# How to find a 'Good' IFA



## Phaeton (3 Apr 2021)

Aged 60, very little pension, should work for another 5 years (unfortunately), but currently earning more than I have before, but feel I might be missing out on savings/pensions etc. SO the logical thing is to go see an IFA, but as they seem to charge £450 for their advice, but how do I know what they advise is correct & worth the £450, yes I know I'm a tight barstool, but I have had to scrimp & save to get by & even now £450 is a LOT of money to me. How do I find a good one, that's more interested in making me more money then themselves.


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## alicat (3 Apr 2021)

Probably not what you want to hear; however, if £450 is a lot of money to you you can't afford an IFA. You'd be better off spending some time educating yourself on the MoneySavingExpert and similar forums.


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## Phaeton (3 Apr 2021)

I know it shouldn't but money bores me rigid, I just can't get any enthusiasm to do the investigation.


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## Cycleops (3 Apr 2021)

The impetus to do the investigation is with only a state pension just five years off should be that it's really not by itself enough to get by on, unless you plan on working.
Wouldn't have thought a IFA would be able to tell you much more than you can find out by doing a bit of digging.
This might help you:
https://www.money.co.uk/pensions/is-it-ever-too-late-to-start-a-pension.htm


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## alicat (3 Apr 2021)

^^^ wot Cyclops said. What are you going to live on when you decide/have to stop working?


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## ColinJ (3 Apr 2021)

Cycleops said:


> The impetus to do the investigation is *with only a state pension *just five years off should be that *it's really not by itself enough to get by on*, unless you plan on working.


That's a bit of a generalisation! It depends on housing costs, but [in the UK] as long as you don't have a mortgage or your rent does not exceed the housing benefit level by too much, then state pension + housing benefit + council tax benefit IS probably enough to get by on. It looks like I will end up on £13-14k p.a. but my costs will only be about £10k p.a.

*THIS* calculator is very easy to use and gives a good idea of what income level to expect.


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## Sharky (3 Apr 2021)

Are you paying into your works pension? Are you doing the max each month. Talk with your payroll dept and discuss AVC's etc.

If close to retirement, you don't want to invest in high volatile shares etc. Savings need to be secure ,although interest rates won't be very high.


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## Pale Rider (3 Apr 2021)

Phaeton said:


> Aged 60, very little pension, should work for another 5 years (unfortunately), but currently earning more than I have before, but feel I might be missing out on savings/pensions etc. SO the logical thing is to go see an IFA, but as they seem to charge £450 for their advice, but how do I know what they advise is correct & worth the £450, yes I know I'm a tight barstool, but I have had to scrimp & save to get by & even now £450 is a LOT of money to me. How do I find a good one, that's more interested in making me more money then themselves.



Unless your affairs are very complicated, I doubt you would get much benefit from a financial adviser.

In terms of pensions, at 60 that die is already cast.

Savings are next to no interest at the moment, and it's unlikely you will want to bet your money on anything more risky.

Rather than a 'professional' adviser, do you have a friend or colleague who you judge to be good with money?

My brother is a retired commercial bank manager.

He has no professional expertise in personal finance, but his general feel for money is more than adequate to advise me on my modest personal exchequer.


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## Cycleops (3 Apr 2021)

ColinJ said:


> That's a bit of a generalisation! It depends on housing costs, but [in the UK] as long as you don't have a mortgage or your rent does not exceed the housing benefit level by too much, then state pension + housing benefit + council tax benefit IS probably enough to get by on. It looks like I will end up on £13-14k p.a. but my costs will only be about £10k p.a.


Maybe it is but on your calculations of £3-4k pa to live on I'd say £330 a month is cutting it rather fine especially if you intend running a car


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## ColinJ (3 Apr 2021)

Cycleops said:


> Maybe it is but on your calculations of £3-4k pa to live on I'd say £330 a month is cutting it rather fine especially if you intend running a car


The £10k p.a. is to live on - the £3-4k p.a. will be available for spending on bikes, holidays etc. but definitely no car! Once you bring cars into it, that's a different matter. For me, it is walk, cycle, or use my railcard on the trains to get 1/3 off fares.


