July 7, 2026 • 28 mins
As parents age, money can get more complicated—bill paying, account access, healthcare decisions, investment management, and eventually the possibility that someone else may need to step in. In this episode, Don and Tom walk through how families can start that conversation before a crisis hits. They cover when to begin talking, what adult children should know about accounts and spending, why durable powers of attorney need to be checked with custodians in advance, and the importance of reviewing wills, beneficiaries, and backup decision-makers. They also talk about the emotional side of these transitions, including independence, trust, and the danger of children projecting their own investing preferences—or financial self-interest—onto aging parents.
Then they answer two listener questions: one about whether it’s time to fire an evasive advisor charging 1% plus expensive funds, and another about alternative career paths in financial planning beyond the traditional CFP route.
0:05 – Intro: the hard conversation families need to have about aging and money
1:00 – When parents—or you—reach the point where financial help may be needed
1:56 – Tom’s family experience and the challenge of stepping in gracefully
3:17 – Why families should talk early about money, spending, and where accounts are held
5:24 – Account access, passwords, and why digital organization matters more than ever
7:38 – Durable power of attorney: why you need one and why custodians should review it in advance
9:01 – Backups for everything: POAs, wills, beneficiaries, and successor decision-makers
10:02 – Why adult children should meet their parents’ financial advisor before a crisis
11:07 – When a trusted advisor can help if parents don’t want children directly involved
11:28 – How to approach the conversation as an adult child without expecting instant control
12:28 – Don’t project your own investing style onto your parents’ retirement portfolio
13:28 – The uncomfortable reality of greed and inheritance influencing family decisions
13:40 – Why this belongs at the top of the planning checklist for older families
14:07 – How to send your own questions to Talking Real Money
14:58 – Listener question: Is it time to fire a wealth manager who won’t answer basic questions?
17:15 – Don and Tom’s verdict on an advisor charging 1% while dodging accountability
18:48 – Listener question: Are there good financial-planning career paths besides becoming a CFP?
20:41 – The regulatory reality of giving investment advice for a fee
22:32 – Relationship roles, planning roles, and the growing specialization inside advisory firms
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
SPEAKER_00 (00:05):
You're gonna do a really great fundamental future.
Dumb and dummin are talking realmoney.
SPEAKER_04 (00:12):
It's time to have that hard conversation.
They're all hard conversationswhen it comes to money, though,
aren't they?
I mean, really, they are.
But the hard conversation we'retalking about is the
conversation you need to havewith people like us.
Your elderly parents.
Okay, we're not that elderlyyet, but we're heading in that
(00:33):
direction.
Hi, everybody.
Welcome to Talking Real Moneythe Podcast.
Well, okay, that's the only kindof Talking Real Money.
Well, no, there's Talking RealMoney, the website.
So this is Talking Real Moneythe Podcast.
I am Don McDonald, one of thetwo hosts of this here program.
The other one is over there.
That's Tom.
Cock in Seattle.
Well, a bellevue if you want toget particular.
(00:56):
And today, today, we're going totalk about your folks getting
old.
Or you, the folks that aregetting old.
We got a sum of both of you.
We've got the the folks who haveold aging parents, and we have a
lot of those aged parents.
And there reaches a point whereyou, we, us, all need a little
(01:21):
bit of help managing thecomplexity of our money, our
portfolio, our bill paying, andall of that stuff.
So today we're going to devote alittle time to how to have that
conversation and the kinds ofthings that you uh as the
elderly person or you as thechild thereof need to discuss
(01:43):
and work on going forward.
SPEAKER_03 (01:47):
It's hard.
I mean, so I think and not tomake this too personal, and you
can say no, but you handle yourmom's money, right?
SPEAKER_04 (01:54):
No, my no.
Uh somebody does, right?
Well, the appella does.
SPEAKER_03 (01:59):
No, I mean, but you but you're kind of keeping your
hand on the table.
SPEAKER_04 (02:02):
Oh, I keep an eye on it, but my sister handles the
day-to-day stuff because mysister lives in very close
proximity to my mom's nursinghome.
unknown (02:11):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_04 (02:11):
So therefore it just makes more sense for her to, you
know, deal with the day-to-daybills and all of that.
SPEAKER_03 (02:17):
I've never had to do that.
SPEAKER_04 (02:18):
I've aggregated most of that responsibility to my
work.
SPEAKER_03 (02:22):
Yeah.
I never had my my dad, in youknow, his last couple months, uh
my mom survived him, so she washandling it.
And then she was she couldhandle everything right up to
the time that she died at 85.
So I never really have facedthis.
SPEAKER_04 (02:36):
But you know, in those in those situations where
there is uh serious debilitativeconditions, and the the biggest
one in in old age is some sortof dementia.
Uh there it's important to havea plan, even if it never gets
(02:57):
put into effect.
SPEAKER_03 (02:58):
Trevor Burrus, Jr.
Yeah, and that's the hard part.
I uh the discussion I can and Ican remember taking the car keys
from my mom.
That was not fun.
Uh because that's the samething.
SPEAKER_04 (03:05):
Well, yeah, I remember Deb's family taking the
car keys from her dad.
SPEAKER_03 (03:10):
That's you know, that's a hard conversation.
Hey, you might kill somebody.
I mean, you don't want to be youdon't want to be doing that,
right?
Uh hey, you might blow somethingwith your money.
So I one of the things that thatI have agreed with all the time
is once you put together a plan,and I'd say over the age of 65,
this is a good time to have thediscussion with your kids.
(03:30):
Hey, here's where we are, right?
Here's the money that we have,here's how much we're spending.
I know a lot of people want tokeep us a big mystery and it's
in the closet, nobody can figureit out, but aren't we kind of
past that now?
Um, chatting with the kids oryou chatting with the kids.
SPEAKER_04 (03:45):
It was the very greatest generation money.
SPEAKER_03 (03:47):
I think it was.
Yeah.
My mom, right up to the end,didn't want to tell the other I
knew about her money because Iwas managing it.
But she didn't want to telleverybody about it because
that's a private matter.
Well, yeah, kinda.
Um so I think having thatdiscussion early makes a lot
more sense.
They don't have to tell youevery detail of it, but kind of
generally, here's what we'redoing, here's how we're paying
the bills, here's what we'vesaved, here's where it is.
(04:11):
Those things should be done.
Oh boy, I hate to can I say 70?
I hate to say somewhere aroundthat that time because you don't
know.
SPEAKER_04 (04:20):
Okay, I'm gonna say 80.
SPEAKER_03 (04:22):
Okay, I figured you'd push that number.
SPEAKER_04 (04:23):
I'm gonna say eight.
Well, and you know, when youwhen you look around at the I
mean, I know my mom, my stepdadwere both very, very capable uh
up into their eighties, earlyeighties.
You know, that was when the thehelp was necessary.
Uh prior to that, they werereally sharp.
(04:45):
They were very sharp.
And that's most important.
SPEAKER_03 (04:47):
Because when when that day arrives, it there's not
always the notice prior to,that's all.
SPEAKER_04 (04:52):
And and well, and here are a few things you might
be able to do, you know, beforebefore you get too deep into it.
One of the things you might wantto do is just have a better
understanding of theirsituation, their costs of
living, and what those resourcesmight be before you actually get
in and take charge.
SPEAKER_03 (05:14):
Yeah, I think that's fair.
Uh, you know, I guess you'reright.
Understanding the budget,understanding the income, the
bills, the various accounts,just kind of have an idea where
all that is, what it all meansbefore you get to the time, and
this is the tough one, um, whereyou're asking for access to the
accounts, right?
