The Pros and Cons of Hiring a Financial Advisor: Is it Worth it? (2024)

FAQs

The Pros and Cons of Hiring a Financial Advisor: Is it Worth it? ›

Pros of hiring a financial advisor include gaining access to expertise, leveraging time, and sharing responsibility. However, there are also potential downsides to consider, such as costs and fees, quality of service, and the risk of abandonment.

A financial advisor is worth paying for if they provide help you need, whether because you don't have the time or financial acumen or you simply don't want to deal with your finances. An advisor may be especially valuable if you have complicated finances that would benefit from professional help.

They can also alleviate the stress of managing investments and financial decisions, providing peace of mind. However, there are downsides to consider. The cost of hiring a financial advisor can be significant, with fees that may impact overall returns.

Very generally, having between $50,000 and $500,000 of liquid assets to invest can be a good point to start looking at hiring a financial advisor. Some advisors have minimum asset thresholds. This could be a relatively low figure, like $25,000, but it could also be higher, such as $500,000, $1 million or even more.

Most of my research has shown people saying about 1% is normal. Answer: From a regulatory perspective, it's usually prohibited to ever charge more than 2%, so it's common to see fees range from as low as 0.25% all the way up to 2%, says certified financial planner Taylor Jessee at Impact Financial.

Bottom Line. On average, financial advisors charge between 0.59% and 1.18% of assets under management for their asset management. At 1%, an advisor's fee is well within the industry average. Whether that fee is too much or just right depends entirely on what you think of the advisor's services and performance.

Source: 2021 Fidelity Investor Insights Study. Furthermore, industry studies estimate that professional financial advice can add up to 5.1% to portfolio returns over the long term, depending on the time period and how returns are calculated.

Potential negatives of working with a Financial Advisor include costs/fees, quality, and potential abandonment. This can easily be a positive as much as it can be a negative. The key is to make sure you get what your pay for. The saying, “price is an issue in the absence of value” is accurate.

Bottom line. While not everyone needs a financial advisor, many people would benefit from personalized advice to help them build a strong financial future. You don't need to have a lot of wealth to take advantage of a financial advisor.

Should I use a financial advisor or do it myself? ›

Those who use financial advisors typically get higher returns and more integrated planning, including tax management, retirement planning and estate planning. Self-investors, on the other hand, save on advisor fees and get the self-satisfaction of learning about investing and making their own decisions.

While both offer guidance on investments, taxes and other financial matters, financial advisors generally focus on managing an individual's investment portfolios, while financial planners take a look at the entire financial picture and an individual's long-term goals.

Hiring a single advisor to manage an extensive investment portfolio may be unwise and restrictive since it can include a large number of undertakings.

Ultimately, whether or not a financial advisor will be worth your money depends on your specific situation and the financial advisor you choose to team up with. If they align with your goals, listen to your needs and act in your best interests, they will most likely be a good financial investment.

Gross advisory fee applicable to accounts managed through Fidelity^® Strategic Disciplines ranges from 0.20% to 0.49% and gross advisory fee applicable to accounts managed through Fidelity^® Wealth Services ranges from 0.50%–1.04%, in each case based on a minimum investment of $2 million.

What Percentage of Financial Advisors are Successful? 80-90% of financial advisors fail and close their firm within the first three years of business. This means only 10-20% of financial advisors are ultimately successful.

The decision should not be based on age.

According to Cody Garrett, CFP, owner and financial planner at Measure Twice Financial, whether you should hire a financial advisor or not should not be based on your age but on which financial decisions you need help considering.

Most reputable financial advisors never take possession of your money. Giving them direct access makes it easy for them to steal funds. Avoid doing that unless you're 100% certain that you can trust the person you're working with.