using financial advisors

[mint]

has anyone used financial advisors such as siddalls?  if so, have they found the advisors' advice any good and, more to the point, are the advisors worth the money you paid them?

[Just Katie]

In most instances, you do not actually pay financial advisors but they earn commission from the insurance companies for selling their products.  The financial services industry is very heavily regulated these days due to the mis selling which occurred in 1980's.

An IFA is bound to give you a "reasons why letter" which explains the products suggested to you and why they are most suitable for your needs.  You could always take this away with quotations of the products they recommend and get a second opinion.

[mint]

katie

thanks for the prompt reply.  i thought that possibly i'd like to use independent advisors and pay for their advice rather than people tied to other firms and who have a vested interest in recommending the products of those firms.

will bear in mind what you have just told me.  your interest and help much appreciated

[Llwyncelyn]

Hi from the wording of your posting there is a suggestion that the advice from an independent source is going to be somewhat better than one tied to let us say an introductory source.

France its laws its taxation its way of life is in our experience so much at odds with what you and I (with respect) have ever been exposed to.

I (and it is just me) believe that one should take advice and quite obviously but again if it goes wrong.....then where does one go.  If the advice is based UK wise then ok but if the advice is based upon matters in France then not quite so simple.

However substantial investigation by oneself is also the way forward and the benefit of this forum will soon become obvious.

There are those on this forum that would say that independent advice is a way to produce blank cheques for those giving the advice.  I say that having spent most of my career in the law and with all of that entails.

I know that I have not responded directly to your posting but think that one should take a balanced approach in respect of investing and much on the same lines as investing in Cardiff Bay or the Vale of Glamorgan but with a much increased sense of the need to be sure of where you are going to buy , why you are buying and location location location.  If you are buying on the basis of strict monetary gain here in France the french adopt a view that a house is a place in which to live.  We adopt the approach of what its worth and what will it be worth when I sell.  Obviously inheritance and the like has to be researched and with some vigour!

 

Late of Porth Rhondda Valley then all points east in England then Chepstow in Wales and of course now in France.

[Will]

I think that if you intend to retire to France with a lump sum to invest, then these companies can be very worthwhile - if only to help you avoid making costly mistakes. On the other hand, if you are expecting to work in France, then they can be useless - or worse, a liability. That's because they are quite clued up as far as France/UK double taxation treaties, capital gains, investment options etc are concerned, but for other issues such as social security, starting a business etc they know nothing. Many of them (certainly Siddalls) offer a choice between free or low-cost advice, based on the advisor earning a commission, or independent advice, where you pay the fees yourself.

[mint]

llwyncelyn

i wasn't thinking so much about the french property.  that we have bought and are in the process of improving.  i am thinking more in terms of when we go to live in france permanently and are french resident, the sort of advice we will need about investments and, even more importantly, the tax situation and, of course, inheritance tax when we are eventually pushing up the daisies.

i think i am happy to pay for independent advice (provided the cost is not too prohibitive) and just want to know whether anyone on the forum has any personal experience of using advisors and, if so, whether they are pleased with the service they obtained.

on a welsh note, llwyncelyn, do you know dr baron from porth?

[David J]

Hi Sweet 17.  What a good choice you made for your chosen area of France.  Having been an Independent Financial Adviser for 18 years and prior to that a Tied Agent for 7 years I would have the experience to assist you.  However I'm now semi retired and act as an Introducer of my previous clients and existing contacts to companies I feel most appropriate to individual circumstances.  Sometimes you need to seek out the right contract (Investment etc) and then find the right provider for that product. With an Independent you should find both within the same company as long as the advice is appropriate to your circumstance.  Most of my contacts are in the UK but I am now establishing additional contacts in France to refer interested parties.

I commute monthly to France spending about equal time in both countries, working in the UK and having unpaid work for SWMBO in France!!

If I can be of assistance then please advise.

 

David J

 

 

[mint]

david

thanks!  i have emailed you

[cooperlola]

I have to say that our "free" appointment with Siddals was of no use to us as they were more keen in advising on investments (where they get their money from) than tax etc.  Our English speaking French accountants are much more use, together with the Notaire.

