Loading ...A few days ago, in a discussion about the merits (or otherwise) of financial advisors, I made an admission:
I’m having a hard time finding advisors and mentors who can move me to Making Money 301 (protecting my wealth) …
If you read the article, you’ll begin the see why … in the meantime, Rick kindly offered a suggestion:
Yes! I suspect that there are few people that have $70 million of their own, and fewer still with a long track record of protecting it! You might have to settle for someone with a lot of experience managing other people’s money that has the right mindset to protect your wealth.
I’ve found that Brian Preston’s podcasts has given very solid MM301 advice: http://www.moneyguy.com/. If I had $7 million to protect I would ask him or someone like him.
But, WJ proffered the opposing view:
You gotta be kidding.
Asking Adrian who have made $7million himself to send his money to someone who have not made that much money from his supposed expertise?
The only way that advisor is getting rich is from the management fees he’s getting from those clients of his.
My philosophy is simple. If I want to get rich thru properties, I will want to look for someone who have done it thru properties. So, in order for me to trust the advice of the financial advisor, he must show me that he has already achieve financial independence thru investing(not thru giving advice). That is totally different.
I’m stuck!
Who is right? Should I take The Money Guy’s advice or not …
… to help you decide, here is the link to his web-site:
Please show me the way by voting on the poll above and perhaps leaving a comment below …
I voted “no”. He is a fee based financial planner. He may (or may not) be a very good financial planner (I have no idea), but that is not the background for moving on to MM301.
It will not hurt to have a no-obligations discussion with him, but unless there is more than shows on his blog, he is not what you are looking for.
Question: why do you need a financial adviser? Preserving wealth is largely a matter of common sense – at least I think so (but I’m only a trainee so it would be a brave man who listens to me). It’s making it that’s hard.
Ok, here’s my own experience during the crisis, i’ve got 2 advisors from UBS and Credit Suisse. The minimal investable asset you have to park with them is us$1mil (The hnw section, not the retail section).
So, during the crisis, they did nothing much to preserve my money. I lost around $750k in paper money, I got fed-up and took over. I have since recovered all lost ground and has gained another $250k more. I should be on target for a few million more if the market keeps climbing the wall of worry like it does now. But i’m keeping my eyes on the prize and will be ready to take action to preserve my wealth.
I would not trust my money to him, or any other advisor. But my situation is different than what I would recommend to other people.
My equity investments only need rebalancing once annually, so no need for a planner there. And my real estate investments are only watched by me, other than a property manager, which I dont count the same.
Unfortunately, most of the current podcasts are not investment specific- the exception is the inflation concerns which I thought was good. He had some really great ones during 2008/2009. The main message was to stick with a solid plan- he was discouraging people from trying to time the market because it is very difficult and risky.
@wj I’m glad to hear that you have done very well in the market. However, trying to time the market or pick individual stocks are not MM301 strategies. A MM301 plan minimizes risks and rather than taking extra risk when the markets are down.
Since the market is still below the peak I can only conclude that you took some extra risk when you took over the account. This time it turned out well, however it could have gone badly, possibly really badly.
-Rick Francis
Rick,
I’m a value investor and do not concern myself with beta or standard deviation or volatility.
Like what Buffett have said Price is what you pay, Value is what you get. How can it be riskier to buy a perfectly sound company with steady and consistent free cashflow at a good price that is 50% below my own estimated value.
MM301 concerns wealth preservation? Well then, I do concern myself with boom/bust cycles and will do my utmost to protect my profits and preserve my wealth when its time to get out of the market.
Ok, I must admit it is not for everyone. This is a perennial debate on you can’t time the market, it’s the time in the market that is important blah blah blah. I’m not here to debate that. 🙂 Anyway, I am more or less like this guy over here http://thewallstreetbully.blogspot.com.
I do my money management plan and have appropriate exit strategies for my investments.
There are many roads to Rome. MM301 to me is about taking minimal risks with any investments you are taking. Buying a house or buying govt bonds is not as low risk as you think it is. If you are indeed referring to those as MM301 strategies. Every investments have risk, it’s how you mitigate the risks that is MM301.
First question should be how did this guy make his money? By giving advice(and getting fees for this advice),or by investing his own money where he has advised you to invest?
Second thing to take into account is I don’t think anyone will handle your money with the same care to safety and growth that you have done. So, I would maybe ask for advice from someone who has made money from the same sources as he advises you to use, but I would NEVER hand my money over to someone else to handle for me.Look at John Wayne. We all know him, but how many know his story? He made millions in his lifetime (only to allow someone else to handle the details of investment and safety). When it came time to retire,he found himself not only broke, but seriously in debt to the government. His retirement had to be postponed till death to continue making money, to pay the government,and to survive.
AJC,
I know absolutely nothing about the guy you are proposing, but I work for a ton of financial planners that handle a lot larger accounts than $7mil regardless of the planners net worth.
My question is what is this planner’s deal – is he a comprehensive planner that is looking out for your ENTIRE well being like tax planning (future estate and income) or is he looking to just invest your money? Protection planning (buy-sell agreements, DI, and Life)? etc.
How did you make 7 million dollars? I would like to pursue my life purpose but know nothing about starting a business. By the way, I agree with you, that you are best trusting the skill of someone who can walk the talk. Take it easy.
@ Evan – I don’t give two hoots about how much the planner manages … however, I care greatly about how and how much of their OWN MONEY that they manage 😉
AJC,
Don’t think I was clear enough…is the guy you are proposing JUST a money manager (i.e. investing your money), and then I’d probably agree with you),
OR
if his “money managing” is part of taking a comprehensive view of all your needs (taxes, protection, etc.)?
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