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## PaulB (5 May 2021)

Ideally, you should have found an IFA before now. I regret leaving it as late as I did but I did my research and found the one I'm extremely happy with more than ten years ago. The difference between leaving my various pensions and savings where they were and where they are now are extraordinary and have paid for the investment I made in my IFA and the company he works with many, many times over. I can access my daily changes but choose not to and wait for the six-monthly updates and even during the worst of the fears from the pandemic days, I've never been less than very pleased as to the results. I have 41 more 'paydays' - before my definite retirement and intend to get by on as little as I can in that time to build up as much as possible for the no-working days beyond that.


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## shep (5 May 2021)

Pension contributions are tax ifficient, I'm sure you're aware of this already, so if whoever you work for contribute more depending on what you do this is worth looking into. My company will match my contributions up to 10% of my salary so I 'max out' as its all pre tax. Is this something that's available to you?


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## Mattk50 (5 Jul 2021)

On the assumption you have little savings then at 60 then it sounds like you won't be paying much tax in retirement so you should be putting it all in the pension scheme to get the tax relief especially if your employer is matching your contributions?


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## yello (5 Jul 2021)

alicat said:


> if £450 is a lot of money to you you can't afford an IFA.



Almost a catch 22 isn't it? I've come to the conclusion that with my half bag of peanuts it'd cost me more for advice than that advice would save/earn. So I'm sailing knowingly off the edge of world....

...nah, not really, but definitely having to trust my own judgement. Unfortunately, like @Phaeton, I have very limited interest/motivation in matters of finance. I've spoken to IFAs in the past, and people knowledgeable (I think) in that area, but they speak a different language. I find myself becoming quickly confused/bored/disinterested and wanting to be anywhere else. I've made sure my state pension is to the max (voluntary contributions), I do my own tax returns and am efficient in running my own finances but beyond that, I'm pretty clueless.

In all seriousness, I think it's a problem in this day and age. We are supposed to be financially savvy, and it's our _fault_ if we're not and we lose out financially. If we don't know then we are 'advised' to take advice. I sometimes read finance/money advice columns and see the catch-all advice of 'contact a financial advisor' time and again. It's almost a built in admission that it's all too complex for the ordinary person. Most people don't want to give a shoot about such stuff and neither should they be expected to. 

Sorry, on my soap-box a wee bit there!


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## Mattk50 (5 Jul 2021)

I don't think it's complicated. It's complicated because of all the red tape, spoken as an Accountant lol! You raise a good point. Make sure your 'stamp' is fully paid up!


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## Faratid (5 Jul 2021)

A 'good' IFA is a contradiction in terms.
Even a free IFA will be looking to sell you a product that will cost you money.
You have, will have very little money to live on, so don't spend it financial advisers, then you'll have more. 
Investments, savings etc., are a total fantasy for anyone on a low income, and will make no difference.
Do you own a house? 
The only thing you should be investigating, at no cost, is how to reduce expenditure such as utility bills, rent/mortgage, credit cards/loans. And make sure you're getting all the benefits you're entitled to. I recommend a chat with Citizens Advice.


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## yello (5 Jul 2021)

Mattk50 said:


> Make sure your 'stamp' is fully paid up!



I was self-employed for years so I used to make sure I was paid up. Believe or not, I actually used to enjoy it - call it anal retentiveness. I have a memory of going into the post office to do it but I might be getting confused with the TV licence! Either way, there was something satisfying about it. It took me back to my childhood days and the savings account passbook that I used when I paid in my paper round money! There was something very reassuring about seeing the stamps on the card.


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## yello (5 Jul 2021)

Faratid said:


> A 'good' IFA is a contradiction in terms. Even a free IFA will be looking to sell you a product that will cost you money.



Harsh... but I am, as a general principle, inclined to agree.

I'm sure there are good ones out there (or at least, some better than others, and can be trusted) I guess you have to appreciate that they are obviously in the game to make a living for themselves, and take that into account. You are their income - but if their advice can make your situation better somehow then that might be a cost you're prepared to pay. It might not be simply about earning you something, or reducing costs, it'd could be a restructuring that's to your advantage. 

But yes, if you've got sod all then there's obviously less for them to work with. And more chance that you'll walk out with lighter pockets. 

That's what kind of bugs me about the general 'get financial advice' advice that's so often splashed about. It's glib and easy to say but isn't necessarily applicable. Cynically, I might say that it serves the industry more than the individual.


