Getting Started in Finding a Financial Advisor

An accessible guide that contains the tools needed to find trustworthy financial assistance

Given the events of the past two years-from bankruptcies to financial scams-it is more important than ever that investors understand who they are hiring to handle their finances.

Getting Started in Finding a Financial Advisor explores the important relationship between an investor and their financial advisor and examines how you should go about finding potential candidates. Along the way, it shows you how to interview and check the credentials of six key types of advisor so that you can spot and avoid rogues, scam artists, and incompetents. You will also learn how to understand what can happen if the institution or the advisor ends up in financial or legal difficulty. This insightful and useful guide

• Helps you determine the kind of advisor best-suited for your situation
• Provides interview questions, discusses what credentials really mean, and which are important
• Explains in detail the issue of fiduciary responsibility of financial advisors, so you can find helpers who are on your side

Most people who give advice about money are trusted without actually earning that trust. Getting Started in Finding a Financial Advisor helps you set the highest standards, allowing you to locate professionals who can be trusted to protect your financial well-being and help you prosper.

Chuck Jaffe is a Senior Columnist for MarketWatch. His work is syndicated nationally to an audience of more than twenty million readers per week, with his "Your Funds" column being the most widely read feature on mutual fund investing in America. Upon joining MarketWatch in 2003, Jaffe created the "Stupid Investment of the Week" column, a quirky feature that highlights the flaws that make for bad investments. In addition to MarketWatch, Jaffe provides regular guest commentary for Nightly Business Report on public television and for All Things Considered on National Public Radio.