Don’t Assume Industry Standards Are Always What’s Best

Don’t be so quick to simply accept what a financial advisor offers for your retirement — that’s the takeaway from multiple red flags since the 2008-09 economic crisis.

First, there’s an important difference between advice that’s “suitable,” called the suitability standard, and what’s best for an advisor’s client, called the fiduciary standard. As reported in PBS’s Frontline, just 15 percent of financial advisors met the “what’s best for the client” standard as recently as 2013. The majority fit into the suitable category — the bare minimum in professional qualifications — which … Read the rest

Saving enough money for retirement can be a tricky proposition even under the best circumstances.

But when some of those dollars are being siphoned away by hidden — and perhaps unnecessary — fees, then the path to a secure retirement becomes even more difficult to navigate.

Even small fees can have a major impact over time, which is why people need to be aware of what they are being charged, and whether other options exist that make for a better and smarter investment

Probably 99 percent of people have no clue what they are really paying in fees and expenses. … Read the rest