Young people see IFAs as ‘cold and bureaucratic’

FSAs Fault

What do you expect from young people who have better things to spend their money on instead of fees for IFAs. Hence RDR will disenfranchise them even more.

Posted by: Incompetent Regulators Awards Team

Not Surprising At All

I do not really have time to write all that I might on this matter but 1. Is it surprising when this industry represents the young with a photo of four people who were hardly young in c 1980 when the pic was taken 2. Is it surprising if they find it overly bureaucratic when a tree has to be felled to provide compliant advice when they want an ISA and a forest when they want a pension 3. Is it surprising they find it untrustworthy when for well over ten years the media have been feeding them that line verbatim. As we know the young are perciptable to such brainwashing. I have just been given a cup cake from an IFA colleague who has just this afternoon been given a tray of cupcakes by a very satisfied client in her 40s who could not be happier with her investment returns. Such stories though are not relayed to the young. Not sexy enough! The cup cake was delicious mind you.

Posted by: Geoff Pollock

Perception of IFA's

As the average age of the IFA community is believed to be 50+ I'm not surprised that the 16-24 generation find IFA's cold and bureaucratic - but I suggest that it's the regulatory requirements of the industry that create this impression. In my role as an IFA specialising in the Mortgage Market I don't find that my clients have this impression of me - perhaps it's because a mortgage is required for a tangiable asset, whilst a pension is a life-time away when you have immediate issues to resolve and student loans to repay?

Posted by: John Morgan

Cupcakes?....

I hope you have declared the cupcakes to the FSA ....

Posted by: Rob

16-24

I don,t have any clients in this age bracket, thank goodness. 16-24 year olds know it all and do not accept any advice even from parents but move on 30-40 years and how many of them will be bleating about poverty in retirement thankfully I will be long gone by then

Posted by: Duncan Philp

More Tosh

It never ceases to amaze me that Quangos and self-appointed experts churn out this drivel. Even more amazing that anyone would buy it or take any notice. Hasn’t it occurred that anyone under the age of 30 hasn’t got any money anyway (there are a very few exceptions) so why would we even take any notice? Why even ask a 16 year old? Most youngsters under 30 (with any intelligence) have been lumbered by or Governments with massive debts from their education. Who amongst us can honestly say that we engaged with finance before 30? We were too busy with other (more enjoyable?) pursuits and anyway considered we were invincible. The best thing that one can do with this report is tear it up into squares and hang it from a nail in the privy.

Posted by: Harry Katz

Young people see IFAs as cold and bureaucratic

what the hell is the Interbnational Longevity Centre - another quango stuffed full of jobsworths and 'experts' ? In any case, what a totally pointless survey - who paid for this drivel to be produced ?

Posted by: Bill Wells

The old days

It wasn't cold and bureaucratic pre 1986 I wounder what happened in that year that started us on the track to the current position. Whilst I agree with the bulk of the RDR requirements the RED TAPE must be simplified to give these kids a chance of understanding what they need to do before they get to my age. grumpy old man!

Posted by: David main

OMG

I look forward to the day that IFA online start to produce some positive industry reading. Constantly dragging IFA down. OMG just about covers another ridiculous article.

Posted by: Mike

Fact Find

I tend to agree with the posters above. Most younger people on good earnings have significant debt. The FF conversation will go, OK how much do you owe? OK pay that off first and then come back to me when you have some disposable income, but don't forget that if your employer offers an employer contribution to pensions, you'd probably be wise to direct what is needed to qualify for that to your pension and reduce debt repayment (provided teh rate is reasonable). OK what else, I want to but a house OK, that's mortgage advice. So of the issue abovce, what actually are an IFAs role (remembering that IFA is Investment advice). The fact there are still quite a lot of IFAs who have mortgage qualifications as well as may still advise on protection is not pertinent here. The headline would be more accurate if it referred to Your people fin ADVISER's... as most will probbaly not meet an IFA until early 30's and only need a transactional Mortgage or protection adviser in the early years. The rest about red tape is quire right, it is so much easier and the persons dealing appears so much less "cold and bureacratic" who is sorting out the lending to get you in to debt slavery.

Posted by: Nameless

To Mike

It aint all negative...http://www.ifaonline.co.uk/professional-adviser/feature/2023698/ifa

Posted by: SJS

Negative press - OMG

You had to go back as far as February!!

Posted by: Mike

What a surprise!!

In the days of the Man from the Pru advisers were respected by families and their children. They were part of the community who helped their clients with their finances. Now because of all the ridiculus rules and regulations by the powers to be we can not deal with clients in the relaxed way we used to. The FSA think all we are doing is trying to get as much commission from clients as possible and this through press coverage is what people now think. If we are thought to be cold and bueaucratic now, goodness knows how we will looked at after RDR or what it should be called CCF (commission called fees)

Posted by: Graham Nicholls

www

Young people usually come to my office having first done their homework on the net. Come RDR they will get advice (if they need advice after their research)as cheaply as possible. So I have news for all those fee based IFAs and supporters of RDR. If you think RDR is on your side clearing out commission based advisers, getting rid of competition and leaving the field open for you to exploit - think again. Come RDR you will disappear too...

