Posts by Gerald Thomas11

hollowtrucker77 said:Fine, these advisors have skin in the game and you can't really trust them anyway.
So now I'm wondering—how much would you actually pay for an independent, objective advisor who isn't trying to sell you something?

I like where your head's at.
What kind of fees would an independent pro charge? Something along the lines of a lawyer?

Say you're buying a house:
1. Credit score check - $167
2. Picking the best mortgage rate - $167
3. Life insurance - maybe 1% of the coverage amount ($200-$300)
4. Homeowners insurance - thrown in for free as part of a bundle
5. Loan closing assistance - 1% fee ($500)
6. .....

Look, it's just business. Let's just start our own firm and call it a day.

I don't know what kind of deal Edward Jones and Bank of America have worked out, but there’s always a way to make it happen.
Didn't Bank of America run a promotion last year where they let people switch over from other institutions without charging any fees? Did you manage to pull that off for free?
I remember seeing reports in the papers about them offering discounts with certain coupons, too.

Finally, we’re speaking the same language. Around here, you don't just find a "Financial Advisor"—it’s always some "Bank of America Financial Advisor" or an "Edward Jones advisor" or a "Merrill Lynch guy." If the advisor actually does their job and is upfront about who they represent and whose interests they're really serving, there shouldn't be any issues. At the end of the day, the buyer makes the call.

casualtrucker7 said:Everything sounds fine on paper, but let’s call it what it is: specific insurance sales advice. You can't claim to be neutral or objective when you're just pushing a product.

The client's interest is always secondary to whatever contract pays the highest commission. They'll steer you toward a specific provider every time. And what happens when you realize later on some trivial detail—like the bank you've been funneling money into offers a lower interest rate than three others on the market they don't even carry? What kind of "advice" is that? Sorry, pal, but you can't blame them if they didn't have a contract with us in the first place...

I wasn't the one talking about objectivity. But look, what happens if you work for one specific bank and your client finds out there are three others offering better rates?
Edward Jones, Merrill Lynch, Vanguard—they’re all salespeople. Period. They live off commissions. Their edge is that they can pivot and offer an alternative if the client hates the first pitch. casualtrucker7, you're working for Bank of America. Fine. But what if a client wants a mortgage but doesn't like Bank of America? It's not about the terms or the rates at that point; they just don't like the brand. Are you going to offer them something else? Maybe just push some Bank of America mutual funds instead?

casualtrucker7 said:They’re missing a Fannie Mae offer. You can't seriously be telling me Vanguard has better terms than Zions Bank? Besides, not having State Farm in their lineup shows they don't even know who the top five players in the US are. Especially since State Farm maintains a solid 50/50 split between life and property insurance—anyone complaining about coverage clearly doesn't get what that means. As for funds, I don't know if they offer them, but managing those requires more depth than just sitting through a couple of seminars held by advisors.

Now you've got me defending them, haha.
Does Vanguard have better terms than Zions Bank? Depends on who you ask. No single savings institution is the best for everyone; otherwise, the competition wouldn't exist. I don't know these new terms well enough to speak on them, but I can tell you how things looked last year. RBC and Zions Bank had an interest rate ratio of roughly 3% on savings versus 6% on loans. Vanguard was at 2% and 5%. So, if someone wanted a low-interest loan, they went with Vanguard. If they wanted better returns on savings, they chose between RBC and Zions, where RBC was more favorable due to their 30:70% quick tariff split. Zions wasn't competitive there. I won't mention Bank of America because back when I was selling mortgages, they weren't even in the picture yet.
Just to be clear, what I wrote isn't the current situation. I don't want to mislead anyone.
It would be helpful if someone put the current rates for all the institutions in a single table. Savings rates, loan rates, and repayment terms.
Regarding insurance, I mentioned what they're lacking. Maybe they could eventually add Allstate. State Farm is a relatively young firm that still needs to prove itself. Ten years in the game isn't enough for me to hand over my trust for the next thirty.
I'm insured with Mercury. They haven't been in the US long, but based on volume, they're among the top 5 or 6, and they've been around for over 200 years.
It's logical that a German advisory firm would prefer foreign insurance providers.

If that’s the whole list, they’re missing Grawe, the major US investment funds, and all the decent mutual funds out there.

The Appalachian Mountains are criminally underrated right now. It’s where you want your money to be. If a bid for the Winter Universiade ever actually gains traction around here...

Glad to hear you're killing it, Joe. Not working for a paycheck, having a sharp Personal Banker on speed dial... sounds great. I guess you don't need any advice from anyone else, do you?
But some people just don't get finance. They need a hand. If everyone actually knew what they were doing, this whole forum wouldn't even exist.

George The user said:I only take financial advice from people who have actually made more money than I have. I have zero interest in listening to the broke; most of these self-proclaimed "advisors" are just struggling nobodies trying to scrape together a tiny commission. Please. 😈

This industry is still finding its footing here in the States. In Germany, licensed advisors who’ve actually grinded through the Allianz academy are pulling in numbers that just aren't even on the radar locally. Even an American advisor with a license earns significantly more than what we see around here. $6667 More.
So, George, how much do you actually pull in?
Besides, you’ve got personal bankers. Have you ever actually bothered to ask yours how much they pull in?

Can you actually go to them for advice once they've already screwed you over on insurance and everything else? And if you do, what kind of "advice" are you even going to get?

Give them a workout. See if they can actually handle something useful, like helping you file your tax return.
If they’re pushing insurance on you, make them work for it. Ask for a few different options. Have them run the numbers on life, home, mutual funds, and those private retirement accounts. If they start talking nonsense, just cut them loose—not worth the headache. But if they actually know their stuff? Then maybe listen to what they have to say.

ThompsonOfMeriath said:Is anyone actually using financial advisory services? (like Edward Jones, for example). What’s the verdict? Did it actually help? And what’s the catch if the advice is free?

Financial planning can be useful, provided you stumble upon someone competent. Firms like Edward Jones offer free advice, but they make their money on insurance commissions once they close you. They stay as objective as they can, given they usually have contracts with maybe three or four major providers.
The Federal Reserve mortgage rates were the best around until recently, so I'm not surprised Meroving missed his window there. As for Allianz, it seems like an entire generation was stuck with the same one advisor who didn't know how to sell anything else. Honestly, it's better to walk in there and say nothing than to buy some policy from an insurance rep who only knows how to praise himself and hasn't a clue about the rest of the market.

Eventually, once our laws clearly define who is allowed to act as an advisor—and when those advisors can actually offer a full spectrum of products—things might settle down.
Besides Edward Jones, you've got AWD, bonus +, and Orbis...

With a creditworthy co-signer, it’s actually possible

If you haven’t been blacklisted, you basically have a blank check waiting for you. No co-signers needed. Banks are practically begging for customers right now; interest rates are sliding down and they're lowering the bar on credit scores more every day.