July 21, 2018
1. Overall, do you find the Relationship Summary useful? If not, how would you change it? If so, what topics and how can they be improved?:
yes, very helpful
More on the mutual fund loads and class shares
Loads who pays them
Class shares...A always has load and higher fees, B and C class shares...Always even higher loads , fees and High expenses
2. How useful is each section of the Relationship Summary? Please consider explaining your responses in the comments:
a. Type of Relationship and Service: Very Useful: make this information available to investors
most of us are clueless about this
most investors clueless about expenses loads and fees
most investors are clueless about about their 401's..403's etc.
b. Our Obligations to You: Very Useful:
c. Fees and Costs: Very Useful: need to educate investors
d. Comparison to different account types: Very Useful:
e. Conflict of Interests: Very Useful: Have used six of the Big name brokerage firms in the past 25 years...not one mentioned conflict of interest
f. Additional Information: Very Useful:
g. Key Questions to Ask: Useful: more information is needed for investors to learn to ask the right questions to ask our brokers and brokerage firms
Investors do not know what important questions need to asked ...where or how do you get paid, what amount is being taken out of my account...it never shows up in the statement
3. Please answer the following questions. Please consider explaining your responses in the comments:
a. Do you find the format of the Relationship Summary easy to follow?: Yes:
b. Is the information in the appropriate order?: Yes:
c. Is the Relationship Summary easy to read?: Yes:
d. Should the Relationship Summary include additional information about different account types?: Yes: yes, more information on sep-IRA, traditional IRA, accounts that hold employers 401, etc
e. Would you seek out additional information about a firm's disciplinary history as suggested in the Relationship Summary?: Yes:
4. Are there topics in the Relationship Summary that are too technical or that could be improved?:
5. Is there additional information that we should require in the Relationship Summary,such as more specific information about the firm or additional information about fees? Is that because you do not receive the information now, or because you would also like to see it presented in this summary document, or both? Is there any information that should be made more prominent?:
much more information on fees and expenses is needed by ALL investors
instead of compound interest ( the so called secret to investing)
investors have compound fees
6. Is the Relationship Summary an appropriate length? If not, should it be longer or shorter?:
some people would lose interest if longer, so just right
7. Do you find the 'Key Questions to Ask' useful? Would the questions improve the quality of your discussion with your financial professional? If not, why not?:
I wish I had those questions when I was paying super high adviser's fees...paid almost $60,000.00 in fees in 2015
Got rid of all three brokerage firms and my salesman advisors
Frantically trying to learn...scary to do it on my own
8. Do you have any additional suggestions to improve the Relationship Summary? Is there anything else you would like to tell us?:
after taking countless investing classes at DUKE Olli, met hundreds of mostly professional people that had the same problem I had, brokers taking advantage of our lack of financial knowledge, formed a group where we try to learn on our own
It is not an investing club...we need a lot more knowledge to even do that
we are a learning group trying to stay ahead of our unethical brokers, trying to save our savings or portfolios before it is too late
Sad to say, most are women( widows or divorced) that have long retirement years ahead of them, and are losing their money fast to these broker (kids) that are preying on them