Financial Advisors

Lokolo

Here... :P I shall abuse Aegis when he (male right?) passes his final exam and can give advice. Theres also duns, but I am sure they both would get fed up and ignore you after a while ha.

Other than that, no place exists! (unless you have friends in that area)

esbo

jem16 wrote: »

So where else should people go as you seem to have all the answers despite no personal experience?

Why should you need to go anywhere?
There is plenty of information available from various sources about finiancial
products, not least the web. Buying financial products are no more rocket science
than buying a bag of potatos, although you might think it is after 10 minutes with an advisor!!
It's pretty simple really, ask what you are getting and how much it will cost and
make your choice, there really is not much more to it than that.

Lokolo

And of course. If it was that easy everyone would be doing it and earning millions *sigh*

Aegis

Lokolo wrote: »

And of course. If it was that easy everyone would be doing it and earning millions *sigh*

Quite.

Holistic financial planning is bloody difficult, which is why trained professionals can earn a reasonable living by doing it for people who have neither the time nor the desire to do it for themselves. Looking at someone's entire situation from current income and expenditure through protection and investments right the way through to retirement planning and IHT mitigation is an extremely in-depth process that most people quite simply aren't capable or willing to do themselves. It's not something that you can just pop down to the shops for 5 minutes to sort out. A decent investment portfolio for a novice would probably take years to construct well if they were researching a little in their free time, and they'd probably make a whole host of mistakes along the way. Going to a professional will, for a large number of people, be a cost-saving exercise in terms of time and probably even fees if they would otherwise have bought directly from the providers.

jem16

esbo wrote: »

Buying financial products are no more rocket science
than buying a bag of potatos, although you might think it is after 10 minutes with an advisor!!

Ok that sounds easy but could you give me some help please?

I'm just about to retire and I have £200,000 to invest from downsizing my house. I need this money to live off.

What do you suggest?

LongTermLurker

esbo wrote: »

Why should you need to go anywhere?
There is plenty of information available from various sources about finiancial
products, not least the web.

I agree - I have the time and inclination to research funds and believe I have a good protfolio. I don't know how good it is because I've never asked anyone, but I'm satisfied that if it proves to be wrong, it'll be my fault. I'm also pleased with myself for learning a bit about a subject that I don't work in; I'm nowhere near a professional though and don't have the time or inclination to research individual companies, so I steer clear of buying individual shares.

esbo wrote: »

Buying financial products are no more rocket science
than buying a bag of potatos, although you might think it is after 10 minutes with an advisor!!

I think your views are very blinkered. There are people on this board who find difficulty in grasping the fundamentals of compound interest. I'm not knocking them - I know several technical people who are very good at their professions who haven't a clue how pensions work and aren't bothered about finding out. Some of them may prefer to pay someone to give them advice in the same way I prefer to pay a builder to do what others may call DIY.

esbo wrote: »

It's pretty simple really, ask what you are getting and how much it will cost and make your choice, there really is not much more to it than that.

oh-um - so some cheap shares in a small company that specialises in creating biofuels in a small Japanese village would be a perfect first step on the investment ladder for a 78 year old environmentalist then?

The truth is, some people will accept a challenge and do their own research; they will probably make some mistakes and if they're lucky they'll have enough money to learn from them. Others won't be so luck, will get burned badly and won't touch investments ever again. The rest will choose to pay someone to lay their patio, paint their house, fix their PC and provide advice on potential money-making options.

From what I know, IFAs either take commision from the investment houses or you pay them a flat fee - if you went direct to the investment house you would still pay the commission but they keep it themselves. The only 2 sensible options are either DIY through a discount broker or get advice from an IFA.

purch

Do not assume I am stupid or naive, you will be in for a hard time if you do.

Careful Aegis....that reads like a threat to me.... :eek:

Next time he'll 'bash' the keys much harder when he types :rotfl:or even 'click' his mouse aggressively

isofa

Unfortunately there are a lot of newcomers here recently, that "know best", post in an aggressive manner, and often with very little thought. (I experienced this recently on the Premium Bond thread!). I wonder if they would behave like this face to face, actually I don't really need to ask this question.

IFAs are skilled professionals, just like doctors, IT consultants, engineers, and any other professionals. To dismiss their job effectively as worthless and "any one can do it" - especially on a financial forum, where some excellent IFAs and others offer terrific free advice - indicates very little knowledge (let alone respect). That, as you can see, will not win favours here.

If anyone could do it, we'd all be millionaires. Predicting markets is a black art, even the most seasoned professionals running large city funds often get it wrong.

Oh and before you shoot me down in flames, and I'm not an IFA either, but I hope I've given, from time to time good advice to others here and on the other MSE forums - I've certainly received it from numerous people here too.