At What Portfolio Size Would You Consider Professional Advice?

Sam_54

I've always been curious about this.

Many people manage their own investments successfully, but at what point do you think it becomes worth getting professional advice?

For example:

£100k?

£500k?

£1 million+?

Only when retiring?

Never?

Is it about the amount of money, or is it more about life events like retirement, inheritance, tax planning, or selling a business?

I'd be interested to hear everyone's views.

eskbanker

It's also about the capabilities and level of education of the investor - there are plenty on here who are more than comfortable with managing substantial seven figure portfolios, but conversely others who are intimidated by the thought of looking after five or even four…

InvesterJones

Are you really curious OP, or do you have some ulterior motive to try and encourage people to take up a paid for service?

GeoffTF

The size of your assets is not the most important factor. The most important factors are your knowledge, experience and the complexity of your affairs. In some respects, being wealthy makes planning easier. You are not going to run out of money unless you behave very foolishly.

masonic

I'd agree with others that professional advice would need to add value to what you are already doing. That could be navigating a knowledge gap, complex affairs, or simply not wishing to engage to the degree that is required to DIY.

The value alone makes little difference. Most people start small and build up to increasing sums without a need to fundamentally change anything.

Things like a large inheritance, divorce settlement, lottery win, etc might warrant some advice, depending on the individual.

Albermarle

I think even for experienced DIY investors, there is probably a limit where things get more complicated, especially around tax / the use of trusts etc

Possibly once your overall wealth starts getting towards £3Million+ ?

masonic

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82075641#Comment_82075641

It probably does if those holdings are unwrapped.

Bostonerimus1

It's a very personal answer. I would never ask for investment advice, but I went to a solicitor for my will and estate planning as it involved a trust to make estate administration easier for my executor, NOT to mitigate IHT, and when my taxes get more complicated I will probably get a professional to do those.

Bostonerimus1

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82075773#Comment_82075773

Trusts come in many flavours and the often pay taxes, so if you put money in trust as part of an estate plan you will be swapping IHT for a whole set of other taxes. As a "tax dodge" trusts don't really work, but they can be useful for managing tax bills across generations. There are far more dubious practices implemented by companies and the super rich. So I give the merely rich a pass on trusts.

GeoffTF

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82075641#Comment_82075641

Nothing need change at that level, depending on your circumstances, objectives etc. I talked about this with an accountant friend. He thought that my save every basis point attitude would would change if I had £50 million.

dunstonh

I have almost no unwrapped investments now, but if that changed, I would aim to split my investments between wrapped and unwrapped in a way to keep tax relatively low (i.e. using unwrapped for lower-income assets, or CGT-exempt assets, or assets which I could just hold for a long time to postpone the CGT—which is an advantage even if CGT were charged at the same rates as income tax, because you get the compounding gross, not net), and then just pay whatever tax remains.

With some investment amounts and asset mixes, the use of the onshore bond wrapper and offshore bond wrapper can come into play as well.