Archives Of Weekend Reading For Financial Planners

Enjoy the current installment of “Weekend Reading For Financial Planners” - this week’s edition kicks off with the news that the SEC has issued a risk alert putting advisors on notice that examiners will be conducting a number of reviews to evaluate how firms are complying with the Commission’s new marketing rule, which it will begin to enforce starting November 4. While the new rule allows financial advisors to proactively use testimonials (from clients), endorsements (from non-clients), and highlight their own ratings on various third-party websites, the SEC’s warning suggests that advisory firms will want to take care to abide by the compliance requirements linked to the new rule.

Also in industry news this week:

• How advisors can serve clients of the millennial generation who have seen their income and wealth grow as they have gotten older
• A survey shows that more RIAs are outsourcing investment management, and that those who do are largely happy with the decision

From there, we have several articles on insurance and investment planning:

• Why the chair of the Senate Finance Committee has taken an interest in the private placement life insurance market
• A new designation is available for advisors looking to serve clients with nonqualified deferred compensation plans
• How DPL Financial Partners’ growth is a sign of advisor interest in fee-based annuities

We also have a number of articles on advisor marketing:

• The latest trends in advisor marketing, from the continued dominance of client referrals to the return of in-person gatherings
• How advisors can pull off an event that can increase client loyalty and attract new prospects
• Why some firms are thinking twice about taking advantage of the SEC’s new marketing rule right away

We wrap up with three final articles, all about business ownership:

• Why business owners with strong technical skills limit their profitability by spending too much time working in their business rather than on it
• The advantages and disadvantages of ‘renting’ versus ‘owning’ your career
• Why focus and intense curiosity are common traits among some of the most successful business leaders

Enjoy the ‘light’ reading!

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Enjoy the current installment of “Weekend Reading For Financial Planners” - this week’s edition kicks off with a report from Future Proof, dubbed the “world’s largest wealth festival”, held this week on(!) Huntington Beach, California. In addition to being held outdoors, the event stood out from ‘standard’ industry conferences in other ways, from the wide scope of its content to the diverse makeup of its attendees.

Also in industry news this week:

• How the SEC appears poised to issue new or amended rules regarding its Custody Rule and 12b-1 fees by the end of the year, and what advisors can do to prepare their firms
• A new report suggests that smaller firms have seen lower employee attrition rates than larger ones during the pandemic, and the steps firms can take to maintain a stronger company culture to attract and retain staff

From there, we have several articles on retirement planning:

• A survey indicates that while pre-retirees largely understand the benefits of delaying Social Security benefits, only 11% plan to wait until age 70 to claim them, suggesting that advisors can play an important role in influencing clients’ retirement income decision making
• Recent research shows that spending often declines throughout retirement, not because retirees have less income or fewer assets, but rather due to changes in health and preferences, offering advisors an additional data point to help project client expenses in retirement
• With Medicare’s open enrollment period approaching in less than a month, advisors can add significant value to their clients by assessing whether changing their coverage could save them money

We also have a number of articles on spending and cashflow:

• With an increasing number of retirees holding mortgages, advisors can add value by helping clients explore the financial and emotional considerations that go into the decision of keeping a mortgage or paying it off early
• While some clients coming off a summer vacation might be tempted to buy a vacation home, advisors can help them consider the full range of consequences of doing so, from unexpected expenses to the potential for family conflict
• How the travel industry has added to the growing number of subscription services, offering everything from discounted flights to access to luxury accommodations

We wrap up with three final articles, all about parenting and family dynamics:

• The importance of friends for middle schoolers, and why ‘peer presence’ might be a more important dynamic than ‘peer pressure’ for parents to consider
• How some parents helped develop an entrepreneurial mindset in their children, often by taking a step back
• Why a growing number of family foundations are choosing a time-limited, rather than perpetual, approach in order to donate money faster

Enjoy the ‘light’ reading!

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Enjoy the current installment of “Weekend Reading For Financial Planners” - this week’s edition kicks off with the news that as Millennials grow their wealth, they could be increasingly turning to financial advisors for guidance. But amid competition from large asset managers and broker-dealers, advisors can consider how they can shape their service offerings and fee structures to attract Millennials and build client relationships that could last for decades to come.

