HD Vest

[PaulF]

Is anyone affiliated with HD Vest Financial Services? Pros and cons?

[Jiggers]

Used-to-be Vester

Unless you have abnormal amount of free time, especially during tax season, and another source of income until you get to be a Vest pro, don't do it.

Been there, done that.

Annual fees didn't cover my commissions.

Spent lots on advertising. No results.

Spent lots of time with potential clients, working on investment plans, they declined or went elsewhere with MY plan.

Spent lots on their CPE and seminars.

Spent lots of time, including during tax season, at the expense of losing tax clients.

Dropped being a Vest Rep.

[Bucky]

I agree with Jiggers. Since Wells Fargo bought out Herb Vest a few years ago it is all about products not clients. Hard to fit selling securities in during tax time. Hard to get client to come back in after busy season. They do have minimums that you have to meet to keep your license with them. That's just my opinion.

[veritas]

Cons

It will suck up more time for compliance and meetings. The paperwork is worse than tax returns. The meetings take up alot of time and I can't say it's been worth it. Their website is difficult to navigate. I started 3 years ago and should have started 20 years ago. They suggested a series 6 license when I began and it should have been a series 7. If your clients are longtime chances are they have an advisor and it is almost impossible to get them to change.


Pro's

I don't send my client down the street to be taken advantage of by someone driven totally by commission. I feel I can identify the type of investment vehicle much better than a non tax proffessional. I have made money without trying very hard. Once you setup a 401K or simple plan it doesn't take alot of effort. If one client comes in with a 401K rollover you can make a good amount of money for the time invested.

[sea-tax]

I disagree with both statements.
First if you are going to offer financial products then HD VEst is the way to go for accountants. Yes it has gotten a little less friendly since Wells Fargo has taken over but compared to the rest and I have looked Hd Vest is great.

The mins that the require arere 5000.00 dollar rolling gross and they tend to leave you alone durring tax time. Fees for staying licensed are little .

Basically my suggestion is don't get into the business with HD vest or any Broker for that matter unless you truely believe what you are doing is helping your clients.
To many accountants get into financial planning with a half hearted aproach and then complain when it doesn't work out. What I mean is you have to love investing , it is time consuming and if it is not your bag then don't bother you can generate more income doing something you love.

[JoshinNC]

I agree that financial planning/investing is a good add on

I have not looked at HD Vest (my broker/dealer is Capital Investment Group), but I enjoy offering my clients a new service. They have eaten it up, and it does provide a good residual income. I look at SIMPLE's, 401k's, SEP's as a type of annuity for me in the later years. I invest time and effort now, and the commissions will continue to come in later, with little or no effort on my part.

However, I also agree that if investing does not interest you or you have a booming write up business, it is hard to find the time to market this service, meet the CPE requirements, and stay on top of your current business. It's not for everyone, but I enjoy it.

[Black Bart]

Josh - CIG

Do you feel that your broker is as much trouble to deal with as the first two guys experienced with Vest?

[Unregistered]

Not in the least

I pay $195 per month for E&O that covers all health, life and disability insurance I sell, plus any series 6 securities I sell. They also charge a $33 monthly fee for continuing ed, marketing materials, etc. Other than that I am up to my own business, with no minimum's to meet, at least that I know of, and I get full access to their money management platform if I have a client who wants that service, along with trust managment, personal banking and other features.

I really like them, to say the least.

JoshinNC

[veritas]

JoshinNC

What are your payout rates?

[sea-tax]

joshinnc

i tried to google Capital Investment Group but could not find them on the web, do you have a link.

Also I would like to know what the payout % is I currently am around 75 or 76% last I checked and have been reluctant to look else where.


But I like vest and will always look to see if the grasss is green some where else/

[Unregistered]

follow this link

https://www.capital-invest.com

Capital Investment Companies is the parent. They have two brokerage arms, Capital Investment Group and Capital Investment Brokerage.

My current payout is 65%, but I've only been Series 6 licensed for about 4 months. As my assets under management grow (now about $500,000) my payout percentage will increase.

Call and talk to Con McDonald (call the main line and ask for his extension). He can help you get started.

Tell him Josh Whitney told you to call.

[Rocky]

HD vest, huh

I thought it was a Harley thread, I've been selling our old bike accessories on ebay, this week, and when you see "HD vest", they're talking about an investment alright as you don't normally buy the vest unless you have bought the bike to go with it!

So how many miles has everyone put on this summer? I think we had put a 1000 on the old and only 200 on the new. Yes, it's really new!

Rocky,
It's not the destination, it's the journey!

[Black Bart]

Explain please.

www.capital-invest.com


My current payout is 65%, but I've only been Series 6 licensed for about 4 months. As my assets under management grow (now about $500,000) my payout percentage will increase.

Josh,

It sounds like you and the people questioning you are already brokers, but there are many of us who aren't. Can you tell us what these terms you're using mean?

Current payout & payout percentage
Series 6 (also, what's the difference in that and series 7?)
My assets under management (is this the gross amount of money people have bought CIG investments in which you were the selling agent?)
Why do you need E&O? Are you an independent contractor rather than an employee?
Do you have to get CE hours (how many per year?) to keep a broker's license or is that just for the benefit of the company?
It sounds kind of expensive ($228 per month just for fees). Do you make quite a bit more money than that when you sell something?
How much would they pay you if you sold a simple traditional $2,000 IRA?
How do you get to be a broker other than calling the guy you mentioned. Do you have to go off somewhere and go to their school?
Anything else you think a novice should know?

Thanks

[veritas]

I thought it was a Harley thread, I've been selling our old bike accessories on ebay, this week, and when you see "HD vest", they're talking about an investment alright as you don't normally buy the vest unless you have bought the bike to go with it!

So how many miles has everyone put on this summer? I think we had put a 1000 on the old and only 200 on the new. Yes, it's really new!

Rocky,
It's not the destination, it's the journey!

My bike is in the shop getting some more goodies.

It's not the ride, It's The Chrome!

[JoshinNC]

explanation of key terms

mutual funds carry loads (either front or rear) ranging from 0 - 5.75%. Your payout percentage is the percentage of the load you get as your commission as the selling representative. So if you sell a $2000 IRA with all front load funds of 5.75% and your payout is 65% you would get $74.75. Doesn't sound like alot, until you get several clients each putting money into their accounts each month, via payroll deduction/bank draft that you start seeing some income. Also, if you rollover a 401k with a $100,000 balance you just made a chunk of change (but not as much as the $2000 IRA percentage, because the more they invest the lower the load is).

Assets under management - the total amount of money your clients have invested that you are the selling rep on.

E&O - yes, you're an IC, not an employee. Most E&O coverage accountants have does not cover securities/insurance products. therefore you either buy from your broker/dealer or from some other source. Typical coverage is $1,000,000 per incident/$2,000,000 aggreagate coverage limits

You can study for the Series 6 exam alone (that's what I did) and take the exam, but you have to choose a broker/dealer (CIG, HD Vest, Principal Financial) to sponsor you before you can sell anything securities related. Insurance is much easier, you just get appointed with the companies you want to represent.