July 15, 2009
Good afternoon,
As a member of the Financial Planning Association of Massachusetts it has come to my attention that you are proposing surprise audits of Financial Planning firms such as mine.
I am a sole practitioner and someone who holds in high regard my ethics and values when dealing with clients. I am not however in a position to afford one of these surprise audits.
I would be forced in this situation to pass along these costs to my clients which would mean diminished returns to them. This is unacceptable to me as a professional advisor.
After 10 years in the broker-dealer world I wanted to hold myself to a higher standard of ethics and have a fiduciary relationship with my clients which is why I became a Registered Investment Advisor.
I do not in any way take custody of client assets and as such feel that my clients have a established method of protection.
Please do not establish the surprise audits.
Thank you,
Ted Wolfstich CFP®
Wolfstich Capital Management, LLC