Imagine a world where every professional had to act in your best interest. Wouldn’t that be nice?
That’s what it means to be a fiduciary financial advisor.
In the world of wealth management, a fiduciary advisor is someone who is a registered and certified investment advisor and is mandated to act in their clients’ best interest at all times. Being a fiduciary isn’t something you can turn on and off whenever you want. Advisors are required to file Form ADV to register with both state and federal authorities in order to become fiduciaries. This form describes the advisor’s business in detail—including information about ownership, clients, employees, business practices, affiliations, and any potential disciplinary actions taken against the firm. Fiduciaries also must disclose all fees and conflicts of interest in a brochure that would be given to potential clients.
What Are the Legal Responsibilities of a Fiduciary?
Very simply, fiduciaries are required to put their clients’ interests before their own.
Fiduciaries have a number of legal responsibilities. For starters, they have to provide their clients with a full and fair disclosure about all the facts of the relationship. They also are required to eliminate all conflicts of interest. In the event that they can’t eliminate a conflict of interest, they need to disclose it to their clients.
What’s more, fiduciaries are bound to a duty of loyalty. They need to communicate information that supports the decisions they make in order to meet the standards they’re held to. As mentioned above, they also have to file Form ADV with the SEC to provide transparency to their operations (find out whether an advisor has filed Form ADV here). Through these disclosures, clients will be able to see whether a firm is fee-only or fee-based, whether advisors receive commissions, and what kind of residual revenue they might earn, if any.
Does a Fiduciary Advisor Mean They Only Charge on Advice?
No, just because an advisor is a fiduciary doesn’t mean they are fee-only. It only means that they have to disclose the fees that they charge. You could be paying a fee and commissions for advice. Even broker-dealers, historically only judged on a suitability standard, now have to advise in your best interest and disclose where they charge you fees. This can result in conflicted advice, which the White House suggests U.S. investors lose roughly $17 billion each year taking conflicted advice.
Make sure to evaluate the fees of your advisor, even if they say they have to advise in your best interest.
How to Choose the Right Advisor for You
As you begin looking for an advisor who works best for your specific situation, you first need to understand how they get paid. Do they have any conflicts of interest? If so, how will that affect the value of their advice?
You’ll also want to consider the advisor’s knowledge level. Are they an expert? Do they have a wide breadth of knowledge on multiple topics (e.g., insurance, investments, Social Security, and annuities)?
Finally, you’ll want to find out whether the firm is subject to SEC violations or lawsuits.
Since the decision of which financial manager to work with is an incredibly important one, none of this information should be withheld.
EP Wealth: Fee-only Fiduciary Advisors
At EP Wealth, our fiduciary financial advisors believe that trust is a necessity for any client-advisor relationship to be successful. That’s why we only charge a fee for our advice, and not for commissions on products. We work hard every single day to make sure we are meeting our fiduciary duties, operating under the expectations of our regulatory and legal mandates, and delivering on our obligations to clients.
To learn more about how EP Wealth’s fiduciary financial advisors can help your financial future, schedule a consultation today.
DISCLOSURES
- Hiring a qualified advisor and/or financial planner does not guarantee investment success, and does not ensure that a client or prospective client will experience a higher level of performance or results. No guaranty or warranty is made that any direct or implied results or projections being represented here will be met or sustained.
- Information presented is general in nature and should not be viewed as a comprehensive analysis of the topics discussed. It is intended to serve as a tool containing general information that should assist you in the development of subsequent discussions. Content does not involve the rendering of personalized investment advice nor is it intended to supplement professional individualized advice.
- The need for a financial advisor or financial planner and/or the type of services required are specific to the uniqueness of each individual’s circumstances. There is no guarantee or warrantee that the services offered by EP Wealth Advisors will satisfy your financial services requirements. Services offered by other advisors may align more to your specific needs.
- All investment strategies have the potential for profit or loss. Different types of investments and investment strategies involve varying degrees of risk, and there can be no assurance that any specific investment or strategy will be suitable or profitable for a client's portfolio. The risk of loss can never be eliminated even if working with a professional.
- EP Wealth Advisors, LLC. is registered as an investment advisor with the SEC and only transacts business in states where it is properly registered, or is excluded or exempted from registration requirements. SEC registration does not constitute an endorsement of the firm by the Commission nor does it indicate that the advisor has attained a particular level of skill or ability.