Do I Require a Financial Advisor to Begin Investing?

Although it is possible to begin investing on your own without the assistance of a professional, there are some questions to ask yourself first. Additionally, there are advantages to hiring a financial advisor. Toronto residents will be able to take advantage of the knowledge of these professionals to ensure the best outcomes from their investments.

Do you have the time to learn

Learning about investing and learning how to do it right, takes time. There is plenty of material available, from websites to videos to seminars, and just figuring out which information to ingest can take a good amount of time. In addition to learning the basics, you will need some time to test your new skills before making large investments, especially if they are of a higher risk variety.

Do you have the time to maintain investments?

Because you’ve chosen to do everything on your own, you’ll have to keep an eye on your investments to monitor their performance. For many investment portfolios this doesn’t need to be a daily or even weekly activity. You will however, want to have a look at your investment situation at least once a month.

Do you actually want to do it?

Not everyone is cut out to manage a portfolio of investments. Some people know this and go straight to hiring a financial advisor. Oakville, for instance, has several options. Those who want investments but aren’t especially excited about doing it themselves would likely be better off hiring a professional.

What to know about investment counsel firms in Ontario

When looking for a financial advisor in Toronto or elsewhere, it helps to know a few things, like the ways in which they are paid. There are three main ways financial advisors in Toronto make money.
Advisors who sell mutual funds and sometimes insurance can be thought of as salespeople. There is normally a commission attached to the sale to these products and is frequently not evident. This is the most common type of financial advisor in Oakville and elsewhere.

Others use a fee-based structure, in which the client pays a fee to the advisor. This is generally a percentage of the assets, with rates generally hovering around 1%. This type of arrangement is generally reserved for managing larger portfolios where diversification is used in order to reduce risk. Occasionally, fee based advisors may also sell packaged investment products as well.

Whether or not you decide to hire an investment counsel firm in Ontario or to attempt investing on your own, there are times an investment professional’s experience is useful and it can be worth seeking them out for advice and investing assistance.