investment policy and a member of the board of directors for Dimensional Fund Advisors. He is also the Roth Family Distinguished Professor of Finance at the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth […]
The Seven Roles of an Advisor
What is a financial advisor for? One view is that advisors have unique insights into market direction that give their clients an advantage. But of the many roles a professional advisor should play, soothsayer is not one of them. The truth is that no one knows what will happen next in investment markets. And if anyone really did have a […]
How to Avoid the Next Madoff (especially if you work with a financial advisor)
Over five years ago, Bernard Madoff was sentenced to 150 years in prison for scamming many investors–both novice and expert–out of billions of dollars. It surprised me that so many experienced investors could fall for his lies and believe that his consistent returns were legit. Many of Madoff’s victims were clients of financial advisors, who had foolishly invested their clients’ funds with Madoff. […]
Investors expect too much of brokers and insurance agents
Three of four investors have unrealistic expectations of the level of care that financial advisors at brokerage firms are required to give. Seventy-six percent of investors said “financial advisors” at firms such as Merrill Lynch and UBS should put the client’s interests first, found a survey conducted by several consumer organizations. However, brokers do not have a fiduciary duty to […]
Why intelligent people fell for Bernie Madoff’s Ponzi scheme
The Ponzi scheme run by Bernard Madoff may have cost his investors some $50 billion. For many, the big question is how could seemingly sophisticated investors be so stupid? Even more important, what lessons can we learn from their mistakes so that we can avoid the next con artist who comes along? Interviews with victims show that class status, exclusivity, […]
Treat television financial ‘experts’ with caution
Paul Kangas, host of the Nightly Business Report, was interviewing New York City investment adviser Todd Eberhard in December 2001: Kangas: “What should we be buying?” Eberhard: “Well, we’re looking at some stocks which are coming out with very good numbers… right now. Examples would be a General Electric, which is trading at about $41 a share.” Kangas: “And also […]