Where you're saying, I reallyshould have the logins in case
(05:36):
something happened.
I should really know how thisall fits together so that I'm
there for you if you need me.
SPEAKER_04 (05:42):
Yeah, and I gotta tell you, that's an area where
um you've got at in this day andage, you need to have, you need
to have technical, Tom, I'mlooking at you.
Yes.
Technical savvy when it comes tothis.
Because what does that meanexactly?
Well, like uh it it more andmore people have all of their
(06:02):
accounts online.
You don't do anything throughthe mail anymore.
Therefore, there are a lot oflogins and passwords for all of
these various accounts, and itcan be very dangerous to keep
them written down in your house.
That's true.
Unless it's you know hiddenaway.
Now, the good news is that mostmajor operating, particularly
Apple's operating system, has avery robust password storage
(06:27):
system.
So that the only thing youreally need to know is the
master password for the primarycomputer or or tablet or phone.
Because then that can get youinto the whole password universe
on the device.
SPEAKER_03 (06:40):
Sure, you just helped all the criminals help
out.
Come on.
SPEAKER_04 (06:43):
No, no, no, because you just uh you w you gotta keep
that that one password underlock and key.
Uh in fact in fact, you shouldmemorize that password.
SPEAKER_03 (06:54):
Yeah.
That's true.
Memorize I've given it to mywife.
SPEAKER_04 (07:00):
Yeah, but don't you know you know who I found is a
better I I've already talked tomy daughter about this and I
I've given her the main passwordto my computer.
Wow.
So that she, if somethinghappened to both of us, she
could get into the computer andthrough the password app on the
computer access all of theaccounts and make sure that you
(07:22):
know she can log into prettymuch everything.
SPEAKER_03 (07:24):
That is a huge step for trust for you.
Did you did you get a lot ofcounseling for that?
Did your therapist help youthrough that?
That's a big deal.
No, I you know, I trust Tori.
That's good for you.
So okay, so start talking early,understanding the situation,
getting account access.
And then this is one that uh Ithink people have a tendency to
(07:45):
not think about until it's toolate, and that is getting a
durable power of attorney.
Now, that can cover a lot ofthings, right?
That can cover healthcare, itcan cover financial, but here's
something in addition to gettingthat that I think is absolutely
100% critical that most peopleoverlook.
Sometimes they get it, but thenthey don't wait and to use it
until the moment arrives, andthen they take it to the
(08:08):
custodian, for example, in thiscase, our friends at Cheryl
Schwab, and they say, here'sthis power of a financial power
of attorney, and Schwab'sattorneys, of which there are
legion, look at it and go, nah,that's not that that doesn't
work because of this or this orthis.
Here's a suggestion.
Once you're at this point andyou get that POA, you should
(08:28):
immediately take it to thecustodian and say, is this going
to work?
Are you going to accept this?
Done this many times withpeople, so that you do know that
it'll work when that time comeswhen you do need to intercede in
those accounts.
Don't forget that step.
SPEAKER_04 (08:42):
Yeah, and don't forget the other step of uh, you
know, this is where, forexample, you know, all of my
assets uh uh go to my wife ifthey're not enjoying the same.
SPEAKER_03 (08:51):
Wait a minute.
SPEAKER_04 (08:51):
I'm not already anything after years of all the
time.
You know, because you're wayahead of me.
SPEAKER_03 (08:55):
I see, because I have more than you?
Yeah, it's all about you havingmore.
SPEAKER_04 (08:59):
It is a reason.
unknown (09:00):
Okay, fair enough.
SPEAKER_04 (09:01):
So uh but but what if both of you go?
SPEAKER_03 (09:05):
Oh.
unknown (09:06):
I don't know.
SPEAKER_04 (09:07):
You gotta have backups, and that's the same
with the POA, with the durablepower of attorney.
Um what if your power, you theperson to whom you give that
power of attorney, they die?
You gotta have backups.
Backups and backups and backupsand backups.
SPEAKER_03 (09:23):
And that brings me to the very important point is
uh once you have that POA, onceyou have the backups, you really
got to verify wills,beneficiaries, make sure all of
those everybody's correct.
By the way, there have beencases, as you know, of you know,
ex-wives receiving 401ks becausethey oh you forgot to be able to
do that.
Oh, yeah, because thebeneficiaries aren't up to date.
SPEAKER_04 (09:43):
In fact, Debbie and I were talking about this the
other day.
She goes, wait a minute.
I don't think you're thebeneficiary on one of my IRAs.
I think I haven't changed it inlike 20 years.
Yeah, that's something.
And I went, wait a minute, we'vebeen married for 35 years.
SPEAKER_03 (09:55):
Oh, there might have been something else in somebody.
SPEAKER_04 (09:58):
Anyway, it's her brother from back when she was
young.
SPEAKER_03 (10:00):
It's a different show.
Um, but that's really important.
I I'll add something else to allthis too.
And this is something that thatwe do well.
We just had a meeting recentlywith a mother-daughter
situation.
And um, if if if the elderly,can I say that person has an
advisor, you should meet themsomewhere along the way.
You should talk to them andthink of that thing.
SPEAKER_04 (10:23):
By the way, if you're not and this is going to
be the case in a lot ofsituations, if you're not
comfortable involving yourchildren in this process, and I
can understand why you would beuncomfortable in some cases.
You know, you hear horrorstories, then they're real.
(10:44):
This is another important reasonto have not only the legal
advisor for the Wills and Trustsor whatever you're doing there,
but to have the money advisorbecause you you can designate
your financial advisor as theone who handles your financial
needs after you pass and thenrefer them, have them start
(11:08):
working for your heirs uh uponyour passing.
That it there there that's apowerful, powerful resource
because you have a fiduciary, orat least we hope you have a
fiduciary third party who islooking out for your best
interests after you're passingyour family's best interests.
SPEAKER_03 (11:28):
Yeah, that's a relationship that should be
cemented, should be secure.
I'll add a couple other thingshere that I've seen in the
experience.
By the way, I just had awonderful chat with uh a young
man who's not quite 30, hisfather in his 60s.
Uh the young man's the podcastlistener, and he wanted us to
look at his dad's portfolio, anduh we suggested a few changes.
(11:52):
But I love that.
I mean, it's hey dad, you'vebeen a great saver, but uh, you
might want to fix this part ofthe uh the holdings here.
It was wonderful.
But here's what I would say forpeople that the child don't
expect too much too soon.
This should be a process.
It's gonna take, pardon me, thisis gonna take time, right?
You may have to have severalconversations with people before
they're gonna say, okay, I'llI'll I'll let you do this.
(12:14):
You may have to say, you knowwhat, you don't want to do it
today, but let's can we check inin six months?
I it may just take time.
It's it's a it's like takingaway the car keys.
This is a major thing.
Um, that's one.
And then the other one that Isee oftentimes, because you're
in a portfolio, the young personthat is mostly in stocks, don't
(12:34):
project that onto the parent.
I I see this all the time.
Well, why why do they holdbonds?
Why do they have any becausethey're 80 years old and they
might not want to see theiraccount go up and down
dramatically the way yours does.
Because it's harder when you getit's a I'm telling you, you get
older hanging on there.
SPEAKER_04 (12:49):
What brings me though, that that brings me back
again to my one of my bigconcerns uh is the problem.
And you just you just touched itright there.
Why don't you have more stocks?
Often the reason why they wantmore stocks is because they see
this as their portfolio when momand dad go and they want it to
(13:13):
grow more for them.
