Fidelity Private Client vs Schwab Intelligent Portfolio Service

[mathjak107]

we always enjoy meeting with our fidelity rep ,even if it is to chat. last year we were the guinea pigs for fidelity's new in house software for optimizing social security.

i was actually impressed with the level of complexity the software came up with .

 

[gayl]

i was actually impressed with the level of complexity the software came up with .

and that's the thing. If you input the correct figures, the software puts out the correct analysis. But GIGO

 

[gayl]

Went in & met with a 'kid' (20s?) brand new to the field. He simplified accounts into: retirement, brokerage, cash which I'm not used to but not only did he LISTEN, he also got the data right inc projected total / after tax RMD @ 70.5, low balled portfolio assumptions (better safe than sorry), portfolio analysis, upped projected increase on skilled nursing facilities @ current industry average. Bottom line: I'm fine

I know there's benefits to the A Team but I just want the correct Monte Carlo analysis.

 

[mathjak107]

and that's the thing. If you input the correct figures, the software puts out the correct analysis. But GIGO

the social security optimization software was just released last year so we asked our rep about being the guinea pigs .

they got someone from that group down to meet with us and our fidelity rep .

the software did a pretty good job of optimizing the dollars .

you can then input that into the fidelity RIP (their on line software ) and run all different scenario's including all your income and portfolio.

we also got invited to a real nice customer appreciation dinner .

our local branch won fidelity's "best customer rated branch ) award .

so they got a pile of money to throw a party for their private access clients . it was a nice ,high end dinner and best of all not one sales speech .

 

[wenglish]

... last year we were the guinea pigs for fidelity's new in house software for optimizing social security...

Is that software in use now? Is it restricted to Private Client?

 

[mathjak107]

i believe it is in use but not sure if it is restricted to private access . you can call your local office and ask

 

[Huston55]

we always enjoy meeting with our fidelity rep ,even if it is to chat. last year we were the guinea pigs for fidelity's new in house software for optimizing social security.

i was actually impressed with the level of complexity the software came up with .

Are there multiple SS tools on the Fido website? I’m a Fido PC customer & the SS tool I found seems simplistic.

 

[mathjak107]

the ss optimizer is an in house only .

it is only ss and very detailed .

as an example the biggest bang for us that it came up with is :

my wife is 67 and i am 65. she started collecting at 62 .

so when we did it two years ago the plan was she stops collecting at fra . she lets hers grow to 70 . when she is 70 she resumes , i will be 66-10 months . i file restricted application for 1/2 hers leaving my own to grow .

at 70 i file for mine and she gets a spousal adder to hers .

so that is the kind of stuff it does .

 

[Huston55]

the ss optimizer is an in house only .

it is only ss and very detailed .

as an example the biggest bang for us that it came up with is :

my wife is 67 and i am 65. she started collecting at 62 .

so when we did it two years ago the plan was she stops collecting at fra . she lets hers grow to 70 . when she is 70 she resumes , i will be 66-10 months . i file restricted application for 1/2 hers leaving my own to grow .

at 70 i file for mine and she gets a spousal adder to hers .

so that is the kind of stuff it does .

In house only as in with the FIDO rep at the B&M office only?

 

[mathjak107]

no , in house at our local office where our rep is

 

[Huston55]

Yep, that’s what I meant (B&M=Brick & Mortar). Thx!

 

[CRLLS]

How does the Fidelity SS optimizer work? Every optimizer that I have seen requires one to enter an End of Life date, which is just a guess. For every terminal date, there is a different "optimization". Maybe there is something new?

 

[Mulligan]

Keep in mind that in most cases you can transfer your positions "in kind" and have no taxable event to report. About the only thing Fido will not take are thinly traded positions, and proprietary funds that some hedge funds use,

Steve, Do you know why there is such problems with brokerages accepting transfers of thinly traded issues? Why do they care what you own or dont. Especially when they allow you to buy and sell them on their platform anyways. It makes no sense to me. Where is their dog in the hunt on this? I have had a few friends encounter problems with this. One had to threaten to move his whole portfolio before they caved and allowed it.

