If you still own mutual funds or ETFs you'd better watch Frontline's programme called The Retirement Gamble with Martin Smith and Robert Hiltonsmith. I watched it last night from 3:00 a.m. for an hour. My they did a good job.
A fee of 2% a year will scoop two/thirds of your money away over 50 years. Over a lifetime it could be $155,000 in fees.
$ ten trillion is 'invested' with “these” people.
There are a dozen different kinds of fees…even a surrender fee at the end of 10%
FIDUCIARY DUTY - AsK your advisor if he/she has a fiduciary duty to put your interests first. Eighty five percent of planners do not have a fiduciary duty. Rather, they follow the 'suitability' rule.
The U.S. Department of Labour tried to change the law to protect consumers: the industry lobby squelched that effort.
Certain funds get into your account because brokers ask for and receive kick-backs (they call it revenue sharing).
Few alternatives were put forward in this programme, however. Jack Bogle recommends index funds…holding good businesses forever, as Warren Buffett does.
Those at the very top of this industry will not admit active investing fails.
Dividends were not mentioned once, unfortunately. Dividend growth is my alternative. Learn to do it yourself by reading Stephen Jarislowsky's The Investment Zoo. Start investing for dividends early in life so that by the time you retire you will have an income flow and will not need to depend upon a nest-egg…the bottom line of your statement. then you can ignore market fluctuations.
Keep your fingers crossed and pray…or keep working.
THE LINK ABOVE LETS YOU WATCH THIS PROGRAMME LIVE RIGHT NOW…at least it did on April 24th