[mint]

cooperlola

thanks for that reply.  i will not now bother with siddals at all.  it was as i suspected and that was why i posted my query on the forum.

nothing like being prepared, is it?

as someone or other has said, "you are out-thought before you are out-fought"

[cooperlola]

You are welcome.

If you need an accountant, we use

http://www.sfpn.com/

No complaints so far.  We do everything by post, e-mail and phone so the location has not been a problem to us.  We talk to a lady called Angela Francois in the Caen office.  She is English speaking.

[mint]

cooperlola

thanks, for a second time.  truly!

cheers

[Llwyncelyn]

Sorry I obviously went down the incorrect route.  However before coming to France we took advice from some would say the best provincial lawyers in Bristol.  The advice was given in Bristol and thus is based upon UK Law.  We are happy to date but also have relied upon a superb Accountant her and who is accredited to the Court of Appeal in Caen.  He speaks English too.

My brother still lives in Porth and I am ringing him later on something else so will ask about Dr Barron

 

rdgs

 

 

[Deimos]

I telephoned the company ages before planning to move and offered to either pay a fee for advice or do it on commission for investments made (as they preferred). They said to contact them nearer when I was moving. So I called them regularly and was always told "nearer the time" and then I moved and gave-up. After all, then it was an international call and there seemed little point living in France and using a UK based company !!

There were certainly not keen on providing advice - I was not seeking free advice and there was a decent capital sum to be invested. Cannot say if what advice they give is any good as I never got any (but also I never had to pay them for it either !!).

Ian

[Just Katie]

Sweet 17,

If you feel comfortable about posting your financial situation on the forum, might I suggest there are members here who give very good advice.  Also, because the advice is objective , your problem should be solved in a few posts. 

If advice given is incorrect, we usually see someone jumping in to give the correct advice.  (And it's free.....Ssshhh[:D

[Quillan]

[quote user="Just Katie "]

Sweet 17,

If you feel comfortable about posting your financial situation on the forum, might I suggest there are members here who give very good advice.  Also, because the advice is objective , your problem should be solved in a few posts. 

If advice given is incorrect, we usually see someone jumping in to give the correct advice.  (And it's free.....Ssshhh[:D

[/quote]

And what do you do if in 3 years time you loose all your money because of bad advice given on an internet forum by people who you really know nothing about and probably have no professional qualifications and are not members of any professional association either here or in England.

My advice is ALWAYS see a professional in matters of Finance and Law and I certainly wouldn’t invest my life savings on what somebody tells me in a internet forum, not even this one as good as it is.

Can I also say that this forum is in the public domain, by that I mean anyone can read it even those that are not members. So under no circumstances should you ever post highly personal information here such as your financial details.

If you are going to use a independent advisor in the UK (and lets face it it’s where you will get the best return on your money at present compared to France) then you can check their status (with the FSA) which can be done by visiting http://www.fsa.gov.uk/Pages/register/ which has a portal through to their registry or if you want you can phone them.

I also found http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/4205333.stm which gives some basic advice on the types of qualifications needed to give advice on specific types of investments.

 

[cooperlola]

I agree, Quillan, use an expert for the big stuff - it's an important point - your future is a stake.  Also, often unless you read every post in a thread very carefully, it is easy to miss some salient points amongst the off-topic stuff at times.  But it is useful for finding good sites and recomendations, the personal experiences of people on here with the various "experts" is quite telling on occasions!  Also, certain posters are really up to date with their info and you get to know whom these are quite quickly.

[hastobe]

I agree with Quillan's comments.  Whilst some of the advice here is excellent others is, at best, dubious.  I am a qualified tax accountant with 20 years experience (and I spend a lot of my time advising on international tax / cross border transactions) but I will no longer post tax advice here - firstly because people present such sketchy information it is difficult (if not impossible) to advise, and secondly, because when you do proffer advice it is invariable shouted down by someone who often has only limited or anecdotal experience.  Anyone who seeks detailed advice via the internet for something as important as this is daft (imho).  You get what you pay for.

