Only about a quarter of respondents said they “strongly agree” or “agree” that the recession is over, and another quarter said the U.S. will remain in a prolonged economic downturn for the next two years
Fidelity Investments and Bank of America reported this week that conversions were way up over last year, while advisers at smaller outfits are also seeing an uptick in interest in Roth accounts
Although they have spent much of the year cutting costs, many advisory firms are planning to give raises to their employees next year.
The following is an edited transcript of an InvestmentNews.com webcast held in New York on March 9.
Randy Abeles from RSM McGladrey takes all of advisers' tax questions this week.
Clyde Wyatt managed his father's money for about 18 months before he was abruptly dumped for another adviser: His own son Chris.
As the defined-contribution industry braces for new fee disclosure regulations, some corporate 401(k) plans — including Nestlé USA Inc. and United Parcel Service Inc. — are light-years ahead of the pack in providing participants with fee information.
Low interest rates and low contribution limits mean retirees can only count on health savings accounts to cover a portion of their health care costs
Financial advisers had hoped to begin this year with new momentum — the ability to swap clients out of existing annuities or insurance in exchange for long-term-care coverage — but broker-dealers have hit the brakes, citing problems with large amounts of paperwork to process the business, among other troubles.
Federal regulations and legislation that would make it easier for defined-contribution plans to include lifetime-income products are expected to be introduced next year.
Encouraging employers to offer annuities in pension plans will be one of the Labor Department's top regulatory goals in 2010.
The Labor and Treasury departments are discussing jointly submitting a request for comment from members of the retirement income industry to determine if there needs to be regulation of the market.
Some 41% of employees said they want more professional advice to help manager their 401(k) assets, but only 35% of employers currently offer retirement planning sessions
Of those taxpayers who are getting money back, 30% said they intend to pay down debt, 28% say they will save or invest, and 26% anticipate spending their refund on food or utility bills.
Despite some mixed data over the past couple of months, our view is that the global economic recovery remains on track, both in developed and emerging economies.
An eager crowd of about 700 bidders showed up at a North Salt Lake warehouse for a most unusual auction
Rhonda Breard, 47, promoted her financial expertise in television infomercials and in $49 seminars at local community colleges. Beginning in 2004, she started encouraging clients to take money out of certain accounts and turn it over to her — supposedly for new investments.
Now that the days of generous variable annuities are behind them, some advisers are finding ways to fit the revamped, slimmed-down versions into clients' portfolios.
I have a solution for Lee Feldman's salespeople who are worried about losing their income derived from 12(b)-1 fees (“Keeping 12(b)-1 fees discourages churning,” Feb. 1).