There's a greed factor, andgreed rears its flipping ugly
head far more than it should inthese situations where heirs go,
uh, how soon are you dying?
SPEAKER_03 (13:28):
Sad.
But true.
Sad, but true.
It is.
It happens, it happens.
So these are this is a this is aunderstated and yet huge uh area
of discussion, area of concern.
We we got this idea from anarticle in the New York Times,
which would be great to read ifyou can read the New York Times
about this, because I thought itwas a well-done article.
But um this should be at thehigh point of your list if you
(13:51):
have parents that are that aregetting older, because uh a lot
of mistakes, a lot of problems,people die, they don't have the
right beneficiaries, they don'thave things set up, and um it it
can be a real problem.
And so you really want to workahead to try and avoid it if you
can.
SPEAKER_04 (14:06):
And if you have questions about those kinds of
issues in your life, aboutplanning for your future, about
you know, working with yourkids, about getting a better
plan going forward, well, askus.
We're here to answer questions.
It's what we like to do.
And we do it two different ways.
We do it, uh it's all throughtalkingrealmoney.com, and you
(14:28):
just hit the ask a questionbutton, but you can type your
questions in.
Tom either reads them or gets intouch with you, or you can speak
them into the little microphonebutton, and then I do those on
the Friday QA podcast.
But Tom's got a couple that he'sgonna read to me today that I
have not heard.
These are fresh.
Hermetically sealed.
(14:49):
I don't know the answers tothese questions.
That's true.
He does not.
And I am not psychic, so I'm notgonna try and guess.
SPEAKER_03 (14:55):
Yeah, this comes from Winter Haven, Florida.
Oh, Winter Haven, that's just acouple miles from my house.
It's time to let go of a wealthmanager from Canson who writes
us My wife and I are bothretired in our early 50s, living
abroad and paying 1% assetsunder management to a registered
investment advisor.
Wait, wait, wait.
SPEAKER_04 (15:16):
Did they say they were in Winter Haven?
SPEAKER_03 (15:18):
Yeah.
That is not living abroad.
SPEAKER_04 (15:20):
I mean, I know it feels like a whole nother
country.
SPEAKER_03 (15:26):
Uh so they're how's your Spanish?
Is it good?
Is it how you do it?
Malo.
Okay, so back to where I was,paying one percent to a RIA for
the past five years.
When I started asking deeperquestions about why specific
funds were chosen, including twowith expense ratios above one
(15:48):
percent.
Oh, holy moly.
My advisor deflected, neverresponded to those sections of
my emails, couldn't explain thefund selection criteria his firm
uses, and had no defined exitplan for any position.
When I pushed further, he toldme that if I continue asking
these kind of questions, hewould have to raise his fee.
(16:11):
When I first read it, I thought,come on.
Um my question.
SPEAKER_04 (16:17):
If I have to actually work for you, I'm gonna
charge you more.
SPEAKER_03 (16:20):
A lot more.
Um my question.
How common is this behavioramong financial advisors?
And at what point doesdeflecting a client's legitimate
investment questions cross theline from a communication style
into a breach of fiduciary duty?
Uh he's he's there.
I do at 1% plus 1%?
SPEAKER_04 (16:40):
1% plus 1%, he's definitely there.
And and the and the deflectioncracks me up.
A good advisor should be notjust eager, but happy.
And and and and know exactly whythose the the they recommend the
products they recommend.
Why were you doing this for goshsake?
(17:04):
I I could I could do it withevery single product Apella
suggests.
I could give you a perfectrationale for every one of them.
But the funny thing is, is thatall of the ETFs we suggest in in
aggregate are are gonna cost youlike less than 30 basis points.
No, it's not in a portfolio,it's more like 18.
(17:27):
Yeah, but I mean, low.
I mean, but yeah, if you're allequity, it could be a little
higher.
SPEAKER_03 (17:32):
But not much higher.
Not much.
SPEAKER_04 (17:34):
No, this is this is a bad advisor.
Well, no, this is a bad advisor.
There's a reason for that.
SPEAKER_03 (17:43):
Yeah, and saying they're gonna raise their fee if
you keep asking me questions.
You got another question.
SPEAKER_04 (17:48):
That's no.
I would say you don't answer myquestion, you're fired.
unknown (17:53):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_04 (17:54):
Don't you and my man?
Don't you dare threaten me.
That's what that I would beindignant.
SPEAKER_03 (18:03):
And uh by the way, Canson, there's better advisors
than that in Winter Park.
SPEAKER_04 (18:07):
Not in Winter Haven.
Winter Haven isn't.
Winter Park, yes.
In Winter Park, yes.
Not in Winter Haven.
You don't get the difference.
I don't know.
Winter Park is a veryhighfalutin area.
SPEAKER_03 (18:20):
And Winter Haven is not, then I take it.
SPEAKER_04 (18:22):
Winter Haven is a little more rural.
SPEAKER_03 (18:26):
You're gonna know this better than I am.
SPEAKER_04 (18:28):
Winter Haven is where Legoland is.
SPEAKER_03 (18:31):
I kind of like Legos.
SPEAKER_04 (18:33):
It's the yeah, but it's the secondary theme park.
Peppa Pig Land is down there.
unknown (18:37):
Peppa Pig Land.
SPEAKER_03 (18:38):
Well, I never missed that when I'm in Florida.
So uh okay.
You don't know what to do.
That that's a that's animmediate fire and find a new
advisor.
SPEAKER_04 (18:46):
I'm done.
I am I am so done with thisadvisor.
Done.
Done.
Goodbye, advisor.
SPEAKER_03 (18:51):
Very strange.
Lucas from Charlotte, NorthCarolina writes Hi, Don and Tom.
I was calling to get your takeon other relevant roles in the
financial planning industryother than someone who deals
with investment planning orretirement planning, like a CFP
or chartered financialconsultant or analyst.
I've heard of other tracks thatinclude financial counseling,
(19:13):
uh, getting your AFC orsomething like financial
coaching.
Curious on your thoughts of howthese operate in the industry,
not necessarily from acompensation perspective, but
maybe how you have interactedwith some of these professionals
in the past.
I've been kicking around theidea of getting into the
financial services industry as acareer pivot and think something
(19:33):
like this may be better suitedfor me than a CFP.
Thanks, love the show.
P.S.
I've tried there's a messageabout having trouble listening
to the podcast, which apparentlyyou managed to do.
But um, yeah, I mean, sort ofbeing a counselor rather than an
advisor, I guess, in some ways.
Um, there's all kinds, by theway, because the industry has
changed dramatically in the last20 years.
(19:54):
So there's all kinds ofdifferent advisors now.
And there's big firms that havedifferent layers, right?
They may have an advisor that isdesigned to be the rainmaker in
some way, bringing the money in,somebody who's gonna manage the
very inside baseball term.
Yeah, that is kind of so uhsorry, pardon me.
They're gonna they're bringingon new clients.
There might be an advisor thatdoes the legwork on all that and
(20:16):
is the daily contact.
Um, and there's places that havesort of advisory roles that
aren't necessarily a CFP.
That they exist.
It's it's a smaller part of theindustry.
There's big firms that havethose kind of people on board.
SPEAKER_04 (20:30):
Okay, here's we run into a lot of potential issues
with this because of the waythis industry is regulated.
Technically, if you provide anykind of investing advice for a
fee, for any kind of a fee, youare required to register with
(20:54):
either your state regulators orwith the Securities and Exchange
Commission.
