[quote=golfnut7772]Why don't you just get an appointment with Mr. Mcqueen? I did. We sat down & went through a tough Q & A. His answers were good with me. My Father-in-law created a self directed IRA through Smart Retirement Concepts, & is invested with Diversified Global Finance. He now enjoys a check every month for 1% of his account balance, (like clockwork). This may come as a shock to some, but the "ultra rich" of America don't buy mutual funds at all! So what do they do? They pursue private investment opportunities out there. They play a different game than the "average Joe". Their game works, & the "av. Joe's" game doesn't. (The rich get richer) You're free to invest with this co. if you want to. You'll get 12% like my Father-in-law. Or you can keep on doing what you've always done, & go down with the ship! Do some real homework before you make snap judgements just because you're angry about losing a client. Or angry about not being able to compete. Look, I was at a meeting in Michigan late last yr., where the company had all of their clients come in for one of 3 meeting times. There were around 30, or so at the one I attended. I was able to take some time to talk to several in attendance. These people were some of the most savey investors I've ever had the opportunity to talk to. The caliber of these people were top notch. (Business owners, CEOs, Doctors, ect.) That only made me feel better about the entire situation. So, it is what it is. My Father-in-law is comfortable with it, & so am I. I'm betting that lady who left you is too, & that's why she hasn't called you back. Not being rude, just keeping it real.[/quote]

I've worked on the institutional side of Wall Street with people richer than you can imagine - often well-known celebrities and captains of industry and your comment above is completely wrong.  Other than alternative asset classes like hedge funds, private equity funds, etc., the ultra-wealthy also invest a good portion of their assets in the same investments that we all do.  Do they get access to those investments at a more institutional level - absolutely, but it's essentially the same underlying investment. 

Putting your money with a company "guaranteeing" anything is an immediate red flag - for wealthy investors and the lady next door alike.  Guarantees tied to a market-based investment are essentially illegal in our industry, and the fact that the clients on firms like this cannot even explain the investment they hold should make anyone VERY NERVOUS. 

You're full of S*it, plain and simple.  Why can't this company tell people what the investment is?  It's absolutely ridiculous that they fall short in that regard, and the people working at these companies all boast the same things you just did and state that "you should just sit down with them and be amazed - I was!"  Great, just don't complain when you find out the company president either went to jail or took all of your money to the Cayman Islands for an extended retirement on his terms.