Mark Hauser Highlights How To Choose a Financial Advisor
Using this infographic, Mark Hauser, a Financial Advisor, highlights how to choose a financial advisor.
The number of advisors out there has skyrocketed in recent years, but that also means that choosing a good one can be tricky. There are many ways to pick an advisor, as well as different types of advisors themselves: fee-only or commission-based products, what’s covered and what isn’t covered by your insurance company, who will be managing your money on the ground floor during retirement (vs those trying to sell you stocks or mutual funds), etc. The first step to any advisor choice is to do your research first. Find out what type of advisor you’re looking for, read up on the qualifications of each type of advisor, see who is offering a free consultation, and look at their websites.
Mark Hauser Highlights How To Choose a Financial Advisor
A resource of most financial advisors is The American Association of Personal Financial Advisors (AAPFA), which has the following resources. Note that many provide fee-only products, meaning that the advisor takes no commission and can’t share in any success of the investments. Their work is on your behalf, and you are responsible for paying their expenses. Mark Hauser is a member of the AAPFA and only offers fee-only products.
The first resource is The American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, which has information on a CPA and whether you should use one.
The second resource is the Securities and Exchange Commission, which focuses on registered reps: financial advisors who are not CPAs but are licensed through the state to advise consumers.
The third resource is the Investment Company Institute, which links to other resources for consumers and financial advisors.
The fourth resource is the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), a self-regulatory organization that licenses and oversees brokers, options, and municipal securities professionals.