My husband and I are a two doc couple who have invested with a particular financial advisor because they deal primarily in DFA funds. We have now amassed a portfolio there valued at over $1.3 mil, but even with low AUM fees of 42 basis points, this amounts to about $6k+ annually. This company uses TD Ameritrade Instititutional, so all our $1.3 mil is actually with TDA. I was thinking about switching to an advisor with fixed fees. They stated that with our complexity, we would be about $2500-$3000 annually.
Then I read the WCI blog post today, telling me to be confident! And that is making me think that I possibly don't need anyone at all, except for occasional advice.
However, my problem is that most of my money with our advisor is in DFA funds, and thus I would need an advisor who is authorized to deal with DFA funds to help me manage these funds, right? If I were to drop my current advisor and start managing this $ myself, I would have to liquidate all the DFA $ pretty much all at once, subjecting us to a ton of capital gains tax. Is this correct?
If correct, what would you suggest? I was thinking I would switch to a fixed fee advisor who deals with DFA funds and gradually move out of DFA funds over the next few years. Then I could eventually just start managing my own $ if I wanted.
Any thoughts and suggestions?
Thanks!
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