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## PaulB (17 Oct 2021)

Faratid said:


> A 'good' IFA is a contradiction in terms.
> Even a free IFA will be looking to sell you a product that will cost you money.
> You have, will have very little money to live on, so don't spend it financial advisers, then you'll have more.
> Investments, savings etc., are a total fantasy for anyone on a low income, and will make no difference.
> ...


Offering advice, from that perspective, is a very big contradiction in terms.

You take advice from possibly the two most trusted names in financial matters to the general public - Martin Lewis or Paul Lewis - and what's the priority they'll strongly advise in a situation like this? Get yourself an IFA! I've found in my own way that my only mistake in being sceptical about IFAs was that I didn't get one ten years sooner. I can't advise this strongly enough to my younger colleagues and was even given a slot to talk about this very subject at one of our team meetings. To their financial cost, not one of them followed my strong advice. More fool them.


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## ebikeerwidnes (17 Oct 2021)

WHen my Dad died I ended up with some money - but no real idea how to invest it
I knew he had used an IFA but they were miles away from where I lived so I just looked on the WWW for someone local

Seems like I got a bit lucky and found one that keeps things reasonably simple.
However, my wife is looking toinvest the money from her Mum's will now - and she is very confused. It is weird to me how some people can have very responsible jobs dealing with complicated subject (like my wife) but when it comes to their own money they can't function at the same level.

I have even seen intelligent people with degrees and all sorts - but when it comes to money they can;t cope with 2+2!
When I worked in a big business I saw project leaders running major large projects - but couldn;t cope with the team's travel expenses because it was real money - when the computer equipment they wanted costloads more which was OK because I dealt with all that!


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## Gunk (17 Oct 2021)

The St James’s Place network of IFA’s is pretty good, most are very experienced and work off recommendations.


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## yello (17 Oct 2021)

ebikeerwidnes said:


> It is weird to me how some people can have very responsible jobs dealing with complicated subject (like my wife) but when it comes to their own money they can't function at the same level.



I am one such person. 

In my defence, I say that I just don't see the world in that way (if that makes sense) Simple banking and saving, yes, I can get my head around but the more complicated stuff.... I just don't speak that language. Even the technicalities of my own state pension bamboozle me. I just know what I've qualified for and am entitled to (at least, _I think_ I get that) The whys and wherefores of it leave me cold.

The common language and jargon of IFAs, and financiers generally, is simply a foreign language to me. I have zero natural aptitude (nor interest tbh) for understanding it.

Yes, maybe I could be 'better off' by seeking financial advice but I figure I'm not so badly off now. And besides, I just don't/can't play that game. Even if it is to my detriment in the judgement of some people. I can live with that.


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## mikeIow (5 Nov 2021)

Gunk said:


> The St James’s Place network of IFA’s is pretty good, most are very experienced and work off recommendations.


Just came across this thread. 
SJP are one of the most lambasted of all financial advisors. My very strong advice would be to avoid them at all costs (the costs would all be yours 😉)

You say their “network of IFA’s is pretty good”.
Not sure if you use them, but if you do, and they have given you the impression their are IFAs, then I’m sorry to say you’ve been duped.
They are most certainly *NOT *IFAs: they only sell their own products, at cost, & regularly come very low on any comparisons 🤦‍♂️
The I in IFA stands for Independent: the *only* choices for getting advice should be IFA or DIY 😉

You are locked in with a “rolling 6 year” period - ie, if you paid a premium to them last month, it will still cost you a chunk of money to transfer out within the next 6 years. 
Countless threads on MSE and other forums about this: example here on MSE (others available, just search there), or here on Pistonheads.

Yes, you may get a very personable ‘advisor’ who buys you a lovely lunch once a year, but make no mistake, they are amongst the worst of advisors. I have a pal who uses one, and refused to contemplate that he might have fallen under their spell: he likes that cosy lunch (pre Covid), & continues to bury his head in the financial sand: after a couple of ‘interesting’ conversations, I avoid the topic now: it’s his money to throw away 🤷‍♂️
If SJP talk about wealth management, it is not your wealth they are focussed on 😜
The Sunday Times have been on their case for some time, exposing their tricks and shenanigans: thread here to read more (paywall, but you get the gist).

If you are too disinterested in your own finances to ‘take control’, & I do get that some people aren’t, then either find an *Independent* Financial Advisor, or a friend who is clearly good with their money to give you pointers (often tricky: Brits hate talking about our money!).