Kathie

[Deimos]

One question. In the UK there are certain organisations those offering financial advice are members of, organisations that determine procedures, practices, etc. - supposedly to ensure you get decent professional advice from somebody who knows what they are talking about. Are there similar organisations for people offering financial advice in France ? i.e. how does one know that somebody offering financial advice actually has any experience and that their main job is not doing plumbing on the black ? Any IFA type organisations and if several, which specialise in what areas ?, etc.

(Talking about French here, not UK based companies - who I from my own experience I am somewhat cynical about).

Ian

[Just Katie]

Sorry guys, I think you have got me wrong there. 

What I meant is should the OPs query be a simple tax or pension matter there are experts on the forum who can and have given sound advice in these more objective areas. 

However, in more complex matters these members would indeed advise on seeking and IFA/accountant.

Speaking from a personal aspect, should I be in this situation, I would indeed take advice from these "expert" members who would point me, as they have others in the past in the right direction.

I have indeed brought this matter up on a thread regarding construction matters before where queries are quite complex. 

 

[mint]

just wish to thank EVERYBODY who has so kindly taken time to consider my query and posted a reply or sent me a pm.  as i see it, what we need advice on include the following:

how best to invest the money we will have after we sell our uk house (some income and some capital growth, i guess)

how best to access our pensions (a mixture of state and private)

how best to word our will (is it best to confine the french will to the french property)

what is the best way to dispose of our assets in order to minimise inheritance tax for our children

i am very keen to get some of these issues sorted out before we finally move over lock, stock and barrel because i understand that once we become french resident, we will no longer have the same flexibility to deal with our financial affairs

i would rather pay for good independent financial advice and, quillan, i am definitely going to be using those links you have provided  

 

[cooperlola]

For your will and inheritance advice, speak to a notaire.  You can find an English speaking one.

http://www.notaires.fr/notaires/notaires.nsf/V_TC_PUB/ENGLISH-HOMEPAGE

[bankruptpete]

Dear Sweet 17. Siddalls are an extremely reputable company in our experience with French and UK registered and qualified advisors. We found the advice they gave excellent and it covered all the issues you are currently facing. We understand that they are legaly responsible for the advice they give and that they offer totaly Independent advice. We received all their recomendations in the form of written advice and the chap that we dealt with organised the notaire for us.

We also took advice from a UK IFA and subsequently found out that what had been suggested to us was entirely inappropriate for our life in france as UK investments whilst appearing to offer higher rates of return offered no protection from french succession rules or taxation (something our UK IFA Knew nothing about whatsoever). In our case had we taken our UK IFA's advice and had one of us died we would have seen a third of our money and a third of our house being passed to our kids/step kids. Furthermore if I had tried to leave any capital for my step daughter she would have had to pay 60% in tax !!! All of this has now thankfully been resolved by using tax free French Investments

My advice is to take qualified advice from a company registered in France such as Siddalls. It is true that much of there work is geared to investments but as this seems to be part of your problem this this could work out fine. As a matter of interest, the guy we used gave us advice well before we ever talked about investments for free and whilst I cant vouch for Siddalls as a whole, the local guy was excellent and very Knowlegable.

The notion that you are trusting non qualified pundits with your capital on the internet is bordering on the riduclous and as a minimum at least speak with an IFA of somekind before taking advice from non insured, non regulated and possibly non qualified individual who will not be around to face the music should things go wrong for even the best intended advice given.

Kind regards.

 

[Chezstevens]

At least BankruptPete, with one post, doesn't work for Siddalls?  However I must agree that taking advice from a bunch of amateurs on something as important as your life savings is ludricous.

A small investment in time and money now may save 1,000s later.  There is also your local AXA etc to question.  Get a spread of ideas from your Bank or Mutual before committing.  Certainly our money is not tied up with one service provider - and I prefer upfront costs payable direct to the advisor rather than your investment being eroded by upfront and annual costs down the line (think of endowment policies). 

[cooperlola]

Your on-line name is reassuring pete!!!![:D]