09-25-2024 Primetime - Flipbook - Page 19
A Special Advertising Section of Baltimore Sun Media Group | Wednesday, September 25, 2024
Finding a financial advisor,
continued from page 18
for one of the online brokerage firms,
the firm usually has a statement about
how it works with clients, their responsibilities and yours.
After much searching, there are two
certifications that confer fiduciary. One
is the American Bankers Association’s
Certified Trust and Fiduciary Advisor.
“The CTFA certification demonstrates
your expertise in the trust and financial
advisor field while recognizing the growing client relationship skills necessary
to be a successful wealth manager,”
according to the ABA. The certification
from the ABA includes an ethics code to
which the applicant must agree, and the
word “fiduciary” is part of the certification. Though banks do offer financial
services, you have to decide if that’s
what you are seeking. Or do you want a
brokerage, a firm that can buy and sell
various securities for you? Only you can
answer that question.
The American College of Financial
Services (www.theamericancollege.
edu) has partnered with the National
Association of Certified Financial
Fiduciaries (NACFF) certification program, so the NACFF has two places
that offer its certification. After reading
the requisite classes and fees, it may
or may not be worth attaining. The
concern is that the NACFF is “for profit”
and has far less acceptance, especially
when compared to the CFP or the CFA
(Chartered Financial Analyst) conferred
by FINRA.
Choosing a Financial Advisor
Eric Shadoff, CFP, RBC Wealth
Management (www.ericshadoff.com),
based in Hunt Valley, Maryland, has
been a financial advisor for 15 years.
In 2016, Shadoff completed the
required coursework and received his
Certified Financial Planner certificate.
He was also selected to be a member
of the firm’s Senior Consulting Group,
an exclusive company designation
reserved for financial advisors who have
achieved a high level of success in
building consultative wealth management businesses.
Today, Shadoff is a senior portfolio
manager of RBC Wealth Management’s
Portfolio Focus Group, the most highly
regarded level of portfolio manager rec-
ognition at RBC.
“Every life goal starts with a financial
plan,” says Shadoff, “and there are two
critical areas you take into consideration when constructing a portfolio to
reach your goals and have a successful
plan. First is a time horizon – how much
time you have to implement and reach
your goals and objectives. Next is risk
tolerance – how much fluctuation in
the value of your investments are you
prepared to accept in exchange for
the potential to achieve higher returns?
Everyone’s situation is slightly different, as are their answers to those two
questions.
“I help my clients remove the emotional aspect from investing, especially
during periods of market volatility. When
the markets experience increased turbulence, it’s natural for investors to feel
anxious and consider making impulsive
decisions. However, these decisions
can often be detrimental to long-term
investment performance and goals. My
goal is to provide objective guidance,
ensuring that your investment strategy
remains focused and aligned with your
overall financial plan, even in uncertain
times.”
Shadoff explains, “As your advisor,
my compensation is connected with
the value of your assets under management. This ensures that our interests are
closely aligned, and I am motivated to
help you grow and protect your wealth.
Every decision we make together supports your overall life goals. Very often,
we also work together with your tax
preparer and attorney to make the best
decisions based on your specific situation.”
When you create a portfolio, it has
to include the right mixture of stocks,
bonds, alternatives and cash, again,
based on the client’s risk tolerance. The
other part of a portfolio is the financial
plan:
• «Life goals: retirement age; what
retirement will look like, how and
where you will live.
• «Sources of income: before and
after retirement.
• «Budget: living expenses, travel,
savings.
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