Share your Worst Primerica Story.............

[youbet]

Quote:

Originally Posted by FinanceDude Yet guys like me get "lumped in" with "part-time advisors" like that..........

Of course........

[mickeyd]

Quote:

They sold 8.5% loaded mutual funds and they encouraged doing it door to door.

And the reps that were not NASD series 6 or 7 sold high commission annuities along with the term insurance.

Quote:

I was shocked when they were acquired by Travelors Group (right?)

Why? Are you assuming that Travelers is somehow more ethical than AL Williams Primerica? Same agents, different business cards.

[FinanceDude]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mickeyd And the reps that were not NASD series 6 or 7 sold high commission annuities along with the term insurance.

I guess Travelers gets a freebie on having to supervise their life agents.....

Quote:

Why? Are you assuming that Travelers is somehow more ethical than AL Williams Primerica? Same agents, different business cards.

Good point............

[FinanceDude]

Quote:

Originally Posted by youbet Of course........

Why should I get lumped in with unlicensed folks selling "buy term and invest the difference"?

[youbet]

Quote:

Originally Posted by FinanceDude Why should I get lumped in with unlicensed folks selling "buy term and invest the difference"?

Because used car salesmen, lawyers, snake handling evangelists and "FA's" (whether licensed or not, honest or not, trustworthy or not) get categorized and must live with the consequences of their career decisions. Why do you keep trying to wiggle out of it

[saluki9]

Quote:

Originally Posted by youbet Because used car salesmen, lawyers, snake handling evangelists and "FA's" (whether licensed or not, honest or not, trustworthy or not) get categorized and must live with the consequences of their career decisions. Why do you keep trying to wiggle out of it

Wow, just wow!

I'm so sorry my career choice doesn't meet your standards of respectability

"My name is Mike, and I make a living managing other people's assets"

[brewer12345]

Quote:

Originally Posted by saluki9 Wow, just wow! I'm so sorry my career choice doesn't meet your standards of respectability "My name is Mike, and I make a living managing other people's assets"

Just be happy you get to include a "t" in the last word.

[saluki9]

Quote:

Originally Posted by brewer12345 Just be happy you get to include a "t" in the last word.

Don't be so sure of that. I went to a bachelor party this weekend.

It seems like there is a better living to be made in managing asses

[FinanceDude]

Quote:

Originally Posted by youbet Because used car salesmen, lawyers, snake handling evangelists and "FA's" (whether licensed or not, honest or not, trustworthy or not) get categorized and must live with the consequences of their career decisions. Why do you keep trying to wiggle out of it

Too bad your world is so limited you can accept that others can do jobs that you yourself cannot......... :

Bottom line, to say ALL lawyers or ALL advisors are the same is a blanket statement, and just because YOU trust noone, does not mean the rest of the world feels the same way............

[FinanceDude]

Quote:

Originally Posted by brewer12345 Just be happy you get to include a "t" in the last word.

That's pretty funny, considering where YOU work............

[youbet]

Quote:

Originally Posted by FinanceDude Too bad your world is so limited you can accept that others can do jobs that you yourself cannot......... :

Did you actually mean this the way you typed it? When I started reading the line, I thought you were about to slam me for not accepting that others can do jobs....... But you say that I do accept that. And that's true, I do!

Quote:

Bottom line, to say ALL lawyers or ALL advisors are the same is a blanket statement, and just because YOU trust noone, does not mean the rest of the world feels the same way............

Ridiculous. I didn't say that I trust none. (Or "noone" as you put it!) I said they get categorized. Perhaps I should have said stereotyped. And I think that for a number of occupations, people are going to have to live with that stereotype, like it or not. Perhaps just learn to take the ribbing with a sense of humor.

Hey, I use lawyers, buy cars from car salesmen and even saw a movie about a snake handling evangelist.

You guys are really sensitive! Lighten up.

[excellent]

Got any World Financial Group stories? I'd be interested. My dad actually joined Primerica a while back and considered becoming a "Financial Adviser" until he realized that paying the high fees and the business model was a complete scam.
Myself... I plan on getting all my licenses and learning how to wisely invest people's money on my own time in places like this. Then go out and help people by being a real FA.

[FinanceDude]

Quote:

Originally Posted by excellent Got any World Financial Group stories? I'd be interested. My dad actually joined Primerica a while back and considered becoming a "Financial Adviser" until he realized that paying the high fees and the business model was a complete scam. Myself... I plan on getting all my licenses and learning how to wisely invest people's money on my own time in places like this. Then go out and help people by being a real FA.

