I Want To Leave Ameriprise

[mikecart1]

Sorry for first post. Quick background:

I'm 25. Have been with Ameriprise for 1.5 years. I know the market is down now and I am willing to admit the major losses are due to that. But I also see how much I am paying in commission fees for who knows what (every month 1 trade equals about $25 in commission). On top of that I got premium fees of $8, and I see both my IRA and VUL dropping in value every month due to market and other fees I can't even understand (I'm an engineer and MBA student currently).

I want your guys opinion of what to do.

I have about $6500 in there with over $3000 in losses from what I can see.

-How do I quit Ameriprise?
-How do I get the money out? (I prefer to just get it in my bank account for now as I'm done with Financial Advisors for now)
-I still have 401K at work.

-Also, is it possible to transfer the money to another site and let me do what I want with it?

I feel like the guy that got screwed over in Boiler Room.

 

[FIREd]

I was once "raped" by Ameriprise too...

For the IRA: Roll it over to the brokerage company of your choice. It's better to do it that way rather than transferring the money to your bank account, because if you do the latter you'll owe income taxes + 10% in penalties on the money you take out of your IRA. The way to do it: Open a rollover IRA at another brokerage company (I like Vanguard, but other companies like Schwab, Etrade, TD Ameritrade, Fidelity would work too), give them your account number at Ameriprise and let them handle the transfer. It's a pretty simple procedure. Once the money is transferred to your new account, you can invest it however you want.

For the VUL: close your account and cash in your policy. You probably won't have to pay any taxes on the proceeds since you seemed to have lost money, but you will be hit by surrender charges (look at your statement to see how much money you will lose). If the account was open recently, the surrender charges might be pretty steep.

 

[mikecart1]

So I gotta open a Vanguard account and IRA?

How does this stuff go down? I want to get my advisor fee of $500 refunded too and I saw and printed out the form. We got a meeting set up next month (regular meeting, advisor has no idea of what is going on).

Do I just go "here I wanted this form completed" and hand him the Cancellation and Refund request? Like what is the process and what should I do now? Do they have the ability to say no? I know the advisor will try to talk me out of it, but I am afraid I may lose it on the spot and wind up getting physical or start shouting or something. (I am not happy right now LOL).

Thanks for help!

I was once "raped" by Ameriprise too...

For the IRA: Roll it over to the brokerage company of your choice. It's better to do it that way rather than transferring the money to your bank account, because if you do the latter you'll owe income taxes + 10% in penalties on the money you take out of your IRA. The way to do it: Open a rollover IRA at another brokerage company (I like Vanguard, but other companies like Schwab would work too), give them your account number at Ameriprise and let them handle the transfer. It's a pretty simple procedure. Once the money is transferred to your new account, you can invest it however you want.

For the VUL: close your account and cash in your policy. You probably won't have to pay any taxes on the proceeds since you seemed to have lost money, but you will be hit by surrender charges (look at your statement to see how much money you will lose). If the account was open recently, the surrender charges might be pretty steep.

 

[FIREd]

Let's say you want to roll over your IRA to Vanguard. Call Vanguard and ask them to open a Rollover IRA for you (At Vanguard, you actually don't need to open a brokerage account to do a rollover IRA). They will ask you where the money currently is. Give them the Ameriprise account number and they will handle the transfer for you. In all likelihood, you won't even have to notify your financial advisor about the transfer. Also note that Vanguard is a great place to invest if you are interested in mutual funds. But if you are interested in stocks, bonds, ETFs or other investments, it's probably best to go with Schwab, Etrade, TD Ameritrade, etc... Give them a call, tell them you want to open a rollover IRA and let them guide you through the process. It's pretty easy.

As far as getting your $500 back, the only thing I could advise you to do is keep your cool and calmly explain the situation to your financial advisor. There is no doubt he will try to change your mind, but politely stand your grounds and ask for your money back. As far as I know, there is no guarantee you will get your $500 back. But he can't refuse to close your accounts.

 

[mikecart1]

Let's say you want to roll over your IRA to Vanguard. Call Vanguard and ask them to open a Rollover IRA for you (At Vanguard, you actually don't need to open a brokerage account to do a rollover IRA). They will ask you where the money currently is. Give them the Ameriprise account number and they will handle the transfer for you. In all likelihood, you won't even have to notify your financial advisor about the transfer. Also note that Vanguard is a great place to invest if you are interested in mutual funds. But if you are interested in stocks, bonds, ETFs or other investments, it's probably best to go with Schwab, Etrade, TD Ameritrade, etc... Give them a call, tell them you want to open a rollover IRA and let them guide you through the process. It's pretty easy.

As far as getting your $500 back, the only thing I could advise you to do is keep your cool and calmly explain the situation to your financial advisor. There is no doubt he will try to change your mind, but politely stand your grounds and ask for your money back. As far as I know, there is no guarantee you will get your $500 back. But he can't refuse to close your accounts.

Thanks for help!

 

[bks]

My understanding is you have 60days to reinvest funds to avoid the 10 + tax penalties. I actually had my rollover mailed to my address and then forwarded the check to Vanguard IRA to avoid the institution to institution transfer fee.

