(ThySistas.com) When you decide to invest, it’s sometimes prudent to hire an investment manager, their know-how and expertise can be the difference to marginal gains and huge returns. Caution is advised, it’s important you hire a manager you trust and get on with, see it as a business partnership. Here are some tips to get you started.
Choose The Right Type Of Manager
First you need to approach the correct “type”, by type I mean there are many different sorts of investment managers. The most common and popular are portfolio managers. These are the guys you
need for big money investments and returns. They will manage your portfolio by investing into multiple areas to limit the risk of loss, usually in stocks or bonds. Mutual Funds, Hedge Funds and individual accounts are all managed by a portfolio manager. You can also get a financial planner, which is essentially a moniker for managers who solely manage stock interests, they used to be called stockbrokers. Stocks are such an intricate market they need individual expertise. You can also get overall financial planners who specialise in wealth management. These can manage your overall wealth and ensure everything is in order, Ian Filippini is a great example.
Build A Good Relationship
You need to make sure you get on with them, if you don’t the relationship just won’t work. They’ll work harder for someone they like, so if you’re not feeling it then get out. They’re going to be in charge of a lot of your money, so only give it to someone you completely trust. This means vetting them thoroughly before hand, checking up on their past successes. But remember, they’ll be thinking the same thing, so if you’ve found a manger who has a lot of clients but you really like the sound of then it could pay to put in the effort to build a rapport.
Make Sure You Know How Much You’re Paying
Understanding investment fees is a tricky business. But you need to know how much you’re going to be paying your new manager, so before you sign anything ensure you read the contract through and through. Some charge a yearly annual fee, or take a percentage of whatever you give them to invest. The better charges are ones based off performance. This way you know the manager has incentive to do well for you, if your funds do well, he gets paid. In general fees typically range from 0.75 to 1.5 per cent. However, you can negotiate this, money talks, the more money you’re willing to invest the more room for negotiation there actually is.
In short you need to make sure that who find a professional who:
- Has the right amount of experience, training, and clearance from a regulatory perspective
- Is willing to understand and communicate with you about your financial needs and how much risk you tolerate
- Creates a customised investment portfolio geared toward your individual needs instead of simply applying the same plans to you they do to other clients.
- Limits risk but still has a strong record of sound investment returns
- They have a reasonable structure for fees which is transparent from the start and you both agree upon.
Staff Writer; Rebecca Johnson