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Indeed, but the question is, would a financial advisor (or whatever financial professional we have in mind here) primarily serve to (1) assuage the investor's doubts, preventing him/her from making rash moves such as selling during a market nadir; or (2) through investment acumen (or other magic) actually avoid having the client's portfolio suffer during a market decline, while systematically capturing gains whenever the market is ascendant?
I would gladly pay 1.35% annually for service #2. But service #1 can be accomplished just as easily with a bottle of vodka.
#1 is actually proven to be effective and often times worth the money and #2 is simply guessing or magic as you put it. Capturing gains on accention would cost you money more times than not on the market as a whole
I have accumulated a significant amount in my Vanguard IRAs and my EJ advisor wants me to convert the Vanguard IRA into EJ.
So, if I make any contribution to an IRA with EJ, they are going to take 5% of that contribution?
Yes. Of course he wants you to move it, tell him you'll think about it but in the mean time he should be willing to give you advice where it is. If he isn't willing to do that I wouldn't want him as a advisor.
I have accumulated a significant amount in my Vanguard IRAs and my EJ advisor wants me to convert the Vanguard IRA into EJ.
So, if I make any contribution to an IRA with EJ, they are going to take 5% of that contribution?
So, you and he think he can do better with your IRA after his fees than it's doing in Vanguard? There is a very tiny chance that will happen. Leave the money at Vanguard and pay him to talk when you need a visit. Way cheaper in the long run.
#1 is actually proven to be effective and often times worth the money and #2 is simply guessing or magic as you put it.
Quote:
Originally Posted by 1insider
So, you and he think he can do better with your IRA after his fees than it's doing in Vanguard? There is a very tiny chance that will happen. Leave the money at Vanguard and pay him to talk when you need a visit. Way cheaper in the long run.
It's been my experience, that a therapist is a cheaper option than a financial advisor. Leave the money alone, and when feeling dour or distraught over losses, see the therapist.
It's been my experience, that a therapist is a cheaper option than a financial advisor. Leave the money alone, and when feeling dour or distraught over losses, see the therapist.
It would be cheaper to talk to my lawn guy about it but not really the best option
Your lawn guy would probably give you better, sound and more honest advice that an Edward Jones snake oil salesman.
Yet, we will continue to see threads from people wondering whether they should stay with or move to Edward Jones for the comfort of having an "advisor".
Man, we sure have a lot of completely rational investors in this thread. Good for you! I wonder how many have read Daniel Kahneman's work or his most recent book, Thinking Fast and Slow. My lawn guy keeps telling me to invest in more lawn services, I suppose he knows best........
Man, we sure have a lot of completely rational investors in this thread. Good for you!
I'm not a completely rational investor by any means. That's why my investing strategy consists of:
1. Monthly automatic contributions to my retirement and taxable investment accounts. No thought required apart from the initial choice of funds (which were picked in part because they are low cost).
2. Automatic re-balancing of my retirement accounts quarterly. No thought required.
3. Reviewing my overall asset allocation about every 5 years. This involves maybe 5 minutes of thought.
And most important of all:
4. NOT closely following the financial news or frequently checking the balances on my accounts. This mostly involves staying away from the news media, which isn't too hard because I don't have much time to read/listen/watch that stuff anyway.
I may not be rational, but I can mimic brain-dead very well, and when it comes to investing that approach usually works out pretty well!
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