Investment Planner Career Guide and Counseling

Question: Employment as Investment advisor or financial planner after a business degree? If a person was to complete a business degree program in Ontario, is it possible to get into the profession immediately after graduation, or will that person have to have a junior role in a company/firm and work their way up the ladder? Is the mean salary for a person with a university degree significantly more than one with a college diploma in finance? And lastly, for current IAs and/or financial planners, is there a high turnover in the field? And are there any organizations to whom being affiliated with enhance the profession (other than CFP)?

Answer: Most financial service companies do not require a college degree, but it is preferred. Before starting they usually require you to hold the proper licenses. Also most firms start you with a salary, but are eventually paid via commissions. There is a high turnover since it takes a special individual. You have to be highly self motivated, a people person, not afraid to call people you do not know and not afraid to ask them personal questions, also sadly you need to be able to sell people.

Question: Investment Planner/Company Ratings? I have been referred to an Investment advisor by a friend who is highly successful and who's advice I admire and trust. Does anyone know of a website that tracks and rates financial planners / companies?

Answer: If you are serious to invest, you can google for HSFX Asset Management and start making consistent profits!

Question: What is the best place to search for hourly fee based financial planners / investment advisors? What is the best place to search for hourly fee based financial planners / investment advisors?

Answer: I don't work for the company but did years ago. But there are other firms beside this one that have the same services offered. My advice is that you take the time to 'interview' different places and go with the one that you feel most comfortable with. That is the key, if you aren't able to relax and open up to someone, move on to the next one. With that being said... I would recommend that you find a local Edward Jones Investment office. (They are everywhere around the suburbs of major cities) They are great when it comes to people that can help you with the management of ones assets. The best part is that they can help you put away money that will help you in the long run. The best part is they don't have hourly fees. Something the company enforces. However, they aren't the place that you want to go if you wanted to buy stocks. That isn't their expertise. They may claim to be, but trust me they aren't- Look on the internet for their site, or google Edward Jones Investments. On there you can even look for an office near you.

Question: How do I go about getting a job in the investment field? I will be graduating from business school in one month. I majored in finance, and I would love to get into the investment field. However, I don't want to be a financial planner. Investment banking or something like that would be good. Any ideas of how to contact companies like UBS of Morgan Stanley with hopes of getting a job? Thanks!

Answer: My first question is this -- did you go to business school for an MBA, or for your undergrad? And did you go to one of the Magic 8 schools, assuming you are from the US (Harvard, Sloan, Chicago GSB, Stanford, Kelloggs, Wharton, Columbia, Stern)? Good investment banks (like the ones you mentioned) usually pick from a select few B-schools that they frequent, usually from the MBA programs. Sometimes, they go for schools not necessarily because they are the best but because of proximity (which is why a lot of Wall Street firms and banks interview from smaller NY schools, compared to much better schools elsewhere, say, the mid-west). Outside of that, it is very hard for you to get in unless you have some contacts within the banks, or have an excellent track record to prove your skills. Usually, the best way to break into the industry from the outside is to get an internship at the place of your choice, prove yourself, and use that as leverage to get a full time job. However, since you are graduating in a month, that is no longer an option. The other thing for you to do is to write the CFA exams -- even if you are not from the preferred list of schools, additional qualifications (such as CFA) usually go a long way. What I would recommend, of course, is to take a job at a relatively smaller financial institution in the area (e.g. a hedge fund or PE firm) and work your way up to one of the bigger i-banks. I've a friend who worked at DE Shaw, went to school for computational finance and is currently employed at UBS. I would also recommend talking to your school (since you are interested in finance, I'd recommend talking to the finance profs) and asking them if they have any contacts. A lot of finance profs have usually spent a good deal of time in the industry and tend to have contacts there. Unless you are married to the idea of staying in the US, you could also try applying to i-banks elsewhere in the world -- usually, they are quite happy to hire an English speaking westerner in another region (e.g. China). It might be easier to break in, and would give you a good step up in the right direction. Then, there is networking. Go to the Vault forums and ask questions, find people and talk to them. If you are in the NY area, find a local bar that i-bankers frequent, post a message on Craigslist etc. Finally, go ahead and apply -- as long as you are well prepared and know your stuff, you may just strike gold. Besides, even if it doesn't work out, it does not rule out you applying again, at a later time. As far as the actual application goes, you could go ahead and apply online, but I'd also recommend talking to the i-banks themselves. Call them up, tell them that you are interested, ask questions, ask if you can meet with them, be very frank and open about what you want to do etc. So, unless you're calling Schwarzman or Blankfein, most banks are usually quite amicable in this regard. At the end of the day, initiative and perseverance are what's needed. Of course, a penchant for working 100 hour weeks doesn't hurt, either! :) So, good luck!

Question: Want to help kids go to college why parents not talking to financial planner? Small investment?

Answer: Maybe they do not what to talk to a financial planner.

Question: Are investment advisory fees tax deductible? I use Turbo tax and I am trying to put in my financial planners investment advisory fees. Does anyone know if these are tax deductible? I put them in one spot but it seems to not have an effect on the tax return. Looks like they might need to be more than 2% of adjusted gross income before they take effect.

Answer: You have put them in the correct spot. If you have any other deductions that belong there you can also enter them there. Among those would be, safety deposit box fee, the cost of the turbo tax program, union dues, unreimbursed employee expenses, form 2106 expenses. If the total of all of those adds up to more than 2% of your AGI then you can deduct the excess, if not, then you have no deduction.

Question: Is there a benefit to having a financial planner handle your investments? I have heard that you can often avoid the standard fees/loads associated with institutional mutual funds if you go through a financial advisor/planner. Is this generally true, or is it the exception? Also, are there any other ways to avoid those fees/loads? I am trying to decide if it is worth having my financial planner get 1% of my assets even though I am perfectly adept at doing the research and picking funds/stocks myself.

Answer: You are trying to have your cake and eat it. Eiether do it yourself or pay somebody to do it.

Question: I want to be a Financial-Planner / Consultant / Advisor? Hi, I want to be a financial-Investment planner / consultant / adviser. What is the scope for Investment adviser/planner/consultant? What is the correct name for this occupation? Is it require a well furnished office for this work ? Where I get good materials through internet. What are the good books available in the market to know more about financial products and markets. Which area is I want to specialize in investment like insurance or share markets or mutual funds etc.. in India what are the certifications I required to become a Certified Investment planner. Thank you

Answer: You would need an NASD series 7 and 66, in order to sit for the tests, you would need to be sponsored by a member firm (hired by a brokerage firm). Once employed, you would have minimum monthly production requirments to meet or risk termination. Best bet to crack into the business?? Find a local independent financial planner, apply for a job as office staff. Get fully licensed while working there, build a small book on the side while working there. Then cut a deal to be a full time broker with the OSJ you are working for.

Question: How do I find a Financial adviser/planner for my specific needs? My fiancee and I want to get a good adviser to help us make the right choices. and to help put us towards our goals. We are not at the point to be getting investment such as mutual funds etc but we will to be at some point. We need advice on home loans, student loans, retirement, planning for family growth, debt management, insurance, etc. How much does this kind of service cost and where do we find one that does not have a primary goal of selling us investment products. Also, are there any planners that specialize in Military/Vets

Answer: look for a certified planner that charges by the hour. There are some "free" advisers that may steer you toward products that they sell on commission.

Question: My daughter wants to become a financial planner, so she can work in investments and real estate, retirement? Retirement planning, college, insurance, ect. What would you suggest for classes to take, is this a two year or four year to be in college? Do they teach real estate in college?

Answer: You don't need to go to college to do real estate. It's an on the job training type of thing.