Also in industry news this week:

• As broker-dealers increasingly offer fee-based planning services, RIAs are responding by enhancing their own service offerings, and offering alternative fee structures to differentiate themselves from the competition
• More states are adopting continuing education requirements for investment advisers, with three states establishing rules that must be followed by the end of 2022

From there, we have several articles on practice management:

• A new company aims to train the next generation of planners and provide a valuable outsourced service to advisory firms
• Why creating internal career paths and considering fully remote workers could help firms thrive in the current tight labor market for advisor talent
• What advisors are doing to maximize the efficiency of their firms without bringing on additional staff

We also have a number of articles on retirement planning:

• How the introduction of new ‘modern’ tontine products could provide retirees with a new way to mitigate longevity risk
• The options available to clients who want to reverse their decision to start claiming Social Security benefits
• How sequence of return risk can affect accumulators as well as retirees

We wrap up with three final articles, all about time management:

• Why scaling your time can be more effective than trying to stretch or save it
• How exercise can not only extend your lifespan, but also increase the quality of those years
• How the ‘money value of time’ can help explain why certain periods of time are more valuable than others

Enjoy the ‘light’ reading!

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Enjoy the current installment of “Weekend Reading For Financial Planners” - this week’s edition kicks off with the news that the Biden Administration has released a series of long-anticipated Federal student loan relief measures. And while the announced $10,000 of debt forgiveness for some borrowers made the most headlines, advisors will also want to be mindful of a new Income-Driven Repayment plan that could help some clients with student debt reduce their monthly payments and the planning implications of the resumption of student loan payments in January!

Also in industry news this week:

• An industry survey suggests that advisory firms are prioritizing growth despite a slower pace of client acquisitions so far in 2022 and rising labor costs
• How Charles Schwab and other advisor custodians are competing to offer a more seamless digital onboarding experience for advisors and their clients

From there, we have several articles on practice management:

• New rankings show what it takes for RIAs to make it into the top 100 by AUM, and why seeking out ‘smaller’ clients can spur firm growth
• The range of considerations and potential consequences for RIAs considering going public
• How advisory firm owners can take advantage of a newly expanded range of available sources of liquidity

We also have a number of articles on investing:

• Why some advisors and their clients might want to consider taking RMDs this year ‘in-kind’ rather than in cash
• How fixed annuities have become more popular among consumers amid rising interest rates and turbulent markets
• New research shows how ‘free’ stock trades potentially cost consumers billions of dollars each year

We wrap up with three final articles, all about career development:

• Why building a personal brand is more about consistency than a large social media following
• How to construct a ‘personal board of directors’ who can help guide and advance your career
• Best practices for advisors (or their clients) who want to take a sabbatical away from work

Enjoy the ‘light’ reading!

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Enjoy the current installment of “Weekend Reading For Financial Planners” - this week’s edition kicks off with the news that the FPA is planning to leave the Financial Planning Coalition (which also includes the CFP Board and NAPFA) at the end of the year. This follows the FPA’s announcement that it plans to pursue title reform for the term “financial planner”, and signals that there may be coordination challenges or divergent strategies among the three organizations that could make title reform more challenging, as regulators are likely to receive pushback on any significant title reform from the financial products industry that will want to see its salespeople also permitted to use the popular title.

Also in industry news this week:

• A recent study shows that many financial advisors want to spend more time on comprehensive planning and are looking at automated solutions to help them reduce the time they spend on investment management
• Why consumers see both human advice and technological solutions as key parts of their financial success

From there, we have several articles on advisor marketing and sales:

• The questions busy advisors can add to their calendaring software to filter (and refer out) unqualified prospects before spending time on a meeting
• Why it is valuable for advisors to create an archetype of their ‘ideal client’ and the process they can take to do so
• Three high-value questions advisors can use to connect with prospects and convert more of them into clients

We also have a number of articles on client psychology:

• How “temporal discounting” can help explain why clients put off difficult decisions
• Why those with a longer “mental time horizon” tend to be more successful financially and how advisors can help their clients plan further into the future
• Why the “End Of History Illusion” suggests that creating future financial flexibility for clients might be more valuable than pursuing specific goals that are decades away

We wrap up with three final articles, all about workplace trends:

• Recent data points show how workers have been adjusting their presence in the office, from only going in a couple of days per week to working in the office for a few hours each visit
• While companies might be tempted to use worker-tracking software to gauge productivity in the remote work environment, doing so can create a lack of trust and low morale among the workforce
• How companies have adjusted their workplace rituals in the remote environment to promote employee engagement

Enjoy the ‘light’ reading!

