Benchmarks

Originally this spot was mis-titled “benchwarmers,” which I actually liked because it described a lot of investment professionals I know. Mutual fund managers don’t know who you are and they don’t care. Financial advisors and planners who outsource your investments to a mutual fund company or separate account manager are putting you in the same situation. Those managers don’t know, or care, who you are or what your particular needs might be. The term benchwarmers describes them pretty well because they never really get in the game.

A mutual fund share, unit investment trust share, or separately managed account portfolio is a basket of stocks, bonds and other securities managed to achieve some goal, but your investment goals are never considered. There are funds that mirror or try to outperform any index you can think of, and there are others that try to do the exact opposite of the same indices. A lot of advisors have you answer a risk-tolerance questionnaire, assign you to one of five risk classes, and you’re off. The assumption is that your needs are “close enough” to a pre-defined asset allocation. OK…so it’s not one-size-fits-all, but given the tens of thousands of investments out there, you get shoved into one of five options? Really?

Put us in the game for you, or start by calling. The conversation is free and there’s no obligation, and no high-pressure sales pitch.