Fiduciary

A fiduciary is legally obligated to act in the best interest of the person or entity they are representing. In other words, they have a fiduciary duty or obligation to their client. In the world of financial advisors, only independent Registered Investment Advisors have fiduciary responsibility.

The Garrett Network's Fee-Only Approach Creates Natural Partnerships Between Clients and Financial Advisors

Sheryl Garrett is the founder of the Garrett Planning Network.

The Garrett Network consists of approximately 300 financial advisors who provide services on a fee-only basis and act as fiduciaries.

Read on to understand how and why the Garrett Network seeks to make objective, competent...

In-Plan Annuities Show Promise Despite Obstacles

An " in-plan annuity " refers to an annuity option that exists within a 401k plan. The notion of an annuity-based retirement income option within a 401k plan is a relatively new concept. Advocates of in-plan annuities--which include key members of the Treasury Department and Congress--believe that partial annuitization is important for the retirement security of the millions of Americans whose access to stable sources of pension income is largely limited to Social Security . There are, however...
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An Interview with Retirement Planning Expert Henry Hebeler

 

Henry "Bud" Hebeler is a former Boeing executive who has been running a retirement planning...

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Financial Planners Concerned about Watered-Down Fiduciary Standards

The Obama Administration is interested in reform that would remove some of the conflicts of interest that exist in the world of financial advice. Financial planners, however, are concerned that these regulatory proposals which are intended to impose fiduciary obligations on all types of financial advisors may result in overall standards that are less stringent than what currently exists. Current fiduciary standards apply to an advisory account and largely impact registered investment advisors (...

Independent Financial Advisors Gaining Market Share

The Wall Street Journal reports that customers are moving towards independent registered investment advisors (RIA) and away from Wall Street brokerage firms. RIAs brought in $108 billion in new assets in 2008 while brokerage firms lost $8 billion. The change is seen in large part as a migration towards more objective financial advice. A registered investment advisor acts as a fiduciary, offers an advisory account , and is free of many of the potential conflicts of interest that are inherent in...

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