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Additional money from firms?

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Dec 30, 2005 3:45 am

I am in a position of needing additional money because of an unfortunate incident. I was hired by a wirehouse and signed a deal back in 2003, but now I have a need for additional money to address this incident. Anyone hear of firms helping out their brokers in such situations? If so, what were the terms?  Any ideas or thoughts are appreciated.

Dec 30, 2005 5:09 am

I have been at big bank b/d and never heard of any broker getting any kind of help beside a good rate on their home equity loan. If you are at a small firm or indy they be able to be more flexible.

Dec 30, 2005 5:21 am

Part of being a financial advisor is managing one's finances as one advises one's clients, and that includes setting aside liquidity for emergencies.

Sorry to sound like a hardass, but that's facts.  Too many folks follow the "do as I say, not as I do" philosophy...."

Dec 30, 2005 2:13 pm

Some firms will provide loans for certain things, but the only instances I'm personally aware of involved business related things -- financing the purchase of another rep's book and helping with a large client settlement. 

Not that it matters, but out of curiosity is your issue re your up-front deal having to pay your taxes on the forgivable loan payments and you spent all the money already??  It's possible firms are open to helping with such things (because you wouldn't be the first to fall into that trap with the phantom income), but you'll never know unless you ask.

Dec 30, 2005 4:05 pm

This reminds me of when I questioned the ability of a fomer bankrupt to be successful in this industry and got my ass handed to me by several sympathetic posters.  Without knowing the particulars of your situation, it’s hard to tell, but I still feel like the vast majority of messes that advisors get themselves into are entirely preventable if you’re eating your own cooking…and thinking ahead a bit.

Dec 30, 2005 5:15 pm

[quote=Indyone]This reminds me of when I questioned the ability of a fomer bankrupt to be successful in this industry and got my ass handed to me by several sympathetic posters.  Without knowing the particulars of your situation, it's hard to tell, but I still feel like the vast majority of messes that advisors get themselves into are entirely preventable if you're eating your own cooking...and thinking ahead a bit.[/quote]

Exactly my point.

Dec 30, 2005 6:20 pm

I agree. A doctor who has had a heart attack should NEVER be allowed to use his knowledge to help patients with heart problems. His knowledge should be null and void if he can’t keep his own heart beating.

Dec 30, 2005 6:40 pm

“Let the thrashing commence!”

Dec 30, 2005 6:58 pm

"I agree. A doctor who has had a heart attack should NEVER be allowed to use his knowledge to help patients with heart problems. His knowledge should be null and void if he can't keep his own heart beating."

It's not that simple.  If a doctor is a chain smoker and is advising a patient to stop, how can you take him seriously?  Likewise, what would you think if he's 150 pounds overweight and is advising YOU to lose 20 pounds?!!!  Furthermore, would you want that doctor to have another heart attack when he was doing YOUR open heart surgery?!!

Also, I think you miss the point that I said the VAST MAJORITY of these problems are preventable...

...here we go again...enter the bleeding hearts.  I stand by my point.  If you've properly planned and saved, MOST (like about 95%) financial crises can be survived w/o bankrupcy, so as a client, I would rule out an advisor who has had significant personal financial difficulty (i.e., bankrupcy) in the past unless he/she has a damn good excuse!

Dec 30, 2005 7:26 pm

I would rule out an advisor who has had significant personal financial difficulty (i.e., bankrupcy) in the past unless he/she has a damn good excuse!

While I do agree with you in the main (and because I'm bored today with doing end of the year paperwork ) I'm going to disagree.   One damn good excuse, that I was able to overlook/explain away when I was a lender, was the spouse who's credit was trashed a now divorced spouse.  If the applicant could show that he/she was not the irresponsible party (spendthrift a-hole) and that they were responsibly managing their financial affairs since jettisoning the aforemention spouse..... I would be able to grant them credit.   If the bankrupcy was caused by an unforeseen and catastrophic event, death of a family member who was the main breadwinner with not enough life insurance, not enough medical insurance to cover huge medical bills and so on, it also may be excused. 

