Is Your Financial Advisor a Fiduciary?
Is Your Financial Advisor a Fiduciary?
There’s a lot riding on the choices you make regarding your Retirement and Financial future. You work with a Financial Advisor because you appreciate the value of experience, knowledge, and trust. Indeed, your Financial Advisor is positioned to help you every step of the way as you map out a strategy designed to address your unique situation. But, is your Advisor a Fiduciary?
What is a Fiduciary? A fiduciary manages another party’s assets and has a legal and ethical obligation to put the other party’s interests first. For a Financial Advisor, that means helping a client make decisions in his or her best interest, even if it means reduced compensation-or no compensation- for the Advisor. Here’s the very important part…. NOT all Financial Advisors are held to this Fiduciary standard.
On June 9, 2017, the Federal Government implemented the DOL (Department of Labor) Fiduciary Rule. This rule requires Financial Advisors who provide advice regarding retirement plans (IRA plans) covered under ERISA (Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974) to act as a Fiduciary, meaning they must put their client’s needs first. As the law currently stands, insurance sales people, brokers and advisors can offer investments under the “suitability standard”. This standard only requires that an investment is suitable for the client at the time of the investment. With this new Fiduciary Rule, Advisors are held accountable to a higher standard of care and must document their investment process, investment monitoring and management, and provide transparency with costs and fees.
Here’s the good news for you - We have always been a Fiduciary.
Marijo Dluzak has been a CFP®, Certified Financial Planner™ PROFESSIONAL since 1986. At Dluzak & Associates Inc. one of our core values has always been Clients First. Being a Fiduciary is an ethical and legal obligation standard that our firm has always practiced.
Working with an impartial financial professional to create and implement your Retirement and Investment plan can be the difference between achieving your Financial objectives and falling short of your goals.
Make sure your Financial Advisor is a Fiduciary. If you don’t know - simply ask them! Is your Financial Advisor a Certified Financial Planner, CFP? If you don’t know, simply ask them!
It seems like common sense, but understand the cost and fees on your accounts.
Know what you are paying for. Know what your schedule of planning services provides you. A good Financial Advisor will provide you with a personalized plan, with a prudent investment process, a schedule of Financial Planning services and have many years of experience with economic cycles and market volatility.
It is in your best interest, to know if your current Financial Advisor is a Fiduciary.
Feel free to contact us should you have any questions.