Comments on: Why you get bad investment advice

By: Jane

Jane — Thu, 05 May 2011 06:10:25 +0000

Check the section of my book on universal life insurance, and all the pitfalls. Buy life insurance only if you need the death benefit, not for tax advantage. The idea of putting money into life insurance and then borrowing it out has dangers you’d never dream of (again, in the book). You have to invest a lot to be sure that the policy doesn’t lapse years in the future, costing you taxes and your insurance savings, too.

By: Michael

Michael — Sat, 30 Apr 2011 20:31:34 +0000

Jane, I have recently read a book “The Last Chance Millionaire” by Douglas R. Andrew in which he especially promotes an indexed universal life insurance contract as an example of a maximum tax-advantaged life insurance policy that can be used as a retirement investment. Have you heard of the author and his book? If so, what are your thoughts? If not, what are your thoughts about Indexed Universal Life insurance? I know from your book “Making the Most of Your Money Now” you told readers that an Equity-Indexed Annuity is an “Investment” to avoid! Do you say the same thing about an Indexed Universal Life insurance policy?

By: Jane

Jane — Tue, 15 Mar 2011 19:31:07 +0000

Well …. I wouldn’t call people who like mutual funds “losers.” And I don’t dislike all annuities, having written favorably about certain types annuities with living benefits, immediate-pay annuities, and the simpler variable annuities if bought at younger ages. I’m not happy with Equity Indexed Annuities, which industry has rechristened Indexed Annuities, for the reasons I’ve written. It’s not prejudice, it’s analysis. So we will have to differ.

By: George

George — Tue, 15 Mar 2011 16:15:04 +0000

You are so predjudice it is sickening. I have been in the business for years and never sold an annuity because of the high commission. I know dozens like me. You make all annuity salesmen vultures preying on the elderly. I challenge you to find one disastisfied customer I have ever written. My repeat business and referrals are numerous. You do a great disservice to we who sell them and more than that you do a great misservice to the public by discouraging annuity purchases. You are ignorant of the choices one has today to protect their money and yet get a handsome return. I would love to know your sources and who it is that is misfeeding you. I suspect it is someone who says mutual funds and other such losers.

By: Jane

Jane — Tue, 08 Mar 2011 22:33:31 +0000

Salespeople aways want to be your best friend. That’s how they win, or keep, your trust. If a client becomes unhappy with something that was done, a client is always reluctant to take an account away from a “best friend.”
As for “fee based” advisers — they sell commissioned products, too. The only advisors who don’t profit from commissions are called “fee-only” advisers.

By: Patricia Blaskovic

Patricia Blaskovic — Sat, 05 Mar 2011 19:43:38 +0000

I have always had a problem with advisers that are offering products on which they get paid a commission. I am sure there are some planners out there that have a conscience and do have there clients well being at heart but it’s human nature to put your own needs first in a crisis which might not result in the best ideas for my nest egg. I have finally found a team that looks at all aspects of my financial picture from taxes to estate planning and they are fee based. All of my friends speak of their financial planners like they are their best friends or very nice and friendly. This just makes me cringe because I just imagine this person who gets rich off of my hard earned money and that does not sit well with me. Maybe it’s because I don’t just trust anybody with my nest egg. I try to extol the benefits of a fee based planner but I am a small voice among the masses…

By: Leslie Bashline

Leslie Bashline — Sat, 01 May 2010 07:11:15 +0000

I recently looked into buying foreclosed properties but did not succeed. Appreciate your thoughts on investing in them.

By: Financial Pick Your Own Nomenclature

Financial Pick Your Own Nomenclature — Wed, 14 Apr 2010 20:10:44 +0000

Wow, great article…loads of sales lines from a true…commission earning sales person!! My personal favorite, “Consumers forget that advisers who earn commissions are not their friend.” Consumers forget that every time some sucker buys this journalist’s book she earns a commission! Oh, by the way I noticed that no one mentioned fee based planners can earn significantly more then a commission would pay while a client loses money(notice I didn’t use absulotes like “all fee based planners are scum”). As it turns out I can charge fees for planning…I can also charge commissions! I supposed I’m the devil. Yet I fully disclose all cost of every product, have recommended options where I make no money and work with both friends and family. But I suppose they really aren’t my friends or family…or better yet I’m the devil and I cheat even them.

By: John

John — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 18:42:24 +0000

An excellent article and I loved the way that you stated without a moments hesitation that “They promote products that pay them the highest commissions, even when they know about better (and cheaper) ones.” I imagine that you used the non referenced, unattributed and possibly incorrect quote “We can deny it all we want, but sales are commission driven” to paint the broad stroke.

Keep up the great work Jane and work toward protecting the public from its greatest enemy, its own greed, stupidty and laziness.

By: florida insurance adjuster

florida insurance adjuster — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 22:42:09 +0000

What I want to know is what the “professional investment managers” are telling their retired customers to do about their retirement income? What is being said to retirees that hold these bonds? What will the federal gov do if these start to fail? Bail them out through inflation?