While it’s important to practice responsibility where your money is concerned, sometimes it’s also smart to hire a money manager for assistance. These professionals can help those who struggle with handling their own money or who simply want help taking their finances to another level.
The first thing to look for in a money manager is affordable pricing. After all, you can’t get far with your money if you keep giving it all to a money manager. Look for one who takes no more than 1% of the total amount they’re handling for you per year. Also, their fees should be upfront and spelled out before you’re ever asked to sign anything.
Although you’ll end up working with a money manager, be sure they are part of a larger team. You may need to pay a bit more for this kind of depth on the bench, but it comes with a lot of attractive benefits. The main one is essentially that “two heads are better than one”, thus a whole team of heads is better still. With just one person looking over your money, you’re liable to lose a lot of it on one simple mistake. However, with a whole team or company, it’s less likely that any mistake will be bad enough to sink your portfolio.
No matter how prestigious or promising a company is, it’s essential that they offer transparency where your account is concerned. You should be able to access it at will via an online platform and pull funds as you wish, when you wish.
Lastly, don’t hand over your money to any money managers unless the Securities Investor Protection Corporation insures the account. Also, ask if a third-party ever audits their company’s accounts. This is ideal.
With the above advice, you should be ready to consider your options for money managers. While much of it will come down to personal preference, the above criteria will at least ensure you make a good choice.
Source:
http://www.responsible-investing.net/news_mar09_moneymanager.html
