送交者: tom_cat 于 2006-4-14, 23:13:12:
回答: So they are like a retailer of insurance, mutual funds and retirement plan? 由 xinku 于 2006-4-14, 22:11:26:
they do serve you.
for example, a 20+ employee company need to buy group health insurane and other package for their employees, they can get a financial advisor/planner to help them.
Or if you are 40+ years old, you want to set up your retirement accounts and educational funds plus life insurance in case you drop dead, and you don't dream of becoming millionare in a few years, you want your kid go to college and buy a condo in florida after you turned 60. you can:
1). Google it, try to do it yourself;
2). Get a good financial advisor, he/she can help you to set them up.
Not like chinese immigrants, a lot of american families are single-income based.
You need a few certificates, but most of them are quite easy to get.
They don't represent big companies, they work for themself like everyone else in this world.
Like every profession, there is dark side. But I do meet a few good financial advisors, one of them even get me some VCs and help me get some money.
They do get fees for selling mutual funds, but it's a tricky business, not all mutual funds are commission-free, and they do know about which one is better(to certain degree).
But for life insurance, they put 50% in their own pockets -- one of my financial advisor friends told me that.
Like CPA, CFA, there is a CFP(Chartered Financial planner). But not a lot of people got it.
Interesting enough though, they don't have much customers from computer engineers.