 

[OAG]

That is very true. We needed a 45 day "loan" back in 05 and that was the route we went. Neat and simple - but do not miss the 60 days (think maybe 50) rule or you may regret it - this IRS will not.

 

[NW-Bound]

I got an Ameriprise brokerage account since 1998 (or was it 1999), when they first opened their online operation. Initially, I got 10 trades/month for free. They have raised that to $4 per trade, still limited to 10 trades/month at that price. As I am not a daytrader, that is more than I need. There are no other charges.

The above was "grandfather'ed" to earlier accounts. They do not offer that deal anymore. They have called a few times, leaving messages on my answering machine, apparently wanting to offer more "services". I never call back.

As long as I still have the $4 per trade, I am keeping this Ameriprise account.

 

[samclem]

But I also see how much I am paying in commission fees for who knows what (every month 1 trade equals about $25 in commission).

The good news is that you understand the importance of reducing your cost of investing. The light only comes on for many folks after they've been investing for decades, and their "tuition" costs a lot more than you've paid--both in fees to brokers and "advisors" and to cap gains taxes they have to pay in order to exit high cost funds.

Regarding the refund of your $500: Maybe take a look at the contract and see if there's anything there you can use. You are right, everyone will try to persuade you to stay with Ameriprise--don't do it. Even if you lose the $500, you're still money ahead. I'd make them work for the $500--find out who regulates them (SIPC? A state agency?) and let those in the meeting know you'll be writing some registered letters. Then follow through, with a copy to Ameriprise.

 

[kyounge1956]

Also, if you have had automatic deposits going from your bank to your Ameriprise account, remember to discontinue them or switch then over to your new account. I'm another shortly-to-be- former Ameriprise customer, waiting for surrender charges to go down so I can get the money from my VA out of their clutches. Then we'll go our separate ways.

 

[mikecart1]

I kind of understand at what I should be getting from my IRA when I roll it over to Vanguard. Right now the value of it in Ameriprise is about $4700. When it rolls over with fees or whatever I should have at least $4000?

My VUL at Ameriprise is about $1500. It says surrender value is -$157. What does that mean? I have invested $2500 in this POS and the value is cut by $1000 and then the surrender value which I assume is the value I get if I cash it out now is only $157? or -$157? I'm about to get hostile if this is true. I am ****in pissed to the max more than ever in my life. You could shoot me and I would be more pissed about this portfolio.

 

[brewer12345]

I kind of understand at what I should be getting from my IRA when I roll it over to Vanguard. Right now the value of it in Ameriprise is about $4700. When it rolls over with fees or whatever I should have at least $4000?

My VUL at Ameriprise is about $1500. It says surrender value is -$157. What does that mean? I have invested $2500 in this POS and the value is cut by $1000 and then the surrender value which I assume is the value I get if I cash it out now is only $157? or -$157? I'm about to get hostile if this is true. I am ****in pissed to the max more than ever in my life. You could shoot me and I would be more pissed about this portfolio.

Dunno what you will have once you roll it over; it depends on the fees as levied in your contract. Is the IRA invested in mutual funds or in a variable annuity? And while I know Vanguard is popular here, I would put in a good word for Schwab. They are pretty good when it comes to service, something I am not sure is always the case with VG.

As for the VUL, that is telling you that the surrender charges would be larger than your cash value, so it would be a total loss. Can't imagine they would force you to bring money to the table to cancel the policy, but I suppose anything is possible with these clowns.

But a piece of advice: consider yourself as having bought a piece of valuable knowledge on the cheap this time.

 

[Free To Canoe]

If you "transfer in kind" when you remove your IRA, you can have the mutual funds moved without selling them and perhaps saving on fees Ameriprise would charge for redemption of the funds.

Free

 

[mikecart1]

So to cancel the VUL I have to pay them money? This is absolutely BS! WTF! That is $2500+$157 down the drain! There is no way at all to get any of this back?

Dunno what you will have once you roll it over; it depends on the fees as levied in your contract. Is the IRA invested in mutual funds or in a variable annuity? And while I know Vanguard is popular here, I would put in a good word for Schwab. They are pretty good when it comes to service, something I am not sure is always the case with VG.

As for the VUL, that is telling you that the surrender charges would be larger than your cash value, so it would be a total loss. Can't imagine they would force you to bring money to the table to cancel the policy, but I suppose anything is possible with these clowns.

But a piece of advice: consider yourself as having bought a piece of valuable knowledge on the cheap this time.

 

[brewer12345]

So to cancel the VUL I have to pay them money? This is absolutely BS! WTF! That is $2500+$157 down the drain! There is no way at all to get any of this back?

I wouldmake it clear that you have no intention of giving them any more money, assuming you choose to cancel the policy.

But let's takde a step back. Why did you buy this policy in the first place? Is teh death benefit important to you? You have already suffered the beating, so it might make sense to stick around for the benefits.

 

[mikecart1]

I wouldmake it clear that you have no intention of giving them any more money, assuming you choose to cancel the policy.

