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How Well do You Really Know Someone?

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Jason Zweig and Andrea Fuller report for The Wall Street Journal that there are deficiencies in one of the most popular tools for finding help with investments online. They write:

Many people seeking a financial adviser begin their search at LetsMakeAPlan.org, a directory operated by the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Inc.

The Board, which controls the CFP label coveted by financial planners, boasts of its high standards and has touted its directory of professionals as a place where people can find a screened, skilled and trustworthy financial planner.

What they won’t find there is any indication that thousands of the planners bearing the board’s seal of approval have had customer complaints or faced criminal or regulatory problems—often directly related to their work with clients. More than 60 have filed for bankruptcy within the past decade although the website says they haven’t disclosed such an event in the last 10 years.

The LetsMakeAPlan.org site has been presenting more than 6,300 planners without showing such problems even though the planners have disclosed them to the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, according to a Wall Street Journal analysis of more than 72,000 profiles on the website.

Even with sites like LetsMakeAPlan.org available, investors are left in the dark about whom they can trust with their life savings. To give yourself a head start on finding a trustworthy investment guide, follow my most important rule “always, always want to work with a registered investment advisor.”

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E.J. Smith - Your Survival Guy

E.J. Smith is Founder of YourSurvivalGuy.com, Managing Director at Richard C. Young & Co., Ltd., a Managing Editor of Richardcyoung.com, and Editor-in-Chief of Youngresearch.com. His focus at all times is on preparing clients and readers for “Times Like These.” E.J. graduated from Babson College in Wellesley, Massachusetts, with a B.S. in finance and investments. In 1995, E.J. began his investment career at Fidelity Investments in Boston before joining Richard C. Young & Co., Ltd. in 1998. E.J. has trained at Sig Sauer Academy in Epping, NH. His first drum set was a 5-piece Slingerland with Zildjians. He grew-up worshiping Neil Peart (RIP) of the band Rush, and loves the song Tom Sawyer—the name of his family’s boat, a Grady-White Canyon 306. He grew up in Mattapoisett, MA, an idyllic small town on the water near Cape Cod. He spends time in Newport, RI and Bartlett, NH—both as far away from Wall Street as one could mentally get. The Newport office is on a quiet, tree lined street not far from the harbor and the log cabin in Bartlett, NH, the “Live Free or Die” state, sits on the edge of the White Mountain National Forest. He enjoys spending time in Key West (RIP JB) and Paris. Please get in touch with E.J. at ejsmith@yoursurvivalguy.com To sign up for my free monthly Survive & Thrive letter, click here.

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