As with a marriage, no one ever enters into a relationship with an advisor with the expectation that they will leave the advisor for someone else, or to manage their investments on their own. Unfortunately, sometimes it becomes necessary to stop working with an advisor and begin working with a different advisor, or to even start managing assets without help. This doesn’t happen too often, and the reasons for it occurring vary.

The stock market and economy has been a roller coaster ride throughout 2022. The stock market has had huge ups and downs, and investors are experiencing increased inflation, increased fuel costs, and a struggling economy. Logic would think that this would be enough to make investors pessimistic about their financial future, yet many investors are not.

Financial literacy is a hot topic among financial service providers. Every financial website has different levels of financial education and provides different types of education. These educational resources are helpful for investors to become more financially literate, but are they meeting all of the educational needs investors have regarding financial topics?

The Inflation Reduction Act infused $80 billion dollars into the Internal Revenue Service, likely resulting in a significant increase in regulatory oversight. This increase in tax scrutiny should cause investors to consider their estate distribution plan to ensure minimum tax liability. Has the trust industry seen a change in the number of accounts or assets in the past few years as a result of the increase in oversight?

As the U.S. mid-term elections approach, advisors should be aware of the attitudes of their clients and prospects during this volatile time economically and for the markets.  Many of the issues facing affluent investors are reflected in voters of all types in the U.S.

One of the most effective ways to increase assets under management and to deepen relationships with customers is to ask clients to consolidate their assets with your firm.  While there are some investors that will never consolidate their assets with just one firm, there are some surprising opportunities available for those advisors who will “Just Ask” their clients to do so.