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May 9, 2006 2:02 pm

i think every wirehouse, insurance co, and bank has been slammed at one point or another on here…is there any bank, wirehouse, or insurance co that the majority would agree is a good place to work and grow your business?

May 9, 2006 2:50 pm

Based on prior experiences, almost everyone has their ax to grind regarding certain firms.  I, for example, had a bad experience with a bank program and thus, tend to lump all bank programs together as "bad".  Doesn't mean they are...it just means that I would have a difficult time trusting a bank program because of my personal experience.

Likewise, I've seen some real hack jobs from local Edward Jones brokers, so fair or not, I hanve a negative opinion about the firm as a whole.  In both cases (banks and Jones), there are plenty of examples of honest, ethical advisors who do their best for their clients, but my personal experiences cause me to think negatively about those channels/firms and their management in general, whether it's fair or not.

I doubt that there are any firms out there that someone wouldn't slam, but in general, Merrill, AG Edwards, and independent firms like LPL and Raymond James don't seem to get quite as much negative feedback here.  The bottom line is, every experience is unique and it's more of a question of your compatability with management than the firm itself, so as long as the firm offers the tools you need (and isn't a boiler room operation), focus on your feelings about the folks you will be working with...I think most will agree that this is the most important yardstick when looking at a particular firm.

May 9, 2006 5:56 pm

thanks Indy for the response…i appreciate it…

May 10, 2006 2:11 am

Everywhere has there good points and there bad points depends on what your looking for.

Free clients (no effort required)- You'll get some at a bank, but not enough to be successful and you'lll likely have to work a full week and deal with compensation changes at least onc a year maybe not if your lucky like me think small bank

Freedom - think indy

Team- think wirehouse, I do not see any other advantage to going to a wirehouse with todays indy environment

May 11, 2006 5:35 am

Indy,

    Yeh, Merrill Lynch, very ethical company.  Wait, now I remember........ Henry Blodgett, over 1 billion in fines, currently forced settlement to change C and B shares to A with no sales charge....great firm for ethics.

    Raymond James, LPL, independents, no negatives, right.....wow, I forgot that both firms' average production is under 200k year.  Some LPL brokers I know still work out of their home, one still after 4 years.  Raymond James has an option at a bank, that's the same joke outfit that I love going up against down the street.  Can't recruit, ask Raymond James why that happened to them within the last year.  Indexed annuities, both firms are great at pushing them. 

    Indyone, jump off your soapbox.  I just can't believe how much ignorance you spout.

May 11, 2006 12:39 pm

Rank: What’s wrong with working out of your home? My den is bigger than the avge. jones office.

May 11, 2006 1:19 pm

[quote=Revealer]Rank: What's wrong with working out of your home? My den is bigger than the avge. jones office.[/quote]

Plus you can make better sandwiches in your kitchen than the Subway next to most Jones offices can sell you

May 11, 2006 2:29 pm

So rank, where do you work??? You probably work for some regional or glorified insurance company posing as “Financial Advisors”…

May 11, 2006 2:49 pm

[quote=rankstocks]

       Raymond James, LPL, independents, no negatives, right.....wow, I forgot that both firms' average production is under 200k year.  Some LPL brokers I know still work out of their home, one still after 4 years.  Raymond James has an option at a bank, that's the same joke outfit that I love going up against down the street.  Can't recruit, ask Raymond James why that happened to them within the last year.  Indexed annuities, both firms are great at pushing them. 

[/quote]

Having an average advisor production under $200K is certainly not a negative.  With less layers the company can still be profitable keeping advisors with lower GDC's as opposed to Jones with has to feed the monkeys.  Working out of your home is a personal choice, and a lot of days (like this rainy morning) would be much better than driving into the office.

Both firms pushing indexed annuities?  You mean both firms brought the sales in-house to ensure suitability.  Besides, there have been less complaints annually on indexed annuity sales than any other financial vehicle on the market today, they just get more bad press (and no I've never sold one, but I have actually done the research).

If you need to pick on someone for spouting gibberish, Rank, you might consider looking in the mirror first.

May 11, 2006 3:02 pm

[quote=rankstocks]Indy,

    Yeh, Merrill Lynch, very ethical company.  Wait, now I remember........ Henry Blodgett, over 1 billion in fines, currently forced settlement to change C and B shares to A with no sales charge....great firm for ethics.

