I suggest you open an account at a mutual fund company such as
Vanguard or Fidelity and put your money half in a stock index fund and
half in a bond index fund.

You will develop personal skills this way and be a better customer
when you do find an Investment Advisor.

Frank

"Soham Mehta" <soham.mehta[at]usc.edu> wrote in message news:<c5hk3h$gsp$1[at]gist.usc.edu> ...

- quote -

Just ask who he works for and how does he get paid. Many of these advisors
at banks are there to sell fixed annuities.

Often they are not bank employees. When they are they are there to hawk
certain products. Knew one person who quit because the branch manager wasn't
reaching the quota for fixed annuities.

"Gwen Morse" <goldmoon[at]geocities.com> wrote in message
news:nfps90tfnrt07cubg1rtr5ft2u2vocn4mc[at]4ax.com...
- quote -

On Tue, 13 Apr 2004 16:01:58 CST, "Soham Mehta" <soham.mehta[at]usc.eduwrote:

- quote -

You can try through your primary financial institition. My credit
union provides a financial advisor for us members. My mother's bank
does for its depositors.

Gwen

Thanks John.

Finding an IA through recommendation of others is certainly the best way.
People around me however do not believe in hiring Financial Planners for
advice, more because they are burnt with some bad ones before. I think I am
already at the stage in savings where I need an financial planner+IA (capped
my retirement, Roth, emergency funds and CD ladder). I would rather have the
extra work for me towards my financial goals, rather than just sit in a
savings account. Hence the turn to newsgroups.

As you have already pointed out, finding someone with class, competence and
trust is very daunting a task. There is a lot of crap to be cut through
while looking online or responding to cold-calling. And most good ones do
not even want to talk to you if the portfolio is less than 100K.

Motley Fool has good discussion boards and columns, but still there is no
convincing method I find that can drive me down to an IA without trial and
error with my money.



"John A. Weeks III" <john[at]johnweeks.com> wrote in message
news:130420041036144008%john[at]johnweeks.com...
- quote -

In article <65d85f9e.0404121707.35a9c413[at]posting.google.com> , Canada
Aspirant <canada_aspirant[at]lycos.com> wrote:

- quote -

The best thing to do is ask other people for recommendations. Ask
friends, family, and co-workers. Look for someone who has been
with an advisor for a longer period of time.

It might be harder to find someone who will take on a $5K account,
but anyone with class will treat you just as well as the $5-million
account. Finding those classy people who are still accepting new
accounts is the tricky part.

I have found that many advisors suddenly get much more interested
in your at the $25K and $50K level. Given that, you might want to
put yourself in a holding pattern, and wait until you have a bit
more to work with. Max out your 401K or other employment retirement
options, fund an IRA, and start savings. At first, use a money
market checking account to build up an emergency fund. They use
some bank CD's. Once you have this foundation built, then it is
time to start seeking out advisors.

-john-

--
================================================== ==================
John A. Weeks III 952-432-2708 john[at]johnweeks.com
Newave Communications http://www.johnweeks.com
================================================== ==================

What is a recommended way to find an good Investment Advisor, if one
has only a small amount (not more than USD-5K) to start with? I am
starting out in my career and have a salaried job with a decent
savings building capacity, which I would like to see being managed
professionally. I live in the US.

Do reputed Investment Advisors/firms give personal attention to small
fish as me? I am willing to pay very well for sound advice and also
bring solid potential for higher income and higher savings in the
future.

Any tips would be most appreciated.

Thanks.