Financial Advisors

dunstonh

To be fair, there are always exceptions to the rule. So its nice to hear that Aegis. A lot of advisers who go on to become higher qualified and set up their own firms start out as tied agents or sales reps at the banks. The banks are a good training ground. If they survive the bank environment and want to better themselves then good for them if they act with morals from the start.

esbo

MigsyBigsy wrote: »

Hello all,

can anyone recommend a Financial Advisor in the London area.

What expectations do you have when you use them and does the amount you have to invest affect the type of advisor one chooses.

thank you for the replies

Remember that when you get finiancial advice it is only really independant if you are
paying them for it, or rather more importantly they are not recieving a commision of some sort when they recommend a product. So it is good practise to ask them
if they will recieve a fee when you take out a product they recommend and if so how much.

They way I look at it is if they were that good at offering financial advice they would not be working for a living, they would be living off their own investments :rotfl:

It is always best to do some research of your own.

Aegis

esbo wrote: »

They way I look at it is if they were that good at offering financial advice they would not be working for a living, they would be living off their own investments :rotfl:

Once again a naive interpretation of a situation. The sort of investments an IFA is authorised to recommend in general would see somewhere between 5% and 100% growth in an exceptional year (running from low to extremely high risk), with a more conservative estimate of 12-15% annualised return for a medium-high risk investor. In order to live off that sort of growth, you'd need starting capital of a quarter of a million pounds for £30k equivalent, and you'd be seeing your capital erode away due to inflation each year. Much better to use investments to supplement income or plan for retirement until you build up a large enough portfolio to live off the earnings.

Wealth planning isn't a get rich quick scheme. The risks are considerably lower than direct equity investments, and as a consequence the potential for huge growth (or loss) is smaller in comparison.

esbo

Lokolo wrote: »

I went past a estate agent place this morning (I know its not investment advisors but stay with me) and it says Independant Mortgage Advisors. Will these people really be independant or sales reps for the estate agents?

If you want to know how independant someone is you need to know who is paying them. If they are recieve ther money from someone other than your very goood self the chances of them being 'independant' in the true sense of offering unbiased advice
is slim to non-existant.

The old adage is "He who pays the piper calls the tune". Whether or not they have term 'independant' in their title is immaterial in my opinion.

LongTermLurker

esbo wrote: »

Remember that when you get finiancial advice it is only really independant if you are
paying them for it, or rather more importantly they are not recieving a commision of some sort when they recommend a product. So it is good practise to ask them
if they will recieve a fee when you take out a product they recommend and if so how much.

er - here you say "independant", so I can understand how Aegis (and myself) may have got confused and misunderstood you.

As to not going with anyone who gets paid commission, if an advisor, whether independent or otherwise, sells a unit trust for example, he will be paid commission. If you buy it direct from the investment house, they will keep the commission themselves. A good advisor who wants your business might be happy to rebate some of the commission.

I don't think of bank reps as being financial advisors; rather I think of them as being employees who know the bank's product range and wil "advise" you which of their accounts would suit you best if you want to bank with them.

edit - I think if the OP had not wanted an Independent Financial Advisor, they wouldn't have asked for "a financial advisor in the London area" - they would have just gone to their local bank branch

Aegis

esbo wrote: »

Err.. no you are confusing the terms Financial Advisor, and Independant Financial Advisor, so not a naive interpretation on my part but a mistake on your part.

How am I confusing the terms exactly? In my post I described the role of an IFA, which something I know reasonably well by now. I fail to see how I'm the one that's confused.

esbo

Aegis wrote: »

How am I confusing the terms exactly? In my post I described the role of an IFA, which something I know reasonably well by now. I fail to see how I'm the one that's confused.

You assumed I was talking about IFA'a when I was not. The OP used the term
financial advisor, MigsyBigsy appears to be looking for a good finiancial advisor, rather
than an IFA.

Aegis

esbo wrote: »

You assumed I was talking about IFA'a when I was not. The OP used the term
financial advisor, MigsyBigsy appears to be looking for a good finiancial advisor, rather
than an IFA.

You referred to "independent" financial advice, and never stopped talking about that.

In any case, a good financial adviser is independent. Why would anyone want to limit their selection by going to anyone who isn't whole-of-market when the independent adviser is usually cheaper?

jem16

esbo wrote: »

MigsyBigsy appears to be looking for a good finiancial advisor, rather
than an IFA.

Not according to this post;

MigsyBigsy wrote: »

So any recommendations for IFA (not a mortgage one) in the London area? Where can i find out more about them?

LongTermLurker

MigsyBigsy wrote: »

So any recommendations for IFA (not a mortgage one) in the London area? Where can i find out more about them?

Esbo said: MigsyBigsy appears to be looking for a good finiancial advisor, rather
than an IFA.

erm...