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## simongt (25 Apr 2022)

And of course, it's 'financial ADVICE'; if an IFA's advice goes base over apex, you're the only one who will lose, not them. With the current investment and interest rates being what they are, unless you are one of the lucky few with a shedload of cash invested, you will be taking a risk with your future whatever decision you make. I'm looking into what to do with two frozen company pensions right now; annuitie/s or drawdown pension are being suggested by two different IFA's who will only charge as and when I decide to give them the pleasure of playing about with my hard earned cash.  My most important criteria is that the GLW, being 12 years younger that me, is provided for when I pop my clogs, something that my father and his father failed to do for their widows.


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## PaulSB (29 Apr 2022)

simongt said:


> And of course, it's 'financial ADVICE'; if an IFA's advice goes base over apex, you're the only one who will lose, not them. *With the current investment and interest rates being what they are*, unless you are one of the lucky few with a shedload of cash invested, *you will be taking a risk with your future whatever decision you make*. I'm looking into what to do with two frozen company pensions right now; annuitie/s or drawdown pension are being suggested by two different IFA's who will only charge as and when I decide to give them the pleasure of playing about with my hard earned cash.  My most important criteria is that the GLW, being 12 years younger that me, is provided for when I pop my clogs, something that my father and his father failed to do for their widows.



Which is precisely why one needs a good IFA who will give sound advice which can and often does protect the client. I've been with the same IFA for nearly 20 years. In that time we've become good friends and I would always trust her judgement on both financial and other matters. She has certainly helped us achieve a decent retirement and I'm far from wealthy. For example the funds we are in have actually grown during the last few months turbulence.

My advice would be drawdown for maximum flexibility. Once you have an annuity you're stuck with it.


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## stephec (2 May 2022)

PaulSB said:


> Which is precisely why one needs a good IFA who will give sound advice which can and often does protect the client. I've been with the same IFA for nearly 20 years. In that time we've become good friends and I would always trust her judgement on both financial and other matters. She has certainly helped us achieve a decent retirement and I'm far from wealthy. For example the funds we are in have actually grown during the last few months turbulence.
> 
> My advice would be drawdown for maximum flexibility. Once you have an annuity you're stuck with it.



If you don't mind me asking would you be willing to let me know who she is please as you're not too far up the road from me?


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## CharlesF (2 May 2022)

PaulSB said:


> Which is precisely why one needs a good IFA who will give sound advice which can and often does protect the client. I've been with the same IFA for nearly 20 years. In that time we've become good friends and I would always trust her judgement on both financial and other matters. She has certainly helped us achieve a decent retirement and I'm far from wealthy. For example the funds we are in have actually grown during the last few months turbulence.
> 
> My advice would be drawdown for maximum flexibility. Once you have an annuity you're stuck with it.



Please can you give some ideas on how to discover a "Good IFA". What questions to ask, what to look for, what to avoid. That will be a big help as I'm embarking on finding myself an IFA.


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## alicat (2 May 2022)

^^^^ Try the question 'how can you guarantee that the funds you advise me to invest in will deliver a better return after deduction of your fees than if I invest directly in a low-cost mutual fund like Vantage LifeStrategy?'

EDIT - it's _Vanguard _LifeStrategy. Thanks to @IaninSheffield for pointing that out.


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## mikeIow (3 May 2022)

PaulB said:


> Offering advice, from that perspective, is a very big contradiction in terms.
> 
> You take advice from possibly the two most trusted names in financial matters to the general public - Martin Lewis or Paul Lewis - and what's the priority they'll strongly advise in a situation like this? Get yourself an IFA! I've found in my own way that my only mistake in being sceptical about IFAs was that I didn't get one ten years sooner. I can't advise this strongly enough to my younger colleagues and was even given a slot to talk about this very subject at one of our team meetings. To their financial cost, not one of them followed my strong advice. More fool them.



Note that those smart gentlemen will also caution strongly against non-Independant FAs. 
Earlier in the thread someone suggested SJP (St James Place) were IFAs - they very much are *not* (as I said before), and only today Paul Lewis sent this tweet, essentially a horror story with SJP at the heart 😱

It reads like you feel getting an IFA is the only option. It isn’t. 

