Bank Investment Consultant articles from January 2009

Bank Investment Consultant archives from January 2009

Take Care.(Editor's Letter)
January 1, 2009... Byline: Pamela Black, Editor in Chief Happy New Year! I know, I know, youare probably wondering whatas happy about it. The steady drumbeat of bad news from the media and the market a and clientsa responses to it a are making reps feel...

Changes of Plan; How some advisors are helping retired or soon-to-be-retired boomers rethink their strategies.(Financial Planning)
January 1, 2009... Byline: Dave Lindorff We've been hearing so much about how boomers, the long-coveted retirement market, are being thrown for a loop by the collapsing economy. Unlike the generation before them, the first wave of baby boomers can't rely on...

A Medicare Primer; The safety net is full of holes. You need to help prepare your fiftysomething clients.(HealthCare)
January 1, 2009... Byline: Marlene Lund Most people Believe Medicare is their health safety net, but trust me, it's full of holes, and those holes are going to get bigger as the population ages. There are over 47 million people on Medicare today, and it's...

Where's the Beef?(Branching Out in Montana)
January 1, 2009... BIC: What are the new opportunities in your territory? Bailey: Hamilton is in the southwest of the state and has favorable weather, so it's fast becoming a retirement destination. The population of the area has tripled over the past 20...

Take It Away, 2009 Please! A weary industry crosses its fingers in hopes that something good will come out of this year.(Cover Story: 2009 Outlook)
January 1, 2009... Byline: Howard J. Stock Who isn't happy to see the back of 2008? It started out badly on the back of the subprime crisis that began in the fall of 2007 and managed to get spectacularly worse when catastrophic third-quarter 2008 financial...

Beyond "Just Sit Tight"; Use retirement income planning to focus on a plan of action you can take now.(Driving Scales)
January 1, 2009... Byline: Bob Cobb The recent uncertainty in thestock market has made people realize that absolutely nothing is guaranteed. The disclaimer about past performance not guaranteeing future results has been moved from the fine print and...

An All-Weather Portfolio; A 7Twelve portfolio is designed to outperform most indexes for clients who are both accumulating assets and drawing them down.(Fund Watch)
January 1, 2009... Byline: Craig Israelsen After recent devastating markets, advisors might be wondering if diversification works, or if their clients' portfolios are properly diversified. Adequately diversified investment portfolios should include a wide...

Banks Hit the Jackpot With FAs.(UpFront News)
January 1, 2009... Byline: Howard J. Stock and Paul Menchaca Banks sold $9.2 billion worth of fixed annuities in the third quarter of last year, a rise of 80% over the third quarter of 2007, according to a Beacon Research study of 51 insurance companies...

401(k)s Stay the Course.(UpFront News)
January 1, 2009... Byline: Matt Ackermann Despite difficult market conditions that have yielded poor investment returns, individual investors are maintaining their retirement savings and continuing to invest in their 401(k) plans, according to Hewitt...

Fear and Apathy Reign.(UpFront News)
January 1, 2009... Byline: Howard J. Stock While six out of 10 affluent investors are spending less as a result of the financial crisis, half of people are saving less, one in five significantly so, according to a Bank of America survey of 1,000 affluent...

Life Insurance Premiums Plummet.(UpFront News)
January 1, 2009... Byline: Matt Ackermann New premiums for individual life insurance fell 11% on an annual basis in the third quarter, according to LIMRA's most recent sales report. After seven straight years of considerable growth, universal life...

Tough Times Hit FINRA.(UpFront News)
January 1, 2009... Byline: andrew Ackerman Layoffs aren't just decimating the financial services industry-they're hitting the watchdogs too. The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, the nation's largest self-regulatory organization, which oversees almost...

Wealthy Investors Tap Professionals for Advice on Charitable Giving.(UpFront News)
January 1, 2009... Byline: Howard J. Stock Wealthy investors are increasingly turning to financial advisors, accountants and lawyers to help them make charitable giving decisions, according to a new Bank of America survey of 20,000 high-net-worth households...

Many Plan to Take Social Security at 62.(UpFront News)
January 1, 2009... Byline: Paul Menchaca Nearly half of 61-year-old Americans intend to begin receiving Social Security benefits at age 62, the first year that eligible recipients can apply, according to a survey by Fidelity Investments. The 45% of...

Wealthy Investors Throw Up Their Hands.(UpFront News)
January 1, 2009... Byline: Howard J. Stock Spectrem Group's index of millionaire and affluent investor confidence hit all-time lows for both categories. Both groups' indicators dropped to 39 points in November following months of sliding downward. ...

Free Launch.(BankInvestmentConsultant.com)
January 1, 2009... There is such a thing as a free launch! AdvisorMax, Bank Investment Consultant's parent company's premium content site for financial advisors, is now available to bankinvestmentconsultant.com users absolutely free. What that means to you is...

De-Stress Yourself! Ten ways to keep your spirits up in a down market.(Practice Management)
January 1, 2009... Byline: Steve Moeller These are indeed interesting and extremely challenging times for all of us in the financial services industry. And it's taking a toll on advisors. This was driven home to me when I visited one of my favorite advisors...

Manna-maker; Steve Shneider's practice targets a Jewish immigrant community in sunny California.(Producer Profile)
January 1, 2009... Byline: Howard J. Stock Steve Shneider, an Essex National rep at Cal National Bank in San Fernando Valley, a suburban sprawl to the north of Los Angeles, has quickly carved a niche for himself serving the largest population of conservative...

Retooling Retirement; A look at some new distribution products.(Product Insight)
January 1, 2009... Byline: Joan Warner The fear factor among investors scared of outliving their money multiplied exponentially in 2008, and combatting that fear usually means a flight to guaranteed products, which, most conventionally in recent years, have...