SPEAKER_03 (20:58):
Yeah, no argument there.
SPEAKER_04 (20:59):
You have to register as an investment advisor
representative.
That's right.
You have to.
You can hold if you holdyourself out to be some you
could do it and maybe never getcaught.
But technically, to accept a feefor financial advice that
involves investments in any way,shape, manner, or form
(21:24):
technically, you need to be anRIA or an IAR.
Trevor Burrus, Jr.
SPEAKER_03 (21:29):
Well, okay, or unless you're a broker dealer.
SPEAKER_04 (21:32):
But unless you're a broker dealer, but that's you
know that's that's not I seewhat I think this person's
getting at is that I don't wantto manage money.
I just want to provide advice.
SPEAKER_03 (21:43):
I don't think I'm getting more into the psychology
of it.
SPEAKER_04 (21:47):
Yeah, but I don't believe there's a huge demand
No, not huge.
For paid advice because you'vegot it's another level of it's
another layer of payment.
SPEAKER_03 (21:55):
I know major there's a major firm right across the
water that has people like thison Facebook.
SPEAKER_04 (22:00):
Absolutely.
Absolutely.
But but I I can I can assure youthat the people who are being
hired in these positions withthese big firms are uh are PhD
psychologists.
SPEAKER_03 (22:11):
Maybe.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_04 (22:13):
I mean they're not they're they're not just
somebody who has some prettygood ideas about this.
They they have advanced degreesin psychology of some sort.
SPEAKER_03 (22:21):
But my question to you, Lucas, would be the why of
it.
I mean, tell me, I'd have toknow more about what you're
trying to accomplish here.
Why would you have to do that?
SPEAKER_04 (22:29):
This would have been a good call for you to make.
SPEAKER_03 (22:31):
I knew I was gonna take the take the heat for this.
Yeah, because it it because itis it a numbers thing?
Look, I don't want to beinvolved in the numbers.
Well, most of the advisors, theyknow the numbers, but that's not
their daily, they're notmanaging the numbers.
Number two, you want to be justwriting plans?
There's people that, you know,we're just hiring a new
paraplanner now.
They're gonna sit around andwrite plans.
They're gonna work with theadvisors and write plans.
SPEAKER_04 (22:52):
Yeah, it depends on what side, but I'm hearing the I
want to be the touchy-feelyperson.
SPEAKER_03 (22:57):
Yeah.
And there's the touchy feel.
SPEAKER_04 (23:00):
The touchy-feely people in the industry these
days tend to be those whoestablish client relationships,
don't actually manage the money.
Uh they're the relationshippeople, and you gotta be one
heck of a people person, and ithelps I hate to say this, even
in a fiduciary relationship,because of the skill set that
(23:22):
this training brings, it helpsto be a good salesperson.
SPEAKER_03 (23:25):
Oh, yeah.
You that's the start, right?
You've got to be able to dealwith all kinds of things.
SPEAKER_04 (23:30):
Because good salespeople are really good with
people.
That's their skill set.
So um it just really depends onwhat you're looking for.
So uh this in the future, Tom,if you get one of these where
you go, I need to ask himanother question.
That's the phone call.
SPEAKER_03 (23:49):
Lucas, can I get you on the phone right now?
Would that be possible?
Can you ring me up?
SPEAKER_04 (23:52):
Yeah, I I I but I'm I'm reading between the lines.
I don't it doesn't sound likehe's we get we get two kinds of
people generally uh asking aboutworking in this industry.
The majority are numbercrunchers, they're data fiends.
SPEAKER_03 (24:08):
That's right.
SPEAKER_04 (24:08):
They love numbers, they love data, they love they
would be great at buildingportfolios.
SPEAKER_03 (24:14):
That's right.
And those people exist in ourbuilding.
SPEAKER_04 (24:17):
Particularly great at building relationships.
SPEAKER_03 (24:20):
And those jobs exist too.
They're different, they'redifferent than being in advice.
SPEAKER_04 (24:24):
And we're seeing uh a bifurcation or a trifurcation
of jobs a little bit in theindustry, where you're seeing
now the planners, theparaplanners, the people who do
the planning work.
You see the uh the relationshippeople in the industry.
This is where Tom is reallygood.
This is really this is Tom'sskill set.
My skill set was killing trees.
(24:45):
It's not data, it's not datacrunching.
You are not the guy who sitsthere with spreadsheets.
I don't know that you even knowhow to use a spreadsheet.
SPEAKER_03 (24:54):
Oh, I do.
I have I just updated mine forthe end of the uh first half of
the year.
SPEAKER_04 (25:00):
Okay, but could you do like a really complex one?
SPEAKER_03 (25:03):
No.
No, I don't know.
You mean like 2% of this isthree percent of this?
SPEAKER_04 (25:06):
Yeah, exactly.
No, no, no.
Couldn't do that.
You can do it as a layout tool.
Which is one of the things Ihate about the way we use
spreadsheets in this world.
People use spreadsheets aspresentation layout tools.
Yeah, absolutely.
It's like, no, that's not whatthey're for.
Just because you can do itdoesn't mean you should.
(25:30):
Okay?
Remember?
Different tools for differentjobs.
Thank you.
unknown (25:38):
All right.
SPEAKER_04 (25:38):
I think that's a good question.
Got questions?
Go to talkingrealmoney.com.
It's that's it.
Got questions?
Go to talkingrealmoney.com.
Got bigger questions where you'dlike to sit down with somebody
like a personable Tom person whodoesn't crunch numbers well.
He'll get someone else to crunchthe numbers, trust me.
SPEAKER_03 (25:56):
Oh, yeah.
SPEAKER_04 (25:56):
Before the meeting.
I got people they like to say.
He has people who do this forhim.
Uh you just go totalkingrealmoney.com and you
say, you know, I'd like to meetwith an advisor, but don't
charge me anything, and I don'twant any high-pressure sales
pitch.
You don't even have to say that.
It's implied.
That is not gonna happen.
Got it?
Good.
TalkingRealMoney.com, it's theplace to go.
Send in those questions.
(26:18):
It's summer.
Always the lighter season forquestions.
Uh and uh oh, by the way, Ithink this is airing like right
about the time Tom's onvacation.
So thank God.
Cut him some slack.
I think yeah, I think you'regone already.
SPEAKER_03 (26:34):
I'm gonna keep reading them on the show.
SPEAKER_04 (26:36):
Even while we're recording this, I think you're
gone.
SPEAKER_03 (26:39):
That's a good point.
He's already out.
SPEAKER_04 (26:42):
He's already gone.
Thanks for listening.
We appreciate you.
Please tell friends,acquaintances, neighbors people
you don't even like that much,because come on, everybody needs
to be talking real money.
SPEAKER_02 (26:54):
The opinions and views expressed on this podcast
were current on the daterecorded.
Opinions, estimates, forecasts,and statements of financial
market trends that are based oncurrent market conditions
constitute our judgment and aresubject to change without
notice, including anyforward-looking estimates or
statements which are based oncertain expectations and
assumptions.
SPEAKER_01 (27:08):
Although information and opinions given have been
obtained from or based onsources believed to be reliable,
no warranty or representation ismade as to their correctness,
completeness, or accuracy.
SPEAKER_02 (27:17):
Information presented on the podcast is not
personalized investment advicefrom Apello Wealth.
The views and strategiesdescribed may not be suitable
for everyone.
This podcast does not identifyall the risks, direct or
indirect, or otherconsiderations which might be
material to you when enteringany financial transaction.
Past performance does notguarantee future results, and
profitable results cannot beguaranteed.