However, as you say for us as Financial Advisors, we should be prepared for the unforseen and catastrophic by having enough coverage and liquidity.  If we are supposed to be planning for others, we should at least be able to look out for ourselves.  Getting over our heads in debt is not unforseen, although it can be catastrophic. 

Dec 30, 2005 10:38 pm

Most advisor’s when starting out go through HELL financially!

Dec 30, 2005 10:48 pm

“a client who has more money than you…does this make them more qualified

to talk about money?” Excellent point. There’s alot more money to be made

manufacturing fishing boats than peddling VAs in french cuffs.

Dec 30, 2005 10:52 pm

[quote=SonnyClips]Who cares if someone is an idiot in one area of their life. You think that you cannot get good advice from someone who is kind of a raving lunatic in another. Or what about this, you have a client who has more money than you... does this make them more qualified to talk about money? If it did their would be alot of brokers on the breadlines.

If you don't do business with a broker who went broke or a chain smoking doctor for moral reasons thats fine. But to say that chain smoking doctors, crazy psychaitrists, broke brokers or why not a computer programmer who doesn't own a computer or whatever somehow can't do the job they are trained to do and do it well seems to be kind of a tough case to make outside of generalities.

Now some of those Priests and Party Clowns who have been accused of buggering kids you can make a case about.[/quote]

Hey Clipper!

We'll just have to agree to disagree.  While I have no beef with Babaloo's exception for the innocent spouse (I would label that as a damn good excuse), I don't want a broke broker or crazy psychiatrist.  I don't mind if you're off the beam in other areas, but you should have your sh*t together in your chosen field, or you should consider a different field.  It's the same reason I have no use for Rev. Jim Baker or Jerry Falwell (for those of you who remember those messes)...it's called hypocrisy.  While allowing for exceptions for the rule (green brokers, innocent spouses, etc.), I still say that for the most part, advisors with poor personal financial habits are far from the ideal.

Say, weren't you one of the mob beating on me the last time too?!!

Happy New Year!!!

Dec 30, 2005 11:55 pm

[quote=Indyone]

"I agree. A doctor who has had a heart attack should NEVER be allowed to use his knowledge to help patients with heart problems. His knowledge should be null and void if he can't keep his own heart beating."

It's not that simple.  If a doctor is a chain smoker and is advising a patient to stop, how can you take him seriously?  Likewise, what would you think if he's 150 pounds overweight and is advising YOU to lose 20 pounds?!!!  Furthermore, would you want that doctor to have another heart attack when he was doing YOUR open heart surgery?!!

Also, I think you miss the point that I said the VAST MAJORITY of these problems are preventable...

...here we go again...enter the bleeding hearts.  I stand by my point.  If you've properly planned and saved, MOST (like about 95%) financial crises can be survived w/o bankrupcy, so as a client, I would rule out an advisor who has had significant personal financial difficulty (i.e., bankrupcy) in the past unless he/she has a damn good excuse!

[/quote]

It's too bad to see them piling on.  I've seen far too many comrades in the business face financial ruin or significant investment losses because THEY DIDN'T FOLLOW THEIR OWN ADVICE!  I think it's hypocritical and shows a lack of integrity.

Yes there are always exceptions that prove the rule, but we haven't been told that in this case, have we.....

Dec 31, 2005 12:47 am

joedabrkr: It's too bad to see them piling on.  I've seen far too many comrades in the business face financial ruin or significant investment losses because THEY DIDN'T FOLLOW THEIR OWN ADVICE!  I think it's hypocritical and shows a lack of integrity.

----------------------------------------

Chances are that such a broker also had clients who faced significant losses. For example, you can't be a conservative advisor (with your own money) and have clients who like to gamble on microcaps and have those clients make any significant money. Your clients' investing habits should reflect your own, for the best results.

Of course, starting out, a new broker will just about take all comers. But as the new broker becomes more established, they should try to attract like-minded clients.