Some people are comfortable handling and investing their own money. Hopefully with time, you will too. Until then, it may be best to hire someone to help you make your investment decisions, especially if you know little or nothing about investing. Same thing if you have no interest in ever learning about money either. With that said, it’s probably worth the time and money required to hire an advisor. They probably will end up earning you a higher return on your money than you would be able to do yourself.
They can help you:
-Decide whether to open a brokerage account, retirement account, or both.
-Determine your risk tolerance, although I prefer you learn this on your own.
- Build a diversified portfolio
- Place orders to buy and sell investments for you
BUT, they are going to charge you something for their time of course. Some advisors charge an hourly rate, some commission, and/or annual fees to manage your money. Yep.
To help you select an advisor, check out consult your state’s securities licensing department, the National Association of of Security Dealers (www.nasd.org), or the US govt’s Securities and Exchange Commission (www.sec.gov).
These organizations should help you verify whether an advisor is licensed, has received complaints, or has ever committed violations.