We hope you realize that theinformation provided on Talking
Real Money is for informational,educational, and hopefully
(27:39):
enjoyable purposes only.
The podcast is not trying to getyou to buy or sell any financial
products or securities.
Instead, the program is providedas a public service by Appello
Wealth, a fee-only registeredinvestment advisor.
SPEAKER_01 (27:50):
See Appellow's ADB to A on our website for
information regardingAppellate's fees and services.
SPEAKER_02 (27:55):
Appellate Capital, LLC, DBA Appello Wealth, is an
investment advisory firmregistered with the Securities
and Exchange Commission.
The firm only transacts businessin the states where it is
properly registered, or excludedor exempt from registration
requirement.
Registration with the SEC or anyState Securities Authority does
not imply a certain level ofskill or training.
Appello does not provide tax orlegal advice, and nothing either
stated or implied here should beinferred as providing such
(28:16):
advice.
Thanks for listening, and pleasevisit talkingrealmoney.com for
more information and importantdisclosure related to
performance of any specificindex or fund quoted in this
podcast.
You're gonna do a really great fundamental future.
Dumb and dummin are talking realmoney.
SPEAKER_04 (00:12):
It's time to have that hard conversation.
They're all hard conversationswhen it comes to money, though,
aren't they?
I mean, really, they are.
But the hard conversation we'retalking about is the
conversation you need to havewith people like us.
Your elderly parents.
Okay, we're not that elderlyyet, but we're heading in that
(00:33):
direction.
Hi, everybody.
Welcome to Talking Real Moneythe Podcast.
Well, okay, that's the only kindof Talking Real Money.
Well, no, there's Talking RealMoney, the website.
So this is Talking Real Moneythe Podcast.
I am Don McDonald, one of thetwo hosts of this here program.
The other one is over there.
That's Tom.
Cock in Seattle.
Well, a bellevue if you want toget particular.
(00:56):
And today, today, we're going totalk about your folks getting
old.
Or you, the folks that aregetting old.
We got a sum of both of you.
We've got the the folks who haveold aging parents, and we have a
lot of those aged parents.
And there reaches a point whereyou, we, us, all need a little
(01:21):
bit of help managing thecomplexity of our money, our
portfolio, our bill paying, andall of that stuff.
So today we're going to devote alittle time to how to have that
conversation and the kinds ofthings that you uh as the
elderly person or you as thechild thereof need to discuss
(01:43):
and work on going forward.
SPEAKER_03 (01:47):
It's hard.
I mean, so I think and not tomake this too personal, and you
can say no, but you handle yourmom's money, right?
SPEAKER_04 (01:54):
No, my no.
Uh somebody does, right?
Well, the appella does.
SPEAKER_03 (01:59):
No, I mean, but you but you're kind of keeping your
hand on the table.
SPEAKER_04 (02:02):
Oh, I keep an eye on it, but my sister handles the
day-to-day stuff because mysister lives in very close
proximity to my mom's nursinghome.
unknown (02:11):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_04 (02:11):
So therefore it just makes more sense for her to, you
know, deal with the day-to-daybills and all of that.
SPEAKER_03 (02:17):
I've never had to do that.
SPEAKER_04 (02:18):
I've aggregated most of that responsibility to my
work.
SPEAKER_03 (02:22):
Yeah.
I never had my my dad, in youknow, his last couple months, uh
my mom survived him, so she washandling it.
And then she was she couldhandle everything right up to
the time that she died at 85.
So I never really have facedthis.
SPEAKER_04 (02:36):
But you know, in those in those situations where
there is uh serious debilitativeconditions, and the the biggest
one in in old age is some sortof dementia.
Uh there it's important to havea plan, even if it never gets
(02:57):
put into effect.
SPEAKER_03 (02:58):
Trevor Burrus, Jr.
Yeah, and that's the hard part.
I uh the discussion I can and Ican remember taking the car keys
from my mom.
That was not fun.
Uh because that's the samething.
SPEAKER_04 (03:05):
Well, yeah, I remember Deb's family taking the
car keys from her dad.
SPEAKER_03 (03:10):
That's you know, that's a hard conversation.
Hey, you might kill somebody.
I mean, you don't want to be youdon't want to be doing that,
right?
Uh hey, you might blow somethingwith your money.
So I one of the things that thatI have agreed with all the time
is once you put together a plan,and I'd say over the age of 65,
this is a good time to have thediscussion with your kids.
(03:30):
Hey, here's where we are, right?
Here's the money that we have,here's how much we're spending.
I know a lot of people want tokeep us a big mystery and it's
in the closet, nobody can figureit out, but aren't we kind of
past that now?
Um, chatting with the kids oryou chatting with the kids.
SPEAKER_04 (03:45):
It was the very greatest generation money.
SPEAKER_03 (03:47):
I think it was.
Yeah.
My mom, right up to the end,didn't want to tell the other I
knew about her money because Iwas managing it.
But she didn't want to telleverybody about it because
that's a private matter.
Well, yeah, kinda.
Um so I think having thatdiscussion early makes a lot
more sense.
They don't have to tell youevery detail of it, but kind of
generally, here's what we'redoing, here's how we're paying
the bills, here's what we'vesaved, here's where it is.
(04:11):
Those things should be done.
Oh boy, I hate to can I say 70?
I hate to say somewhere aroundthat that time because you don't
know.
SPEAKER_04 (04:20):
Okay, I'm gonna say 80.
SPEAKER_03 (04:22):
Okay, I figured you'd push that number.
SPEAKER_04 (04:23):
I'm gonna say eight.
Well, and you know, when youwhen you look around at the I
mean, I know my mom, my stepdadwere both very, very capable uh
up into their eighties, earlyeighties.
You know, that was when the thehelp was necessary.
Uh prior to that, they werereally sharp.
(04:45):
They were very sharp.
And that's most important.
SPEAKER_03 (04:47):
Because when when that day arrives, it there's not
always the notice prior to,that's all.
SPEAKER_04 (04:52):
And and well, and here are a few things you might
be able to do, you know, beforebefore you get too deep into it.
One of the things you might wantto do is just have a better
understanding of theirsituation, their costs of
living, and what those resourcesmight be before you actually get
in and take charge.
SPEAKER_03 (05:14):
Yeah, I think that's fair.
Uh, you know, I guess you'reright.
Understanding the budget,understanding the income, the
bills, the various accounts,just kind of have an idea where
all that is, what it all meansbefore you get to the time, and
this is the tough one, um, whereyou're asking for access to the
accounts, right?
Where you're saying, I reallyshould have the logins in case
(05:36):
something happened.
I should really know how thisall fits together so that I'm
there for you if you need me.
SPEAKER_04 (05:42):
Yeah, and I gotta tell you, that's an area where
um you've got at in this day andage, you need to have, you need
to have technical, Tom, I'mlooking at you.
Yes.
Technical savvy when it comes tothis.
Because what does that meanexactly?
Well, like uh it it more andmore people have all of their
(06:02):
accounts online.
You don't do anything throughthe mail anymore.
Therefore, there are a lot oflogins and passwords for all of
these various accounts, and itcan be very dangerous to keep
them written down in your house.
That's true.
Unless it's you know hiddenaway.
Now, the good news is that mostmajor operating, particularly
Apple's operating system, has avery robust password storage
(06:27):
system.
So that the only thing youreally need to know is the
master password for the primarycomputer or or tablet or phone.
Because then that can get youinto the whole password universe
on the device.
SPEAKER_03 (06:40):
Sure, you just helped all the criminals help
out.
