Ameriprise?

[robbase]

been seeing these commercials lately. The commercial was appealing. But from looking at thier website they do seem to be into selling stuff for commision

anyone have any experience / oppinions?

I am looking for a financial planner for my mom and they have an office close by her....

[Deleted]

Yes, they're salespeople. They tend to come up with the same "happy meal" financial plan for every one: mutual funds + life insurance + long-term care insurance. You could get a good planner, but they hire people with any background at all, train them, and then make them independent contractors on a commission-only basis.

Can you give us an idea of your mother's circumstances? I like Edward Jones for people with a lot to invest and conservative investing philosophies, but they sell mutual funds iwth front-end costs that can be as high as 5.75% if you have under $25 K to invest, so they're not for everyone.

[robbase]

I don't think her circumstances are too good. She is one of the people that will be relying heavily on social security. She has some money in T-Bills (probably like $90K) and at least she still works. She is 65 years old and in generally good health (only has 2 prescriptions), so I suggested to her to keep working as long as she can. But in the meantime I figured a review by a financial planner can help her set realistic expectations.

[Deleted]

Ameriprise, I believe, used to be American Express Financial Advisors. They offered ME a job so definitely sales expertise is the main requirement. I am an English teacher who used to sell "fine" jewelry at Macy's.

You made the most money by selling their exclusive products. That means if the customer does get dissatisfied, they have to cash our whether it is the best time to sell or not. You can't do an in-kind transfer where you just move your holdings to another firm. They aren't the only firm that does this. Merrill Lynch likes this model, too.

I have never been happier since I moved everything to Vanguard. I did a Target Fund 10 years out from when I really think I will retire. That was to keep it from being too conservative. I also think I can go 10 years without touching it if necessary or adjust it a little closer to actual retirement. I am 56 years old. My paternal relatives (the only ones I know) lived to 80s and 90s even with bad health habits like smoking and alcohol addictions. I have one aunt (the oldest) who just celebrated her 98th birthday. She doesn't quite live alone but almost.

[Deleted]

Sounds like you need to minimize what's spent on commissions and other expenses and conserve her capital. A fee-only might be the way to go. Does Angie's list rate financial planners? DH uses that list to find good plumbers, electricians, etc. in our area and we've been very happy with the results. A target fund with a low expense ratio may be her best bet.

[cronewitch]

They offered me a "job". They wanted me to turn in my friends and family to be scammed by my trainer. They will take the victim in a meeting with the trainer and you then explain they can afford to invest if they do things like refinance the mortgage to free up money to invest. Then the trainer gets a commission since you can't sell without passing a test. Once you become a seller you get new trainees to give you victim leads. I declined to admit to having friends or family so wasn't a good fit for the job and I refuse to sell to victims.

[Deleted]

My mom went through them in the 90s, through her job. They gave the same advice to at least 3 members of her office and all of it was bad. All three have/had annuities in their 403b. The 3 people were all at different points in their life and the advice should have been different.