Our Philosophy
At AFS Wealth Management we understand that retirees and soon-to-be retirees face many important decisions that can affect their long term financial success.
It’s our philosophy that a sound financial strategy includes more than having great investments. It integrates all aspects of your financial life from lifetime income planning, Social Security and pension maximization, tax management, low-risk low-volatility investment solutions, legacy planning and planning for the unexpected and the inevitable. And it all starts with a plan.
But who’s going to help you develop your plan and will it be in your best interest or theirs?
When you walk into a car dealership, it’s no secret that your salesperson’s recommendations are influenced by the dealership’s financial interests and that you should filter the advice accordingly. Unfortunately, in investing, it’s far less obvious that there are two levels of advice available:
- Fiduciary advice – A Registered Investment Advisory firm’s fiduciary advice must exclusively advance the client’s best financial interests ahead of anyone else’s (especially ahead of the advisor’s interests).
- Suitable advice – A brokers’ suitable advice should be seen in the same light as the car salesperson’s and is assumed to be influenced by other interests related the broker and their firm. They can recommend securities that profit them more or help them meet sales quotas or incentives without disclosing this conflict as long as the investments are “suitable”.
When developing plans and making recommendations, we do so in a fiduciary relationship as an independent Investment Advisor Representative with advice that is always and exclusively in our clients’ best financial interests first.
Whose plan will you follow in retirement? The IRS’s, Wallstreet’s, your Brokers? If you’re not following your plan, you will be following someone else’s.
Questions? Phil Putney, CPA/PFS is a federally licensed fiduciary. Call (248) 888-7530 or click here to schedule a no obligation consultation.