Come on.
SPEAKER_04 (06:43):
No, no, no, because you just uh you w you gotta keep
that that one password underlock and key.
Uh in fact in fact, you shouldmemorize that password.
SPEAKER_03 (06:54):
Yeah.
That's true.
Memorize I've given it to mywife.
SPEAKER_04 (07:00):
Yeah, but don't you know you know who I found is a
better I I've already talked tomy daughter about this and I
I've given her the main passwordto my computer.
Wow.
So that she, if somethinghappened to both of us, she
could get into the computer andthrough the password app on the
computer access all of theaccounts and make sure that you
(07:22):
know she can log into prettymuch everything.
SPEAKER_03 (07:24):
That is a huge step for trust for you.
Did you did you get a lot ofcounseling for that?
Did your therapist help youthrough that?
That's a big deal.
No, I you know, I trust Tori.
That's good for you.
So okay, so start talking early,understanding the situation,
getting account access.
And then this is one that uh Ithink people have a tendency to
(07:45):
not think about until it's toolate, and that is getting a
durable power of attorney.
Now, that can cover a lot ofthings, right?
That can cover healthcare, itcan cover financial, but here's
something in addition to gettingthat that I think is absolutely
100% critical that most peopleoverlook.
Sometimes they get it, but thenthey don't wait and to use it
until the moment arrives, andthen they take it to the
(08:08):
custodian, for example, in thiscase, our friends at Cheryl
Schwab, and they say, here'sthis power of a financial power
of attorney, and Schwab'sattorneys, of which there are
legion, look at it and go, nah,that's not that that doesn't
work because of this or this orthis.
Here's a suggestion.
Once you're at this point andyou get that POA, you should
(08:28):
immediately take it to thecustodian and say, is this going
to work?
Are you going to accept this?
Done this many times withpeople, so that you do know that
it'll work when that time comeswhen you do need to intercede in
those accounts.
Don't forget that step.
SPEAKER_04 (08:42):
Yeah, and don't forget the other step of uh, you
know, this is where, forexample, you know, all of my
assets uh uh go to my wife ifthey're not enjoying the same.
SPEAKER_03 (08:51):
Wait a minute.
SPEAKER_04 (08:51):
I'm not already anything after years of all the
time.
You know, because you're wayahead of me.
SPEAKER_03 (08:55):
I see, because I have more than you?
Yeah, it's all about you havingmore.
SPEAKER_04 (08:59):
It is a reason.
unknown (09:00):
Okay, fair enough.
SPEAKER_04 (09:01):
So uh but but what if both of you go?
SPEAKER_03 (09:05):
Oh.
unknown (09:06):
I don't know.
SPEAKER_04 (09:07):
You gotta have backups, and that's the same
with the POA, with the durablepower of attorney.
Um what if your power, you theperson to whom you give that
power of attorney, they die?
You gotta have backups.
Backups and backups and backupsand backups.
SPEAKER_03 (09:23):
And that brings me to the very important point is
uh once you have that POA, onceyou have the backups, you really
got to verify wills,beneficiaries, make sure all of
those everybody's correct.
By the way, there have beencases, as you know, of you know,
ex-wives receiving 401ks becausethey oh you forgot to be able to
do that.
Oh, yeah, because thebeneficiaries aren't up to date.
SPEAKER_04 (09:43):
In fact, Debbie and I were talking about this the
other day.
She goes, wait a minute.
I don't think you're thebeneficiary on one of my IRAs.
I think I haven't changed it inlike 20 years.
Yeah, that's something.
And I went, wait a minute, we'vebeen married for 35 years.
SPEAKER_03 (09:55):
Oh, there might have been something else in somebody.
SPEAKER_04 (09:58):
Anyway, it's her brother from back when she was
young.
SPEAKER_03 (10:00):
It's a different show.
Um, but that's really important.
I I'll add something else to allthis too.
And this is something that thatwe do well.
We just had a meeting recentlywith a mother-daughter
situation.
And um, if if if the elderly,can I say that person has an
advisor, you should meet themsomewhere along the way.
You should talk to them andthink of that thing.
SPEAKER_04 (10:23):
By the way, if you're not and this is going to
be the case in a lot ofsituations, if you're not
comfortable involving yourchildren in this process, and I
can understand why you would beuncomfortable in some cases.
You know, you hear horrorstories, then they're real.
(10:44):
This is another important reasonto have not only the legal
advisor for the Wills and Trustsor whatever you're doing there,
but to have the money advisorbecause you you can designate
your financial advisor as theone who handles your financial
needs after you pass and thenrefer them, have them start
(11:08):
working for your heirs uh uponyour passing.
That it there there that's apowerful, powerful resource
because you have a fiduciary, orat least we hope you have a
fiduciary third party who islooking out for your best
interests after you're passingyour family's best interests.
SPEAKER_03 (11:28):
Yeah, that's a relationship that should be
cemented, should be secure.
I'll add a couple other thingshere that I've seen in the
experience.
By the way, I just had awonderful chat with uh a young
man who's not quite 30, hisfather in his 60s.
Uh the young man's the podcastlistener, and he wanted us to
look at his dad's portfolio, anduh we suggested a few changes.
(11:52):
But I love that.
I mean, it's hey dad, you'vebeen a great saver, but uh, you
might want to fix this part ofthe uh the holdings here.
It was wonderful.
But here's what I would say forpeople that the child don't
expect too much too soon.
This should be a process.
It's gonna take, pardon me, thisis gonna take time, right?
You may have to have severalconversations with people before
they're gonna say, okay, I'llI'll I'll let you do this.
(12:14):
You may have to say, you knowwhat, you don't want to do it
today, but let's can we check inin six months?
I it may just take time.
It's it's a it's like takingaway the car keys.
This is a major thing.
Um, that's one.
And then the other one that Isee oftentimes, because you're
in a portfolio, the young personthat is mostly in stocks, don't
(12:34):
project that onto the parent.
I I see this all the time.
Well, why why do they holdbonds?
Why do they have any becausethey're 80 years old and they
might not want to see theiraccount go up and down
dramatically the way yours does.
Because it's harder when you getit's a I'm telling you, you get
older hanging on there.
SPEAKER_04 (12:49):
What brings me though, that that brings me back
again to my one of my bigconcerns uh is the problem.
And you just you just touched itright there.
Why don't you have more stocks?
Often the reason why they wantmore stocks is because they see
this as their portfolio when momand dad go and they want it to
(13:13):
grow more for them.
There's a greed factor, andgreed rears its flipping ugly
head far more than it should inthese situations where heirs go,
uh, how soon are you dying?
SPEAKER_03 (13:28):
Sad.
But true.
Sad, but true.
It is.
It happens, it happens.
So these are this is a this is aunderstated and yet huge uh area
of discussion, area of concern.
We we got this idea from anarticle in the New York Times,
which would be great to read ifyou can read the New York Times
about this, because I thought itwas a well-done article.
But um this should be at thehigh point of your list if you
(13:51):
have parents that are that aregetting older, because uh a lot
of mistakes, a lot of problems,people die, they don't have the
right beneficiaries, they don'thave things set up, and um it it
can be a real problem.
And so you really want to workahead to try and avoid it if you
can.
SPEAKER_04 (14:06):
And if you have questions about those kinds of
issues in your life, aboutplanning for your future, about
you know, working with yourkids, about getting a better
plan going forward, well, askus.
We're here to answer questions.
It's what we like to do.
And we do it two different ways.