Decent IFAs are hard to find…..but people do need to invest, & starting with their work pension scheme plus perhaps ISA &/or LISA (depending where they are in life) doesn’t need an IFA. Spending a little time understanding finances is time well spent. Most people have financial situations that are not complicated enough to require an IFA, I would suggest.
Vanguard LifeStrategy for the ISA piece is an example of an investment that is low cost and simple to understand. Pick a risk level, but beware being too cautious: young people investing for longer term should really go more equity (LS80 or 100 level of thing). 
Other low cost world trackers are also good.


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## Once a Wheeler (3 May 2022)

I found these people helpful. An initial meeting cost me nothing and I did not feel pressured into anything. That was ten years ago and in the end I decided to do my own thing but it was a useful step in sorting out my arrangements.

Keep that holiday money and any unused cash in Premium Bonds. With less than £10k you will probably not win anything; but on the other hand you could win a million, so worth the effort as running an online Premium Bond account is really easy and you cannot lose your cash apart from a miniscule amount of theoretical interest.

Do not forget your innate talents: is there a book you want to write? is there a song you want to sing? do you find cooking fun and like making up recipes? Do people turn to you for advice on any particular thing? If so, there may be some money-making activity in that area. Above all, keep doing things that keep the flame of hope alight — that is what powers a life at any age.

Added afterthought: Could you continue to work for a few years? If so, you can defer your state pension and it will increase by about 5% for every year you defer. So if you deferred till age 70, you would receive 125% of your basic state pension entitlement and subsequent annual increases would be calculated from that higher base, so it is a very good deal if you can work a few years extra. Click here for the basics on deferral.


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## IaninSheffield (3 May 2022)

alicat said:


> directly in a low-cost mutual fund like Vantage LifeStrategy


'Vanguard' Lifestrategy?


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## PaulSB (3 May 2022)

CharlesF said:


> Please can you give some ideas on how to discover a "Good IFA". What questions to ask, what to look for, what to avoid. That will be a big help as I'm embarking on finding myself an IFA.



Phew, a really hard question and I may not be the best person to ask. My FA's father sold us an endowment along with arranging a mortgage and my first pension starting around 40 years ago. Some years later my FA had joined the business and we developed a good relationship, my answer is based on my experience with a single individual and mirrors that person's approach. It has worked for me but I doubt I would ever have thought of these points initially.

So to attempt an answer for you:

Someone who shows a genuine interest in you and your family and takes time to understand your circumstances
Wishes to understand your long term goals, the stages in life at which you hope to achieve these aims
Appreciates your personal philosophy on savings, investments etc. and works with you on these without pressuring you to take unacceptable risk
Offers clear lifetime financial forecasting using a full range of "what ifs." My FA has software in which every financial aspect of my life can be changed singly or in combination to show the projected short and long term outcome of any choice we may make. This gives a very clear picture of the level of spending we can enjoy now retired, when I worked it was used to forecast and determine the actions, savings, investments we could make to achieve our goals
Is clear and open over advisor remuneration
Has access to a range of services beyond investment advice
Doesn't have a hard sell approach
Can demonstrate a track record and provide references
Ultimately you have to ask yourself one question. Do I, can I trust this person?


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## CharlesF (3 May 2022)

@PaulSB thanks very much, this is a concise list, and much better than what I had discovered on the web. I will definitely use these points to focus on what any prospective IFA says and offers.


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## simongt (3 May 2022)

Had another email from an investment 'adviser' today asking yet again for my authority to release info from my pension providers. I drew his attention to the email I sent him four days ago telling him that as a potential cutomer, I'm calling the shots on timing and will respond to his 'request' in my own good time - !


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## Bonefish Blues (3 May 2022)

alicat said:


> ^^^^ Try the question 'how can you guarantee that the funds you advise me to invest in will deliver a better return after deduction of your fees than if I invest directly in a low-cost mutual fund like Vantage LifeStrategy?'
> 
> EDIT - it's _Vanguard _LifeStrategy. Thanks to @IaninSheffield for pointing that out.



The ones I spoke to 3-4 years ago couldn't get past this test, so we parted before they touched a penny. Most people most of the time shouldn't need an IFA.

Now as it happens I want to do some work around minimising tax and creating a financial plan, so am looking for some advice, but they still won't get anywhere near my money, thanks!


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## alicat (3 May 2022)

Bonefish Blues said:


> Now as it happens I want to do some work around minimising tax and creating a financial plan, so am looking for some advice, but they still won't get anywhere near my money, thanks!



I need to do the same. I need to find a financial planner, I think,


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