HarveyS
Full time employment: Posting here.
About a decade ago I was overwhelmed with all my accounts and wanted to simplify my life so I opted to move my investments to Merrill Lynch. I had two very nice advisors and they recommended a variety of investment vehicles I could not get into on my own. One which sounds very much like what you were pitched was an option backed closed end fund that paid 2X any upside, but limited the downside to only 10%. This was done with a complex option strategy that I never understood. I bought several of these over time in something akin to a CD ladder and they performed very well, even after fees, as the market was rising.
I am no longer with ML since I realized after going thru an 86 page monthly statement that the relationship did not simplify my investment life. Then I looked at the fees the relationship as a whole was charging. Finally, one of the advisors told me something that was just plain wrong. When I asked about it, they doubled down and said they were 100% certain they were right. I pulled everything out and back to Fido and TDA where I self manage, save the fees, and trade infrequently so I don't have to look thru massive statements. I use personal capital to consolidate my accounts to see asset allocation and sector weights.
If you like the idea of what the Ameriprise guy is pitching, get details on exactly what it is. It's not super-proprietary regardless of what they tell you. Someone else has a similar product. Then see what Fido, TDA, or ML or JPM would charge for the same type of investment.
I am no longer with ML since I realized after going thru an 86 page monthly statement that the relationship did not simplify my investment life. Then I looked at the fees the relationship as a whole was charging. Finally, one of the advisors told me something that was just plain wrong. When I asked about it, they doubled down and said they were 100% certain they were right. I pulled everything out and back to Fido and TDA where I self manage, save the fees, and trade infrequently so I don't have to look thru massive statements. I use personal capital to consolidate my accounts to see asset allocation and sector weights.
If you like the idea of what the Ameriprise guy is pitching, get details on exactly what it is. It's not super-proprietary regardless of what they tell you. Someone else has a similar product. Then see what Fido, TDA, or ML or JPM would charge for the same type of investment.