Sure, one of my best friends was in them. She was one of their best people in the MidWest, but got sick of all her clients going to Merrill Lynch or Smith Barney with their "serious money".

[excellent]

You guys/girls say that these MLM's are all corrupt but some of the first things I find on all the other investment companies are the huge settlements they had to reach or penalties they had to pay as the result of skirting the laws... what separates all these companies, who is safe to invest money with?!?! What company should I aim to work for, and is it even doable without my master's in that field?

[FinanceDude]

Quote:

Originally Posted by excellent You guys/girls say that these MLM's are all corrupt but some of the first things I find on all the other investment companies are the huge settlements they had to reach or penalties they had to pay as the result of skirting the laws... what separates all these companies, who is safe to invest money with?!?! What company should I aim to work for, and is it even doable without my master's in that field?

All I can say is do your due diligence. Primerica paid some settlements to the govt too. WFG hasn't had any lawsuits recently as far as I know.

You don't need a master's degree to manage other people's money.

Most people on here are Vanguard or Fidelity fans. Keep in mind that 99% of the folks on here are "do it your-selfers", and have much skepticism for advisors. I think a lot of them have had a bad experience or two in the past, but you're not going to get much direction on here from them.

If you want the best training, it's hard to beat a big firm like Merrill Lynch or Morgan Stanley. They invest a ton of money in their new hires to help them make it.

I worked at a smaller regional firm when I started (Robert W. Baird), and they were excellent at training. Where I work now (an independent broker-dealer), they won't hire anyone without a book of business and experience.

You might look at bank trust departments or private client services areas and get in through an internship program. There's a lot of areas you can work in without being a direct sales advisor, right brewer??

Good luck, you can PM me if you have further questions.

[spideyrdpd]

The problem is that they call an insurance or stock broker an advisor. Getting the lic. doesnt give you the ability to advise someone. Its like saying your going to allow the used car salesman do engine work on your car . Or do brain surgery

By the way I looked at primerica as well as doing the cfp classes. When you start with primerica you use someone elses lic. but in order to make money you need to get the lic. in insurance and take the exam that allows you to sell mututal funds. The insurance class was I think 2 weekends. Again thats not the problem. The problem is that many of them have no basic financial knowledge. Not that people with Cfps will always give you the best advice .
Finance do you still peek over at the richdad site ?
Rob
Oh as a ps for some people the primerica stuff is probaly a godsend. Since they deal with lower income people who wouldnt ever meet a financial planner otherwise .

[excellent]

Yeah I really want to get my licenses and be knowledgeable about this stuff so I can reach out to those who wouldn't normally even hear about financial advisors. I'm making sure to learn the pros and cons of all the things I carry so that I myself am informed enough not to screw anyone out of their hard earned money, since they'll most likely be middle or lower class families like my own, and I really identify with them.

[mickeyd]

I attended a seminar last week that was sponsored by the Texas State Securities Board ( part of state government). The intro indicated that no companies would be mentioned or recommended as this was just an informational session so folks could "investigate before they invest".

They passed out a bunch of litreature and one piece was a small (44 pages) book written by an "investment councelor" named Sankin. There is a disclaimer sticker on the inside of the cover from the TX Board. I leafed thru the book and found this on page 20 ""One company, Primerica Financial services, which is a division of Citigroup, offers the best value for a professional financial analysis..."

I almost jumped out of my chair after reading that!

After the session ended, I asked the person giving the class (who happens to be the Deputy Securites Commissioner for the state) why this kind of biased info was passed out when the initial introduction indicated that none would. He said "Yes I know that it says that, but most of the other stuff in the book is a pretty good primer for new investors so we decided to distribute it anyway".

So much for unbiased government info.

[excellent]

Probably because agents don't charge anything to sit down with them and they offer things people need like insurance. But if people have lots of money I think they pretty much manage their own pretty well or already have an adviser from one of the more established firms. Still, I'm really surprised that that quip would even be in a governmental pamphlet.

[kumquat]

Quote:

Originally Posted by excellent Yeah I really want to get my licenses and be knowledgeable about this stuff so I can reach out to those who wouldn't normally even hear about financial advisors. I'm making sure to learn the pros and cons of all the things I carry so that I myself am informed enough not to screw anyone out of their hard earned money, since they'll most likely be middle or lower class families like my own, and I really identify with them.

I read your initial post at http://early-retirement.org/forums/i...?topic=10332.0

With all due respect, I'm wondering why you feel that a license makes you qualified to offer financial advice. Most licenses allow you to SELL insurance or mutual funds. Common sense advice like: LBYM, save in tax deferred instruments, save x% of income etc. is easy to provide but hard to charge for. What are you planning to offer?