Posted by: Ken Durkin

More in common than you think

Good to see the IFA community attempting to 'get down with the kids' and spell as badly as 16 - 24 year olds.

Posted by: Stephen Hoggarth

New Adviser Worried

I must say after reading the postings above (particularly Ken Derkin's) I feel slightly concerned about all the negativity surrounding the profession. "We'll all be wiped out etc.." I'm passing my examinations, working hard to become certified, and then read all this nonsense that people won't seek financial advise in the future from IFAs. Surely you are wrong? You must be. In the end it will be about how well you can communicate with the next generation of clients. Fortunately enough, we are a succesful family company running for 50 years, where there is positivity and optimism on the future, and I'm determined to continue it's legacy. Fortunately, I've heard some real success stories on how IFAs can change people's lives first hand, and provide advice that really matters to the people. That's what counts.

Posted by: Josef Nero

End of free market

People who think like Joseph need to step back and take a hard look at the way things will move if the commission ban is allowed to proceed to legislation. The majority of IFA firms WILL disappear in quite a short period of time. Four or five large financial supermarkets will emerge and take care customers from cradle to grave. Fee based advisers should realise that RDR is not about getting rid of their commission based competion. The banning of commission is a massive interference in the free market and it will have a cataclysmic effect on the financial services industry.

Posted by: Ken Durkin

mixed up kids

The youngsters are obviously confusing IFA with FSA -cold & bureaucratic

Posted by: afia

Shame on you

And once again IFAs respond with their customary defensiveness and blame shifting. The attitudes of Harry Katz and Duncan Philp beggar belief. Why should you bother talking to 16 - 24 year olds? Because, idiots, they are the investors of the future. My niece is 18 and understands the value of a pension, even if she only saves £20 a month it's a start and it's got her in the mindset of putting money by. £20 a month is a lot to her, but no doubt because it wouldn't generate any commission you wouldn't be interested... Thank god for attitudes like Josef Nero's - best of luck to you, I wish there were more like you in the industry as I think we'd do well.

Posted by: A Nonny Mouse

@Nonny Mouse

When you have run a profitable IFA business for over 20 years (15 of which as fee based) then perhaps your indignation might be taken seriously. (And when you are prepared to shed your anonymity). Mt attitude is pragmatic. Most of the youngsters I come across have large debts from University – (perhaps your niece didn’t qualify?). I would have thought it made more sense paying down debt than paying into a pension. At least you don’t pay interest and make the banks richer. I too have nieces and nephews – all with Russell University degrees all now late 30’s early 40’s. More than half have paid off their mortgage and the remainder have (by current standards) a very modest and reducing one. They also now pay serious money into pensions and investments. If you were concerned with pensions, investment and savings when you were under 30 weren’t you a goody two shoes!

Posted by: Harry Katz

"Fee Based Advisers"?

In my earlier posts on this thread I should have mentioned that the concept of a "fee-based adviser" is something we have not experienced to date. IFAs who call themselves "fee-based" are not fee based at all. They rely on the existence of the commission model so that they can rebate commission or compare their charges with commission based advice. Astute investors obviously realise that "fee-based" is actually "less commission charged". What else could it be? Once payments of commission become illegal it will be much easier to compare cost of advice. Anyone who understands how markets work will realise that the downward pressure on charges will clear out IFAs whether they see themselves now as "fee-based" or commission based. Advice will get cheaper The quality will deteriorate. And, as I said earlier, eventually, IFAs as we know them will disappear.

Posted by: Ken Durkin

Oh really

Where do you drag these obtuse and incorrect assertions up from. The unfortunate thing is that people give them credence. All I can state, catagorically, is that 40 years experience and third generation clients (aged 24 to 35) prove the assertions to be totally fatuous. Give me strength.

Posted by: Terence O'Halloran

@ Ken Durkin

Evidently you live in your own world. How would you then account for a fee charged when there is no product at the end of the process? Not all of us take such a downbeat view because over the years we have seen that there are clients who do value our services and do understand how we add value and are willing to pay the fee. I guess it depends on which waters you chose to trawl. It seems evident (if your argument is extrapolated) that there are advisers who are not at all confident of their own value. May be they have a point? (From the REAL Harry, who always signs either Harry Katz or Norwest)

Posted by: Harry Katz

"Dear Disillusioned"

Did the interviewer enquire who they thought created the beurocracy an IFA works through? Or was it assumed the mountain of paperwork created in the advice process was just for fun? These comments from the generation who mainly still require financial assistance well beyond an age that their parents required help and from parents whom if they hadn't had financial advice would not be in a position to assist!

Posted by: Jo