One of the most important things an advisor must do is to assess the appropriate level of risk for clients’ investments. There are many ways to do this. It’s part science and part art. Time horizon is the key determinant. Advisors will ask if you will need the money in the near term, such as if you plan to buy a car with the money within the next year. In such a case, you wouldn’t want the money to be … Continued
In late 2019, after over 15 years with bank-owned investment dealers, I chose to serve my clients through iA Private Wealth, an independent dealer. Here’s what that means and why I made the change. Employee vs Self-Employed At bank-owned dealers, advisors are employees and the people they serve are clients of the bank. The compensation is variable, meaning the advisor’s pay is a function of how much revenue the clients they serve generate. The bank keeps about half and provides … Continued
Just over a year ago, I changed investment dealers and began serving my clients through an “independent” firm; iA Private Wealth. In the industry, it is referred to as an independent because advisors are not employees of the investment dealer but are rather, self-employed. This change has afforded me and my clients a range of benefits, all of which I will lay out another time. However, among these benefits is the freedom to brand my practice. Today, I’m proud to … Continued
During times when markets are down, advisors will say “think about the long term” like it is a mantra. It’s because there are many examples from the past that demonstrate that in short periods of time, markets can deliver poor results, but over longer periods of time, they have delivered favourable results fairly consistently. But I will often hear from clients who are near or in retirement that that was all fine and good when they were 30 or 40, … Continued
When markets go through tough periods, I have a lot of conversations with clients to reassure them that their plan is still strong. It usually helps for them to see that drops in stock values, though sometimes significant, are temporary and usually followed by a period of very strong returns. It becomes apparent to them that rather than sell, they should hold tight. Some even say, “wow, then this would be a good time to buy”. What began as concern … Continued
A number of clients have asked me what the current downturn in stock markets means for them. In most cases, the answer is nothing. Before, I build a portfolio for a client, I do some level of financial planning. It’s essential to understand how their investments fit in to an overall picture. How old are they? When will they retire? Do they have a pension plan? How much income will they need. All of that factors into to how the … Continued