But let's takde a step back. Why did you buy this policy in the first place? Is teh death benefit important to you? You have already suffered the beating, so it might make sense to stick around for the benefits.

What benefits? I don't get the benefits until I am like 65 or something. Actually I don't even get them. I only receive the 250K policy if I live to 100. It is total BS. I was screwed over. Partly my fault. But I'm ready to give a beating to someone.

I guess the only thing I can say to myself is "fail fast so you can succeed sooner". Never did that phrase hold more true than now.

 

[brewer12345]

What benefits? I don't get the benefits until I am like 65 or something. Actually I don't even get them. I only receive the 250K policy if I live to 100. It is total BS. I was screwed over. Partly my fault. But I'm ready to give a beating to someone.

More simply: do you have any dependents?

 

[FinanceDude]

I wouldmake it clear that you have no intention of giving them any more money, assuming you choose to cancel the policy.

But let's takde a step back. Why did you buy this policy in the first place? Is teh death benefit important to you? You have already suffered the beating, so it might make sense to stick around for the benefits.

I think he was sold on the "here's a life insurance policy that will make you a ton of money when you are older" strategy.........

 

[brewer12345]

I think he was sold on the "here's a life insurance policy that will make you a ton of money when you are older" strategy.........

Sounds like it, but after you have already spent the money it is worth finding out if you have any value there before you make a decision.

 

[mikecart1]

I think he was sold on the "here's a life insurance policy that will make you a ton of money when you are older" strategy.........

Yeah

 

[FIREd]

Unfortunately, with VUL policies, the sooner you redeem them after signing up, the more you lose in surrender charges. In your case, I am sorry to say, it seems like a total loss. So you have 2 options: close it now or keep it open for another 8-9 years so that you don't have to pay the surrender charges. In the mean time, if you keep it open and if you are married and/or have children, the VUL would provide death benefits in case something happens to you (it's a life insurance policy after all). If you don't have a wife and/or kids, then you don't need a life insurance policy and you should probably get rid of the VUL now.

Can you get any money back? Well if you can prove that you were misled by your financial advisor, you could have a claim. I don't know if I would bother for such a small amount of money though.

Better walk away having learned a valuable lesson. That's what I did. I am now a staunch DIYer when it comes to my finances.

 

[Bestwifeever]

a. First of all, you're a young person and I give you the utmost respect for having started saving. I'm embarrassed to think what DH and I were doing with our money at your age; pouring it right back into other people's pockets, I believe.

b. The amounts involved are virtually immaterial in the long run--don't sweat this relatively small stuff. I agree with those who suggest you just let the VUL be. I would contact Vanguard, Schwab, Fidelity, whatever, set up an IRA account with them, and let them transfer the other $ from Ameriprise.

c. I hope you can get the $500 fee or whatever waived. If not, you probably will be able to be part of some future class action lawsuit against Ameriprise when you least expect it--you might not recover much then, but you'll get a little psychological satisfaction at that point.

 

[mikecart1]

Thanks everyone. I am going to call Vanguard tomorrow.

As far as the VUL, if I leave it there, do I still need to fund it? Basically I can't just let the $1500+ or so in there sit and see where it goes without adding more to it?

 

[FIREd]

Thanks everyone. I am going to call Vanguard tomorrow.

As far as the VUL, if I leave it there, do I still need to fund it? Basically I can't just let the $1500+ or so in there sit and see where it goes without adding more to it?

At this point, if you don't want to lose all the money you have in the VUL, you have 2 options:

1) Until now, you sent money to Ameriprise each month to pay for the life insurance premium + add money to the investment pot. You can stop funding the investment portion (you can change the amount you invest anytime as per the word "variable" in VUL) and just pay for the life insurance premium if you choose. In that case, the life insurance policy won't lapse, but you won't contribute any more money to the cash value of the policy. The $1,500 will be left to move with the market and in 8-9 years, you can get take the cash value out (whatever it is at the time) without paying any surrender charges.

2) You could potentially stop funding the VUL all together and start paying the life insurance premiums using the cash value in the policy (check your policy to see if this option is available to you. I can't remember if you can use this option before surrender charges expire) . When the cash value is gone, your life insurance policy lapses. If that option is available, it will allow you to use the $1,500 to pay for a year or two worth of life insurance coverage and get out of the policy with relatively little money lost.

 

[dessert]

So I gotta open a Vanguard account and IRA?

How does this stuff go down? I want to get my advisor fee of $500 refunded too and I saw and printed out the form. We got a meeting set up next month (regular meeting, advisor has no idea of what is going on).

Do I just go "here I wanted this form completed" and hand him the Cancellation and Refund request? Like what is the process and what should I do now?

Mikecart1, according to the "Client Disclosure Brochure" you should have, here is copy from page 14:
"If you decide not to continue with AFPS you may cancel the service at any time. To cancel you can simply stop paying the annual fee or complete the form described below. You will be eligible for a refund of the fees you have paid during the current engagement period as described above".
I say just mail it in and call the number that is listed and let them know that the form is coming and that you want a refund.
It should work. (Don't ask me how I know.)