We do it, uh it's all throughtalkingrealmoney.com, and you
(14:28):
just hit the ask a questionbutton, but you can type your
questions in.
Tom either reads them or gets intouch with you, or you can speak
them into the little microphonebutton, and then I do those on
the Friday QA podcast.
But Tom's got a couple that he'sgonna read to me today that I
have not heard.
These are fresh.
Hermetically sealed.
(14:49):
I don't know the answers tothese questions.
That's true.
He does not.
And I am not psychic, so I'm notgonna try and guess.
SPEAKER_03 (14:55):
Yeah, this comes from Winter Haven, Florida.
Oh, Winter Haven, that's just acouple miles from my house.
It's time to let go of a wealthmanager from Canson who writes
us My wife and I are bothretired in our early 50s, living
abroad and paying 1% assetsunder management to a registered
investment advisor.
Wait, wait, wait.
SPEAKER_04 (15:16):
Did they say they were in Winter Haven?
SPEAKER_03 (15:18):
Yeah.
That is not living abroad.
SPEAKER_04 (15:20):
I mean, I know it feels like a whole nother
country.
SPEAKER_03 (15:26):
Uh so they're how's your Spanish?
Is it good?
Is it how you do it?
Malo.
Okay, so back to where I was,paying one percent to a RIA for
the past five years.
When I started asking deeperquestions about why specific
funds were chosen, including twowith expense ratios above one
(15:48):
percent.
Oh, holy moly.
My advisor deflected, neverresponded to those sections of
my emails, couldn't explain thefund selection criteria his firm
uses, and had no defined exitplan for any position.
When I pushed further, he toldme that if I continue asking
these kind of questions, hewould have to raise his fee.
(16:11):
When I first read it, I thought,come on.
Um my question.
SPEAKER_04 (16:17):
If I have to actually work for you, I'm gonna
charge you more.
SPEAKER_03 (16:20):
A lot more.
Um my question.
How common is this behavioramong financial advisors?
And at what point doesdeflecting a client's legitimate
investment questions cross theline from a communication style
into a breach of fiduciary duty?
Uh he's he's there.
I do at 1% plus 1%?
SPEAKER_04 (16:40):
1% plus 1%, he's definitely there.
And and the and the deflectioncracks me up.
A good advisor should be notjust eager, but happy.
And and and and know exactly whythose the the they recommend the
products they recommend.
Why were you doing this for goshsake?
(17:04):
I I could I could do it withevery single product Apella
suggests.
I could give you a perfectrationale for every one of them.
But the funny thing is, is thatall of the ETFs we suggest in in
aggregate are are gonna cost youlike less than 30 basis points.
No, it's not in a portfolio,it's more like 18.
(17:27):
Yeah, but I mean, low.
I mean, but yeah, if you're allequity, it could be a little
higher.
SPEAKER_03 (17:32):
But not much higher.
Not much.
SPEAKER_04 (17:34):
No, this is this is a bad advisor.
Well, no, this is a bad advisor.
There's a reason for that.
SPEAKER_03 (17:43):
Yeah, and saying they're gonna raise their fee if
you keep asking me questions.
You got another question.
SPEAKER_04 (17:48):
That's no.
I would say you don't answer myquestion, you're fired.
unknown (17:53):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_04 (17:54):
Don't you and my man?
Don't you dare threaten me.
That's what that I would beindignant.
SPEAKER_03 (18:03):
And uh by the way, Canson, there's better advisors
than that in Winter Park.
SPEAKER_04 (18:07):
Not in Winter Haven.
Winter Haven isn't.
Winter Park, yes.
In Winter Park, yes.
Not in Winter Haven.
You don't get the difference.
I don't know.
Winter Park is a veryhighfalutin area.
SPEAKER_03 (18:20):
And Winter Haven is not, then I take it.
SPEAKER_04 (18:22):
Winter Haven is a little more rural.
SPEAKER_03 (18:26):
You're gonna know this better than I am.
SPEAKER_04 (18:28):
Winter Haven is where Legoland is.
SPEAKER_03 (18:31):
I kind of like Legos.
SPEAKER_04 (18:33):
It's the yeah, but it's the secondary theme park.
Peppa Pig Land is down there.
unknown (18:37):
Peppa Pig Land.
SPEAKER_03 (18:38):
Well, I never missed that when I'm in Florida.
So uh okay.
You don't know what to do.
That that's a that's animmediate fire and find a new
advisor.
SPEAKER_04 (18:46):
I'm done.
I am I am so done with thisadvisor.
Done.
Done.
Goodbye, advisor.
SPEAKER_03 (18:51):
Very strange.
Lucas from Charlotte, NorthCarolina writes Hi, Don and Tom.
I was calling to get your takeon other relevant roles in the
financial planning industryother than someone who deals
with investment planning orretirement planning, like a CFP
or chartered financialconsultant or analyst.
I've heard of other tracks thatinclude financial counseling,
(19:13):
uh, getting your AFC orsomething like financial
coaching.
Curious on your thoughts of howthese operate in the industry,
not necessarily from acompensation perspective, but
maybe how you have interactedwith some of these professionals
in the past.
I've been kicking around theidea of getting into the
financial services industry as acareer pivot and think something
(19:33):
like this may be better suitedfor me than a CFP.
Thanks, love the show.
P.S.
I've tried there's a messageabout having trouble listening
to the podcast, which apparentlyyou managed to do.
But um, yeah, I mean, sort ofbeing a counselor rather than an
advisor, I guess, in some ways.
Um, there's all kinds, by theway, because the industry has
changed dramatically in the last20 years.
(19:54):
So there's all kinds ofdifferent advisors now.
And there's big firms that havedifferent layers, right?
They may have an advisor that isdesigned to be the rainmaker in
some way, bringing the money in,somebody who's gonna manage the
very inside baseball term.
Yeah, that is kind of so uhsorry, pardon me.
They're gonna they're bringingon new clients.
There might be an advisor thatdoes the legwork on all that and
(20:16):
is the daily contact.
Um, and there's places that havesort of advisory roles that
aren't necessarily a CFP.
That they exist.
It's it's a smaller part of theindustry.
There's big firms that havethose kind of people on board.
SPEAKER_04 (20:30):
Okay, here's we run into a lot of potential issues
with this because of the waythis industry is regulated.
Technically, if you provide anykind of investing advice for a
fee, for any kind of a fee, youare required to register with
(20:54):
either your state regulators orwith the Securities and Exchange
Commission.
SPEAKER_03 (20:58):
Yeah, no argument there.
SPEAKER_04 (20:59):
You have to register as an investment advisor
representative.
That's right.
You have to.
You can hold if you holdyourself out to be some you
could do it and maybe never getcaught.
But technically, to accept a feefor financial advice that
involves investments in any way,shape, manner, or form
(21:24):
technically, you need to be anRIA or an IAR.
Trevor Burrus, Jr.
SPEAKER_03 (21:29):
Well, okay, or unless you're a broker dealer.
SPEAKER_04 (21:32):
But unless you're a broker dealer, but that's you
know that's that's not I seewhat I think this person's
getting at is that I don't wantto manage money.
I just want to provide advice.
SPEAKER_03 (21:43):
I don't think I'm getting more into the psychology
of it.
SPEAKER_04 (21:47):
Yeah, but I don't believe there's a huge demand
No, not huge.
For paid advice because you'vegot it's another level of it's
another layer of payment.
SPEAKER_03 (21:55):
I know major there's a major firm right across the
water that has people like thison Facebook.
SPEAKER_04 (22:00):
Absolutely.
