The Myth of Integrated Financial Advice

Some wealth management firms offer integrated financial advisory, in which they combine investment management, tax planning, estate planning, insurance and more under one roof. The concept is attractive -- you have one place with one point of contact for managing your complete financial life, and your service should be coordinated between professionals. Investment decisions should align with tax planning strategies to avoid creating unncessary tax burdens or too much income in retirement (like the retirement income snowball that Matt covers in episodes #25 and #33), for instance. Unfortunately, as Matt explains, it doesn't always work out that way.

Matt shares some experiences with clients who came from integrated financial advisory practices with various retirement planning issues. As he points out, just because a firm offers a comprehensive suit of advisory professionals, it doesn't mean they actually communicate in a coordainted and timely fashion. What really matters is how a firm operates, whether they have a structure in place for creating a retirement plan and sharing that plan with each professional's input (investment management, tax, insurance, etc), and most importantly, revisiting that plan and managing it on an ongoing basis. This is true whether you are working with an independent financial advisor with external professionals, or an integrated firm.

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