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Enjoy the current installment of “Weekend Reading For Financial Planners” - this week’s edition kicks off with the news that the U.S. Senate has passed the Inflation Reduction Act, which while being light on individual tax changes, nevertheless includes some important financial planning provisions such as prescription drug price relief for Medicare enrollees, continuation of expanded Affordable Care Act healthcare premium subsidies, and tax credits for energy efficiency upgrades to homes.

Also in industry news this week:

• FINRA has submitted a revised proposal to reform the process for broker-dealers to request expungement of client disputes from their public record, which allows state securities regulators to be informed of and involved in the arbitration hearings that decide whether the expungement is granted
• As RIA firms’ challenges in attracting and retaining talent have continued, firms have needed to reduce their business development activities to stay within their existing staff's capacity (compounding the challenges of growing firm revenue during a bear market that has reduced most firms’ assets under management)

From there, we have several articles on Mergers & Acquisition (M&A) trends:

• M&A activity so far in 2022 is set to exceed 2021’s record pace despite economic headwinds, meaning there could simply be a ‘new normal’ of higher activity regardless of the economic environment
• With the shift from bull market to bear market, the risks of M&A deals have shifted for sellers of RIA firms, leading to a significant change in how many M&A deals are structured so sellers can still get some ‘upside’ if markets recover from here
• With the pace of M&A deals being dominated by a small number of cash-rich ‘serial acquirers’, smaller RIAs looking to acquire firms need to rely more on their ability to match the selling firm’s culture and values to find a competitive advantage with the mega-firms

We also have a number of articles on retirement:

• Though owning an RV and traveling the country is a popular retirement pastime, those with the resources can turn their motorhomes into a luxury vacation home on wheels (at about the same price as buying a second home)
• Many retirees seek to relocate after their working years, but deciding where to move requires some reflection both on the lifestyle the retiree wants to lead as well as the practical and financial considerations of doing so
• A number of rural areas are seeing a ‘gray wave’ of retirees moving in to take advantage of natural attractions, low costs of living, and a leisurely pace of life (though as those areas grow in popularity and size, they might not be quite as attractive as they once were)

We wrap up with three final articles, all about career decisions:

• On the heels of the ‘Great Resignation’ of 2021, many employees who changed jobs (and the employers who hired them) are now realizing their decisions might have been short-sighted
• Though employees and business owners often feel pressured to follow what others have done to become successful, embracing one’s own unique properties can make it easier to stand out from the crowd
• The pandemic has led many workers to embrace the idea of taking pre-retirement breaks from work – but doing so involves working around the retirement structure that is structured around the ‘traditional’ idea of retirement

Enjoy the ‘light’ reading!

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Enjoy the current installment of “Weekend Reading For Financial Planners” - this week’s edition kicks off with the news that the SEC has issued a new bulletin clarifying the responsibilities of brokers under Regulation Best Interest (Reg BI). The guidance indicates that, despite early fears that Reg BI was ‘overly accommodating’ to the brokerage industry, the Commission is expecting that reducing conflicts of interest should be an ongoing task for broker-dealers rather than a one-time compliance disclosure change, and that brokerage firms will want to ‘show their work’ when it comes to their compliance responsibilities (a potential best practice for RIAs, too!)!

Also in industry news this week:

• A study suggests that a significant number of brokers who are disciplined by FINRA are engaging in ‘regulatory arbitrage’ by moving to state-regulated insurance companies, making it more difficult for consumers to learn about their past infractions
• How the proposed “Inflation Reduction Act” will impact financial advisors and their clients

From there, we have several articles on advisor content marketing:

• How advisors can generate topic ideas for content to engage their target audience
• The best practices (and pitfalls to avoid) for advisors when crafting an email subject line
• Why campaigns that combine “sunk marketing” with “momentum marketing” can lead to greater results for advisors

We also have a number of articles on retirement planning:

• How the variability in annuity payouts across annuity providers has exploded in 2022, creating an opportunity for advisors to add value to clients by comparison shopping across insurance companies
• Why state long-term care insurance programs are driving demand for private policies, and the implications of these programs for advisors and their clients
• How advisors can support clients in choosing a Medigap policy

We wrap up with three final articles, all about the advisor regulatory landscape:

• Why better regulation of the insurance industry could make life easier for financial advisors
• What advisors need to know about the new IAR continuing education requirements
• Why pursuing title reform for financial planners is a worthwhile endeavor, even if it might be a bumpy process

Enjoy the ‘light’ reading!