 

[Mark4kids]

Fidelity

I have been a fidelity Private client member for years but feel the last several have really sucked.I use to get invited to member appreciation dinners and would get a call from my rep every 6 months.The last 3 years I have had 3 different advisors . I called and complained about my last one and the manager switched to another one. I email questions and never get a response. " call the private client line". I got hold of my old agent who moved up to the $10,000,000 clients. I complained and he said he would get in touch with the supervisor. She never got back to me. Thinking of switching to Schwab. Anyone have better experience. I do all my own investing and primarily own stocks, Buy and hold so I figured I don't generate a lot of money for Fidelity even if I have 3 -529's my retirement account and my personal account all with Fidelity.

 

[OldShooter]

... Thinking of switching to Schwab. Anyone have better experience. I do all my own investing and primarily own stocks, Buy and hold ...

Well, we have seven figures with Schwab and I have been with them at least 15 years. I am a buy & hold passive investor, so don't generate a lot of income for them either. The way it used to work was that the rep called me once a year and every two or three years I'd get a letter introducing my new rep and that rep would call me. All have been very responsive to my rare and minimal needs. I have had my current rep for maybe five years and have a good relationship. I did set him up to pitch a nonprofit's investment committee that I was involved with. He didn't get the deal, but I may get a little extra attention because of it. He has also told me that I know more about the overall market and about his business than any other client. So that probably helps too. A few months ago DW got fed up with her former megabank employer and moved her IRA to Schwab. Bill, the rep, was very helpful and attentive on that deal.

So, bottom line I am happy but I have always believed and continue to believe that it is more about the individual rep than it is about the firm.

Switching cost is high for investment accounts, not the dollars but the hassles. If I were you I'd contact the Fido office manager, tell him/her about your unhappiness, and ask to interview at least two reps who might be a good fit for you. Also, if there is more than one Fido office in visiting range for you I would interview reps at the other office as well. Then maybe you can avoid the grief of switching. Or ... if you want to go to Schwab I'd do basically the same thing; work with the manager so he/she knows a little about you and what you need, then interview at least two candidate reps.

 

[MRG]

..snip..

So, bottom line I am happy but I have always believed and continue to believe that it is more about the individual rep than it is about the firm.

Switching cost is high for investment accounts, not the dollars but the hassles. If I were you I'd contact the Fido office manager, tell him/her about your unhappiness, and ask to interview at least two reps who might be a good fit for you. Also, if there is more than one Fido office in visiting range for you I would interview reps at the other office as well. Then maybe you can avoid the grief of switching. Or ... if you want to go to Schwab I'd do basically the same thing; work with the manager so he/she knows a little about you and what you need, then interview at least two candidate reps.

Glad you're happy with Schwab.

I listened to the upstream advice and called the Fidelity branch manager. Talked to him twice over several months. First time he said he'd talk to me in a month with a new rep. After 3 months of crickets I called him back. His new response was to call the 800 number. So no more specific rep. Probably okay if they're going to pitch annuities.

Bottom line, if you're happy with Fidelity great. Good luck if you're new, or you have a new rep.

 

[OldShooter]

... His new response was to call the 800 number. So no more specific rep. ...

Last year I interviewed both Fidelity and Schwab branch managers in preparation for an adult ed investing class I teach.

Both firms (and certainly most of the others) offer service tiers based on the size of the clients' accounts. Very small accounts are given only the web site and the unattended robot. As the accounts get larger, they get reps to answer questions but the reps are not dedicated to the customer. IIRC Fidelity's threshold for getting an assigned rep is $100K and Schwab's is $250K. (Don't take those numbers as gospel. If you need to know, ask them.) Then there are certainly asset tiers above that and there are also fee options for an attended robot and real meat-based advisors.

So @MRG, maybe the manager (rightly or wrongly) thought you should be in a lower tier than the one where you get an assigned person.

 

[eytonxav]

I use Fidelity and manage my own investments. I really like their web based tools, research, and ease in purchasing various investments like CDs, individual bonds, etc. I do have access to an advisor, as well as other Fidelity Specialists should I choose to engage them in a discussion. I have never been pressured from any of their advisors, and they are happy to sit down with me anytime I want to bounce something off them or have questions about different offerings.

I also have a few investments at Vanguard, TRP and Wells Fargo, but have been pulling everything away from WF.