    Raymond James, LPL, independents, no negatives, right.....wow, I forgot that both firms' average production is under 200k year.  Some LPL brokers I know still work out of their home, one still after 4 years.  Raymond James has an option at a bank, that's the same joke outfit that I love going up against down the street.  Can't recruit, ask Raymond James why that happened to them within the last year.  Indexed annuities, both firms are great at pushing them. 

    Indyone, jump off your soapbox.  I just can't believe how much ignorance you spout.[/quote]

Wow, you're one to talk about spouting ignorance.  Don't cast any stones at me about ethics...I know who you're working for and their record isn't exactly spotless either.

For the record, I never said "no negatives" on any firm.  What I said was "I doubt that there are any firms out there that someone wouldn't slam, but in general, Merrill, AG Edwards, and independent firms like LPL and Raymond James don't seem to get quite as much negative feedback here."  There's a big difference there, drone.

As far as average production, you're numbers are old for LPL at least, and you fail to consider that there are part-time and "partner" producers (which generally produce nothing - only revenue share on referrals) included in those averages.  There are plenty of big hitters working with LPL.  I've been through a conference call with a $3 million dollar producer and attended a seminar with a guy that does about twice that, so don't think for a minute that an indy at one of those firms couldn't eat your lunch if you go head to head for business.  There are plenty that can.

On working out of your home or a bank, BFD.  How is working in a strip mall between Subway and the dry cleaners any better?  Again, if someone wants to work part-time and/or from their homes, why should you care?  As far as your ability to compete, that's more of a function of the rep than the platform.  You wouldn't take any of my clients with your sorry set-up, so get over yourself.

On index annuities...never sold one, and have never been pushed to do so.  Don't know that I wouldn't, but I haven't found the situation where it would work for a client as of yet.  The big difference is, I could if I wanted to...can you?

I think I gave a fairly balanced response, to which you had to respond and make an idiot of yourself.  I can't believe how much Kool-Aid you vomit...I've got news for you...the world is not flat.

Now go do something constructive with your day, like take some widow's last $10,000 and put her in a Putnam fund.

May 15, 2006 1:08 pm

[quote=rankstocks]

Indy,

    Yeh, Merrill Lynch, very ethical company.  Wait, now I remember........ Henry Blodgett, over 1 billion in fines, currently forced settlement to change C and B shares to A with no sales charge....great firm for ethics.

    Raymond James, LPL, independents, no negatives, right.....wow, I forgot that both firms' average production is under 200k year.  Some LPL brokers I know still work out of their home, one still after 4 years.  Raymond James has an option at a bank, that's the same joke outfit that I love going up against down the street.  Can't recruit, ask Raymond James why that happened to them within the last year.  Indexed annuities, both firms are great at pushing them. 

    Indyone, jump off your soapbox.  I just can't believe how much ignorance you spout.

[/quote]

Gee....I wouldn't guess that you work for Jones??? ;-)  Sounds lik e you're a little touchy.  Of course, the 'greatest sales force on Wall Street' doesn't have any ethical blemshes.

FWIW, I work out of my home, and I am affiliated with one of the large indy firms. My office is far nicer than the ones EDJ has in EVERY strip mall here in town. Too, my commute time is about 30 seconds, and on my coffe breaks I can sit on the porch and watch the golfers go by on the second fairway across the street.  Far better than watching traffic go in and out of the dentist's office next door at the strip mall.

But hey, different strokes for different folks!
May 15, 2006 4:14 pm

[quote=rankstocks]

Indy,

    Yeh, Merrill Lynch, very ethical company.  Wait, now I remember........ Henry Blodgett, over 1 billion in fines, currently forced settlement to change C and B shares to A with no sales charge....great firm for ethics.

    Raymond James, LPL, independents, no negatives, right.....wow, I forgot that both firms' average production is under 200k year.  Some LPL brokers I know still work out of their home, one still after 4 years.  Raymond James has an option at a bank, that's the same joke outfit that I love going up against down the street.  Can't recruit, ask Raymond James why that happened to them within the last year.  Indexed annuities, both firms are great at pushing them. 

    Indyone, jump off your soapbox.  I just can't believe how much ignorance you spout.

RANK- Edward Jones is a great place to go... oh no wait- something is coming to mind... $75 MILLION in Fines. Oh and didn't you read that letter that went out to all the Jones clients' about exchanging all the PREFERRED FUND FAMILIES - any share class for different funds A- share at no charge?

Better duck, those stones you are throwing might come back at you.