rmd for IRA and 403B

[sea-tax]

Joe
Well at least your willing to admit that people like me do serve some purpose.

AS to you providing investment advice to your clients , unless your are licensed I would tell you to stay away from it . It is prohibited by law to provide financial planning services if you are unlicensed.

The fact is that most people can not have self control. More likely than not the example you spoke of the client called the rep and requested that the funds be changed or withdrawn. AS an advisor I can tell you that it can be very difficult to get clients to listen to you instead of there accountant or friend who know nothing or who have no formal training. So don't be so quick to blame the rep/broker. It is not always there fault, sometimes people are their own worst enemies.

[Joe Btfsplk]

people are their own worst enemies

You said, "people are their own worst enemies" and I would concur. Doctors certainly fit that description when it comes to investing. One doctor I knew followed a strategy that reduced his retirement fund from $ 1 million to $ 70,000. If you had been advising him I am sure that your advise would have given him been better than that.

I am no longer licensed. At one time I was licensed, but all I did was to let my clients know about it, but did not offer any advise or attempt to persuade them to invest. I decided to let the license lapse.

For many years it was considered a conflict of interest for a CPA to sell securities while practicing as a CPA. H.D. Vest succeeded in getting this rule eliminated on the grounds that it was a restraint of trade. Vest offered free CPE in investments which is what led me to getting the license.

While you may be well-worth the fees or commissions you collect, I would still question the merits of load funds vs no-loads. Some load funds will outperform the Indexes, but most don't.

Scott Burns has a financial column in the Dallas Morning News in which he has cited numerous statistics which support his 'couch potato' portfolio's superiority over most managed funds (most not all). The couch potato investor simply allocates his portfolio between a broad ilndex and a bond fund on a 50/50 or 60/40 basis, then once a year rebalances by selling the one that exceeds the designated percentage and buys the other.

I don't follow the 'couch potato' approach, but I might do better if I did. I expect to move more in that direction after I retire.

I have enjoyed discussing this with you and certainly don't dispute your value to your investment clients. While I don't think paying those loads is the best approach, it is better to pay those charges than to invest your money in penny stocks touted by a fast-talking con artist.

[veritas]

One thing I need to mention is I do not pick individual stocks and I'll bet Sea-tax doesn't either. I'm working strictly with mutual funds.

[sea-tax]

One thing I need to mention is I do not pick individual stocks and I'll bet Sea-tax doesn't either. I'm working strictly with mutual funds.

You are correct sir. While I can I have choosen not to because I have come to some realization that the majority of people out there can not stomach the ups and downs of the individual stocks. I can get all the risk I need with a mutual fund.

[Bucky]

[QUOTE=sea-tax]Joe

AS to you providing investment advice to your clients , unless your are licensed I would tell you to stay away from it . It is prohibited by law to provide financial planning services if you are unlicensed.

What law would that be?

[sea-tax]

[QUOTE=Bucky]

Joe

AS to you providing investment advice to your clients , unless your are licensed I would tell you to stay away from it . It is prohibited by law to provide financial planning services if you are unlicensed.

What law would that be?

Well I can think of two organizations which prohibit an unlicensed person to provide financial planning advice or them selling securites to the general public.
One is the SEC or Securties and Exchange comission and the second is the NASD the national association of broker dealers.
Unfortuantely the exact law escapes me at the moment . But I am sure you can do a google search and find the answer.

The fact is that a lot of people like to push the blame of a bad investment on to the shoulders of there reps. The fact is while there are bad reps who provide bad advice , you are only looking at one side of the equation. Often times it is the client who casues there own problem, by not listening or listening to the wrong people.

Also Bucky if you provide securities services or investment services without the proper licensing and appointments you will be fined and possibly thorwn in jail. A person who doesn't have the proper licensing is not allowed to sell or recommed a specific product.
So if you are a tax preparer and offer your client investment advice other than generic information or as it pertains to tax law you may find the SEC or NASD knocking at your door. Good Luck explaining yourself to them , I hear if you think the IRS is bad wait till you meet these guys. To say they are sticklers for the rules is a big understatement.
I fortunately have never had the pleasure of meeting these guys personally but I hope I never have to.

[sea-tax]

[QUOTE=Bucky]

Joe

AS to you providing investment advice to your clients , unless your are licensed I would tell you to stay away from it . It is prohibited by law to provide financial planning services if you are unlicensed.

What law would that be?

The law is Investment Advisers Act of 1940. You can find it through a google search. I am also sure there are other laws I just don't feel like looking them up at the moment.

[veritas]

I went and looked at Schwabs S&P Index funds. No thank you!

[sea-tax]

I went and looked at Schwabs S&P Index funds. No thank you!

My question is Why would somebody leave "money on the table " with an index fund when you can find others that beat the indexes. Heck I gave BB three and that was with little research.