Community Chat

[KarenQVC]

Gals, a friend has been advising us for several years for free and we did trades through a discount acct.  He--the friend--is no longer able to do this for us.

We went to a stockbroker at a full-service brand name bank.  He charges a fee of 1% per year.  This includes all advice and trades.  We are pretty much forced to try him out for family reasons--take my word for that.

Does the above fee structure make sense to you?  What are you paying?

I appreciate ANY insight because this is way out of my field.  Thank you so much.

[RainyDayGal]

I think 1% is very good.  Mine is either 1 or 3, for the life of me I can't remember right now.  He's the head/director financial advisor at my credit union.

[SXMGirl]

You were very fortunate to have a friend who gave you good advice for free.  The 1% that you have been quoted is very fair.  I do suggest that you shop around, but I think most brokerage firms charge between 1 and 3 percent. 

While we want to pay the minimum, if possible, I would suggest that you ask around.  If you have an accountant, he/she could probably advise and not charge very much.  Same if you use a credit union.  Also, if you know any teachers, they probably use firms that have been approved by their district and the people who advise them are usually very good.  However, you will probably need to put some of your money with whatever company they represent.

[GracieB]

You should never be forced to try someone because of "family". In your situation, I think it would be better to look around. Having a recommendation from family is one thing, being forced is another. For one reason, I would be wary, is that recommended person may be telling your business to those family members. 

My father recommended someone a long time ago. I checked him out, liked it, and would have gone with him but my employee does not use that company for what I needed.

Proced with caution.

[riley1]

1% is a fair amount. I definitely agree with @GracieB - I would not be comfortable feeling "forced" to use a family member or someone especially close to a family member. Be wary of this and think it through carefully.

[Desertdi]

NOBODY on this planet knows anything about my finances except for my broker and my attorney.

My busy-body relatives have been trying to pry financial information out of me for years.    I would NEVER let a relative represent me.

[reiki604]

1% is what I am paying although I am charged .25% a quarter. I think that's pretty standard. I'm very satisfied with my returns so I have no complaints.

[Mj12]

I think 1-2% is average. I don't care what the family dynamics are, I would never feel obligated to choose a broker based on that.

[KarenQVC]

Thank you all for your responses.  I was more concerned about the fees than anything.  I was wondering if I was paying too much for the big name and fancy location.  The relative already knows all--and that's OK by me.  Anything extra will go to charity, so no fighting over $.

[Financialgrl]

I have a fee based planner and think I presently pay just under 1.5% and as someone else here said, it's debited from my account based on the amount in the account each quarter.  That cost includes everything - there is no additional cost for commission, trades, etc.  

On my end of the year statement it shows how exactly how much my planner was compensated and if you itemize your deductions at tax time, you can write it off your taxes on the Schedule A (not gonna go look but think it's on the 2% section so not all of it counts but that further reduces the cost).

Count me as another one that would not allow myself to be pressured into using a family member or recommendation from one - the only other person that knows my financial info is my sister (and that's bc I battled cancer years ago and she's my executrix so I have always kept her aware of what I have and where paperwork is located).  Even so, with the additions/withdrawals and volatility of the market, that number is ever-changing.