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Enjoy the current installment of “Weekend Reading For Financial Planners” - this week’s edition kicks off with a survey indicating that while about 70% of advisors overall feel successful, those who charge fees (and enjoy the stability that recurring fees provide) tend to feel more successful than those who rely on less-stable commissions, with the effect being particularly pronounced for female advisors.

Also in industry news this week:

• A survey suggests that consumers recognize that they are keeping more money than they should on the sidelines as they maintain a pessimistic outlook for markets and the economy
• Why a recent SEC settlement is a warning that large RIAs need to pay close attention to the revenue sources of an affiliated broker-dealer

From there, we have several articles on advisor fee models:

• How advice-only fee models can offer advisors greater flexibility in their service offerings and the clients they serve
• Why creating an annual client service calendar is a helpful way to demonstrate an advisor’s value proposition to clients and regulators
• How advisors can overcome the “Triple Whammy” of having too much work for too many clients for too little money

We also have a number of articles on mortgages:

• How holding on to a mortgage while investing is a form of leverage, and why a mortgage itself is not an inflation hedge
• How advisors can add value to clients considering cash-out refinances
• Why some clients see home renovations as a way to delay inevitable bad news

We wrap up with three final articles, all about the current work environment:

• The best practices, from happy hours to retreats, advisory firms can use to maximize the hybrid work environment
• Why co-working space is the new ‘hot’ amenity in apartments and condo buildings
• Why the return of in-person conferences is attracting parents who want to get out of the house, and the wide range of upcoming conferences for advisors

Enjoy the ‘light’ reading!

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Enjoy the current installment of “Weekend Reading For Financial Planners” - this week’s edition kicks off with the news that the Financial Planning Association has announced a major new advocacy initiative: to pursue legal recognition of the term “financial planner” through title protection (such that those who don’t meet the competency and ethical standards of financial planning wouldn’t be permitted to use the title). Though in recognizing that the path toward regulation is likely to be a long one, as a starting point, the FPA has simply pledged to begin exploring how to pursue Title Protection, what kind of licensing or regulation it might entail, and whether it should be done at the state or Federal level.

Also in industry news this week:

• A Schwab benchmarking survey shows that RIAs had strong top-line and organic growth in 2021 and that a potential talent crunch remains top of mind for firm leaders
• RIA consolidation activity maintained a strong pace in the first half of 2022, with large strategic acquirers leading the pace of M&A activity

From there, we have several articles on the value of financial planning:

• Why it is vital for advisors to focus on their clients’ understanding of the value they are receiving, as well as what separates the advisor’s value proposition from the client’s other options
• Why it is important for advisors to not only consider a client’s financial assets, but also what brings them purpose and meaning, when providing financial planning services
• How an advisor’s professional network and industry experience can provide significant value to clients that goes beyond their net worth statement

We also have a number of articles on retirement income planning:

• Why simple strategies like a phased retirement and flexibility in spending could trump more complicated retirement income planning techniques
• How “buffer assets” could help clients overcome the financial and emotional turmoil caused by bear markets
• Why it typically pays for clients to make portfolio withdrawals for retirement income gradually throughout the year rather than as a lump sum in January

We wrap up with three final articles, all about the housing market:

• How rising house prices are changing the composition of neighborhoods across the United States and how advisors can help clients navigate these dynamics
• Why many Americans, including families and retirees alike, are choosing to move to Europe and how doing so can affect their financial plan
• How some cities and towns across the U.S. are providing incentives – from cash to free babysitting – to attract high-income remote workers and why a move could be attractive for advisors and their clients alike

Enjoy the ‘light’ reading!

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