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Friday is my last day as an Independent

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May 24, 2006 3:32 am

It’s been a nice experiment…but no thanks. After a couple of years, I’m

going back to being an employee. The old adage still stands…"The house

always wins"



There really is no independence within a B/D structure. 85% payout is a lie.

When you factor in administrative staff, office lease, ticket charges, general

overhead, etc., its not a big deal.



Not to mention the fact that big money is tough to attract in an indy

environment. It may work for some, but not for me.



May 24, 2006 3:45 am

Where are you going?

May 24, 2006 12:03 pm

I’m sorry you failed.

May 24, 2006 1:22 pm

How big was your book when you went indy?  How much did you take with you? 

Funny, I have actually brought in larger accounts as an indy then when I was at my former firm.  How long have you been indy?

May 24, 2006 1:29 pm

I can see bringing in larger accounts after leaving EDJ.  What worries me about indy land though is my ability to bring in the large accounts I have been having luck with in relation to the major wire I am at.  Sad to say it but I think the name gives some of my clients comfort. 

I am about a year out from leaving though if I leave so plenty time to gather info.  I have a feeling Skeedady may have lacked the necessary asset base to make it work.  Sorry Skee hope things work out well with the place you move to.  

May 24, 2006 1:39 pm

[quote=Malcolm]

I can see bringing in larger accounts after leaving EDJ.  What worries me about indy land though is my ability to bring in the large accounts I have been having luck with in relation to the major wire I am at.  Sad to say it but I think the name gives some of my clients comfort. 

I am about a year out from leaving though if I leave so plenty time to gather info.  I have a feeling Skeedady may have lacked the necessary asset base to make it work.  Sorry Skee hope things work out well with the place you move to.  

[/quote]

I have a feeling he lacked the work ethic needed and the ability to take responsibility for his failure.

May 24, 2006 2:14 pm

Wow...that's a first on these boards that I can remember...an indy going back to captivity!  That just proves that it's not for everyone.  I'm having no problem attracting assets and in fact, have raised my new account minimum to $250K to slow the growth to a manageable level.  I very much enjoy the freedom that I have and have absolutely no intention of going back to employee status, especially now that I have critical mass to make a very good living.  I expect to net more this year than I ever did at my last employer.

I guess this should serve as a warning to those contemplating the move to indy.  You'd better be confident that you have what it takes to run an office and motivate yourself.  Skee, it would be a great service to many here if you would elaborate about what went wrong and prompted what I consider to be a fairly unusual move.

May 24, 2006 3:09 pm

Out of curiosity, Skee, did you do a cost analysis prior to making the jump to make that evaluation? 

May 24, 2006 3:30 pm

Remote Control,

A good ass kicking would do you a lot of good. 

May 24, 2006 5:23 pm

Sorry to hear that you had a hard time as an Independent. You need to do what is best for you and for your clients.  Peace of mind and lowered stress levels are worth more than anything else

Good luck and keep posting.

May 24, 2006 6:34 pm

skee this is an interesting post, can you elaborate on your particular situation? thanks.

May 24, 2006 6:42 pm

Skee,

Sorry man.  Let us know what happened.

May 24, 2006 9:47 pm

Since you started the thread....you might as well take a minute and respond to my question as well as the others.

May 24, 2006 10:32 pm

Fellas, relax. Thanks for the concerns many have expressed, I really

appreciate it. Don’t worry, I won’t be selling you a 50" plasma at Best Buy.



Its not the end of the road for me. Its just a business decision. Without

getting into too many details, its a confluence of factors. Chief among

them is branding, business mix, higher costs than anticipated, not hitting

new asset hurdles (self-imposed) and a partner that left me hanging with

the whole enchilada. At a 37% net payout, well the decision is easy.



Interestingly, not much is written about the indies that return to

wirehouses, though I know I’m not alone. I did however find a recent

article in RR:   



From Registered Rep, Feb 01, 2006

"Nearly one-third of affluent investors—those with $500,000 or more in

investable assets—were using full-service brokers as their primary

advisors in 2005, a significant jump from 24 percent in 2004,



This has had an adverse effect on the independent broker/dealers. “The

independents are not able to recruit anymore,” Bienfang says. “Firms like

LPL Financial Services and Jefferson Pilot Securities are suffering because

they don’t have the infrastructure or the scale.” Prior to the widespread

acceptance of the fee-based model, “the independents benefited from the

culling of transaction-based brokers,” Bienfang says. Now, the well has

dried up, he says. “Full-service brokers are pulling back market share

from the independents.”



I guess that’s partly the reason the folks at LPL just sold 60% of their

stake.



As far as to where I’m going? Well, maybe I’ll share that, maybe not. I’m

not sure about it.   

May 24, 2006 10:48 pm

I’m glad our economic system creates choices. I wish you the best in your new venture.

May 24, 2006 11:46 pm

Can anyone say "let me show you, we have just the BMW in that color"

37% net??????  Who the hell were you with?? and what kind of overhead were you carrying????

May 24, 2006 11:49 pm

Good luck Skee. 3 day weekend coming up suppose you are not alone. I am getting closer and closer.

May 24, 2006 11:58 pm

[quote=RecordGuy]

Remote Control,

A good ass kicking would do you a lot of good. 

[/quote]

It never has before. Are YOU up to the task?

May 25, 2006 1:21 am

[quote=remotecontrol] I'm sorry you failed. [/quote]

i'm sorry you are Jewish.

May 25, 2006 1:50 am

[quote=lawsucks]

[quote=remotecontrol] I’m sorry you failed. [/quote]



i’m sorry you are Jewish.

[/quote]