IFA versus HL

flopsy1973

Hi
Have 300k in funds with HL and recently had meeting with HSBC regarding transfer to them they want 2.75 % to implement any changes . As they said and as I have learned with the Woodford fiasco with HL no one is truly independent and will favour certain funds companies. Has anyone any experience with hsbc or shall I also speak to IFA to see what they can offer . Have lost faith with HL recently never had advice of them just used them for diy.
Any thoughts just want to look at my portfolio and see what needs changing

El_Torro

The problem with going to an HSBC Financial Advisor is that they will only consider products that HSBC offer. 2.75% seems a lot to pay for advice that isn’t all of market.

If you don’t want to DIY then yes, I would speak to an IFA, who can consider a wide range of products for you.

Radiantsoul

I am not sure why you have lost faith with HL. They don't offer advice, just a list of funds that might be ok for you.
I think an IFA is going to be more independent than someone who works for HSBC. And probably cheaper too.

Albermarle

Probably an IFA will want/prefer to sign you up for ongoing advice ( which you might prefer anyway ) .
Cost around 0.7% pa for a 300K pot. In this case there should be no transfer /initial fees ( in theory ).
An added bonus is that they will probably transfer you to a cheaper platform than HL, which will partly compensate their fees ( maybe)

enthusiasticsaver

If you do not want to DIY any more then I agree an IFA is the way to go. I did the same this year.

HL are an expensive platform for larger portfolios so even if you were going to continue to DIY I would move to a flat fee one or a cheaper one. HSBC will be expensive and not offer all of market so I would not go with them.

Audaxer

flopsy1973 wrote: »

Hi
Have lost faith with HL recently never had advice of them just used them for diy.

If you haven't taken advice from HL not sure why you have lost faith with them. If DIYing with any platform, it's not a good idea just to select funds based on their favourite funds list if that's what you have done. If DIYing and not confident of researching and choosing a portfolio of active funds, in my view it is better considering globally diversified low cost multi asset funds.

If you don't want to DIY then it would be better finding a suitable IFA rather than going to an expensive FA at a bank. The difficulty in my view is finding a good IFA. I would avoid any big firms that are called Wealth Managers as they tend to be far too expensive.

OldMusicGuy

Like others said, you seem confused. If you did not pay for advice from an HL financial adviser, how can you "lose faith" in the platform? As long as you haven't used the HL Multi-Manager funds (which is not a good idea), you are just using HL as a platform, nothing more.

I certainly don't think HL behaved well with respect to Woodford, and I invested a lot of money in one of the Woodford funds. Despite that, I still have faith in the platform and still use it.

If you do not want to DIY any more, like others said, use an IFA. Don't confuse the platform with your investment choices.

pip895

Moving from HL to HSBC seems a backward step to me. As others have said either educate yourself on investments or find an independent IFA.

I have a portfolio on HL with a core of HSBC MSCI world (HMWO) with satellite funds to cover exposure to small companies and emerging markets. Cheep approach even on HL.

Albermarle

As long as you haven't used the HL Multi-Manager funds (which is not a good idea),

You can also copy and paste this advice to many other platforms who also offer /push similar of their own products .

[Deleted User]

If your fortune is tied up in funds, you are not really a diy investor.
If you are led by a financial adviser, you are not really a diy investor.
But you are exactly the type of investor that has made both Hargreaves and Lansdown very rich.

Kick HL to the kerb and take personal responsibility for your choices. You will be happier and, likely, richer.

newatc

ZingPowZing wrote: »

If your fortune is tied up in funds, you are not really a diy investor.

Don't agree with that. If you have investments that you choose ( and not by Financial Advisor ) then you are Doing It Yourself whatever those investments might be.