One of the key factors that can make or break an investment is one’s financial advisor. A person can do all of the proper research beforehand about a particular financial instrument, but if a trusted advisor steers him down a different path, then all of that research will be for naught.
Before everyone goes off to manage their own portfolio, it would be a good idea to look at what financial investors actually do. While these professionals can give you a good background of the current state of the market, they cannot firmly control how much money their investments can make. They also can’t accurately predict how much they might lose. This is through no fault of their own; money markets are unpredictable by their nature. What these advisors can do with some degree of certainty is to help their clients minimize their risk.
A good way to determine whether or not a financial advisor is actually good is to find out his own personal earnings rate. This will allow clients to gauge the effectiveness of the investment professional without getting too privy into his financials.
Finally, a client has to learn how to say “no” to their financial guide. These people can’t force their customers to invest if they don’t want to, so it’s always ideal to take their advice with a grain of salt.
It’s also very important to look at the fee structure for your advisor. Many advisors have both a percentage and a minimum fee. If your holdings become low enough, that minimum fee may represent a completely unacceptable percentage of your holdings and you may wish to move your investments.