Absolutely.
But but I I can I can assure youthat the people who are being
hired in these positions withthese big firms are uh are PhD
psychologists.
SPEAKER_03 (22:11):
Maybe.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_04 (22:13):
I mean they're not they're they're not just
somebody who has some prettygood ideas about this.
They they have advanced degreesin psychology of some sort.
SPEAKER_03 (22:21):
But my question to you, Lucas, would be the why of
it.
I mean, tell me, I'd have toknow more about what you're
trying to accomplish here.
Why would you have to do that?
SPEAKER_04 (22:29):
This would have been a good call for you to make.
SPEAKER_03 (22:31):
I knew I was gonna take the take the heat for this.
Yeah, because it it because itis it a numbers thing?
Look, I don't want to beinvolved in the numbers.
Well, most of the advisors, theyknow the numbers, but that's not
their daily, they're notmanaging the numbers.
Number two, you want to be justwriting plans?
There's people that, you know,we're just hiring a new
paraplanner now.
They're gonna sit around andwrite plans.
They're gonna work with theadvisors and write plans.
SPEAKER_04 (22:52):
Yeah, it depends on what side, but I'm hearing the I
want to be the touchy-feelyperson.
SPEAKER_03 (22:57):
Yeah.
And there's the touchy feel.
SPEAKER_04 (23:00):
The touchy-feely people in the industry these
days tend to be those whoestablish client relationships,
don't actually manage the money.
Uh they're the relationshippeople, and you gotta be one
heck of a people person, and ithelps I hate to say this, even
in a fiduciary relationship,because of the skill set that
(23:22):
this training brings, it helpsto be a good salesperson.
SPEAKER_03 (23:25):
Oh, yeah.
You that's the start, right?
You've got to be able to dealwith all kinds of things.
SPEAKER_04 (23:30):
Because good salespeople are really good with
people.
That's their skill set.
So um it just really depends onwhat you're looking for.
So uh this in the future, Tom,if you get one of these where
you go, I need to ask himanother question.
That's the phone call.
SPEAKER_03 (23:49):
Lucas, can I get you on the phone right now?
Would that be possible?
Can you ring me up?
SPEAKER_04 (23:52):
Yeah, I I I but I'm I'm reading between the lines.
I don't it doesn't sound likehe's we get we get two kinds of
people generally uh asking aboutworking in this industry.
The majority are numbercrunchers, they're data fiends.
SPEAKER_03 (24:08):
That's right.
SPEAKER_04 (24:08):
They love numbers, they love data, they love they
would be great at buildingportfolios.
SPEAKER_03 (24:14):
That's right.
And those people exist in ourbuilding.
SPEAKER_04 (24:17):
Particularly great at building relationships.
SPEAKER_03 (24:20):
And those jobs exist too.
They're different, they'redifferent than being in advice.
SPEAKER_04 (24:24):
And we're seeing uh a bifurcation or a trifurcation
of jobs a little bit in theindustry, where you're seeing
now the planners, theparaplanners, the people who do
the planning work.
You see the uh the relationshippeople in the industry.
This is where Tom is reallygood.
This is really this is Tom'sskill set.
My skill set was killing trees.
(24:45):
It's not data, it's not datacrunching.
You are not the guy who sitsthere with spreadsheets.
I don't know that you even knowhow to use a spreadsheet.
SPEAKER_03 (24:54):
Oh, I do.
I have I just updated mine forthe end of the uh first half of
the year.
SPEAKER_04 (25:00):
Okay, but could you do like a really complex one?
SPEAKER_03 (25:03):
No.
No, I don't know.
You mean like 2% of this isthree percent of this?
SPEAKER_04 (25:06):
Yeah, exactly.
No, no, no.
Couldn't do that.
You can do it as a layout tool.
Which is one of the things Ihate about the way we use
spreadsheets in this world.
People use spreadsheets aspresentation layout tools.
Yeah, absolutely.
It's like, no, that's not whatthey're for.
Just because you can do itdoesn't mean you should.
(25:30):
Okay?
Remember?
Different tools for differentjobs.
Thank you.
unknown (25:38):
All right.
SPEAKER_04 (25:38):
I think that's a good question.
Got questions?
Go to talkingrealmoney.com.
It's that's it.
Got questions?
Go to talkingrealmoney.com.
Got bigger questions where you'dlike to sit down with somebody
like a personable Tom person whodoesn't crunch numbers well.
He'll get someone else to crunchthe numbers, trust me.
SPEAKER_03 (25:56):
Oh, yeah.
SPEAKER_04 (25:56):
Before the meeting.
I got people they like to say.
He has people who do this forhim.
Uh you just go totalkingrealmoney.com and you
say, you know, I'd like to meetwith an advisor, but don't
charge me anything, and I don'twant any high-pressure sales
pitch.
You don't even have to say that.
It's implied.
That is not gonna happen.
Got it?
Good.
TalkingRealMoney.com, it's theplace to go.
Send in those questions.
(26:18):
It's summer.
Always the lighter season forquestions.
Uh and uh oh, by the way, Ithink this is airing like right
about the time Tom's onvacation.
So thank God.
Cut him some slack.
I think yeah, I think you'regone already.
SPEAKER_03 (26:34):
I'm gonna keep reading them on the show.
SPEAKER_04 (26:36):
Even while we're recording this, I think you're
gone.
SPEAKER_03 (26:39):
That's a good point.
He's already out.
SPEAKER_04 (26:42):
He's already gone.
Thanks for listening.
We appreciate you.
Please tell friends,acquaintances, neighbors people
you don't even like that much,because come on, everybody needs
to be talking real money.
SPEAKER_02 (26:54):
The opinions and views expressed on this podcast
were current on the daterecorded.
Opinions, estimates, forecasts,and statements of financial
market trends that are based oncurrent market conditions
constitute our judgment and aresubject to change without
notice, including anyforward-looking estimates or
statements which are based oncertain expectations and
assumptions.
SPEAKER_01 (27:08):
Although information and opinions given have been
obtained from or based onsources believed to be reliable,
no warranty or representation ismade as to their correctness,
completeness, or accuracy.
SPEAKER_02 (27:17):
Information presented on the podcast is not
personalized investment advicefrom Apello Wealth.
The views and strategiesdescribed may not be suitable
for everyone.
This podcast does not identifyall the risks, direct or
indirect, or otherconsiderations which might be
material to you when enteringany financial transaction.
Past performance does notguarantee future results, and
profitable results cannot beguaranteed.
We hope you realize that theinformation provided on Talking
Real Money is for informational,educational, and hopefully
(27:39):
enjoyable purposes only.
The podcast is not trying to getyou to buy or sell any financial
products or securities.
Instead, the program is providedas a public service by Appello
Wealth, a fee-only registeredinvestment advisor.
SPEAKER_01 (27:50):
See Appellow's ADB to A on our website for
information regardingAppellate's fees and services.
SPEAKER_02 (27:55):
Appellate Capital, LLC, DBA Appello Wealth, is an
investment advisory firmregistered with the Securities
and Exchange Commission.
The firm only transacts businessin the states where it is
properly registered, or excludedor exempt from registration
requirement.
Registration with the SEC or anyState Securities Authority does
not imply a certain level ofskill or training.
Appello does not provide tax orlegal advice, and nothing either
stated or implied here should beinferred as providing such
(28:16):
advice.
Thanks for listening, and pleasevisit talkingrealmoney.com for
more information and importantdisclosure related to
performance of any specificindex or fund quoted in this
podcast.
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