 

[MRG]

Last year I interviewed both Fidelity and Schwab branch managers in preparation for an adult ed investing class I teach.

Both firms (and certainly most of the others) offer service tiers based on the size of the clients' accounts. Very small accounts are given only the web site and the unattended robot. As the accounts get larger, they get reps to answer questions but the reps are not dedicated to the customer. IIRC Fidelity's threshold for getting an assigned rep is $100K and Schwab's is $250K. (Don't take those numbers as gospel. If you need to know, ask them.) Then there are certainly asset tiers above that and there are also fee options for an attended robot and real meat-based advisors.

So @MRG, maybe the manager (rightly or wrongly) thought you should be in a lower tier than the one where you get an assigned person.

Well there's been over a million in fidelity assets in those accounts for 10 years. Maybe the benchmark changed and they didn't tell me.

 

[Dtail]

I use Fidelity and manage my own investments. I really like their web based tools, research, and ease in purchasing various investments like CDs, individual bonds, etc. I do have access to an advisor, as well as other Fidelity Specialists should I choose to engage them in a discussion. I have never been pressured from any of their advisors, and they are happy to sit down with me anytime I want to bounce something off them or have questions about different offerings.

I also have a few investments at Vanguard, TRP and Wells Fargo, but have been pulling everything away from WF.

+1
This is my exact experience with Fidelity.

 

[Jimmie]

I have been a fidelity Private client member for years but feel the last several have really sucked.I use to get invited to member appreciation dinners and would get a call from my rep every 6 months.The last 3 years I have had 3 different advisors . I called and complained about my last one and the manager switched to another one. I email questions and never get a response. " call the private client line". I got hold of my old agent who moved up to the $10,000,000 clients. I complained and he said he would get in touch with the supervisor. She never got back to me. Thinking of switching to Schwab. Anyone have better experience. I do all my own investing and primarily own stocks, Buy and hold so I figured I don't generate a lot of money for Fidelity even if I have 3 -529's my retirement account and my personal account all with Fidelity.

I'm the one that started this thread. We moved our brokerage account and DW's Inherited IRA account to Schwab. It's funny, we interviewed Fidelity and Schwab and originally decided on Fidelity. The Fidelity FA told us everything would transfer "in-kind", no issues at all, and we liked him and felt he was a good match. However, he told us at the very last minute when we dropped off the transfer paperwork that we would have to sell our Vanguard & American shares first, as Fidelity wouldn't take those. That meant a significant cap gain we would have to swallow and was a non-starter for us. Needless to say, we were a tad angry at wasting our time by not being open and honest when we first discussed transferring account to Fidelity (we gave him list of securities at the initial meeting).

The Schwab transfer was super easy, with weekly updates from our new FA on the transfer process, and happened faster than expected, considering it was a manual transfer from firm we were dealing with. Schwab gave us a $2500 promo award due to the size of our transfer and reimbursed the transfer fees. We decided to not sign up for the robotrading or Private Client service and just do our own trading.

Our Schwab FA stays in touch by sending topics of interest and notices of local seminars they host. She insists on semi-annual checkups. We are very pleased so far. DW is so pleased she's transferring her Inherited IRA from Fidelity to same at Schwab to consolidate the two accounts. Hopefully the great service will continue. I'm also extremely happy to keep the management fee in my pocket our previous firm was charging!

Good luck with your decision.

 

[retired1]

Personally, I like Schwab website plus service. They have a new lineup of index funds with expense ratios less than vanguard & fidelity. 2nd best I like is Vanguard... they have better offerings in my opinion especially for balanced funds.

 

[DrRoy]

I use Fidelity and manage my own investments. I really like their web based tools, research, and ease in purchasing various investments like CDs, individual bonds, etc. I do have access to an advisor, as well as other Fidelity Specialists should I choose to engage them in a discussion. I have never been pressured from any of their advisors, and they are happy to sit down with me anytime I want to bounce something off them or have questions about different offerings.

+1

Our Schwab FA stays in touch by sending topics of interest and notices of local seminars they host. She insists on semi-annual checkups.

I have had 2 Fidelity reps over 10+ years and they have both been good. I get the service that you are getting from Schwab. Maybe this is like cars, you can get good ones or bad ones.