Despite the rows of self-help books on display at bookstores, Americans tend to resist one particular type of advice: the financial variety. Despite all the evidence that we could use some pointers — exhibit A, our lack of emergency and retirement savings — a series of recently released surveys suggest that we resist professional tips for our money.
A study of 1,000 adults by TIAA-CREF released last month found that 65 percent of us say we are not interested in getting financial advice. Top reasons include not knowing who to trust, thinking good advice is too expensive and a lack of time to seek out the advice. That last one is particularly concerning, says Eric Jones, senior managing director of advisory solutions at TIAA-CREF. “If there is a decision that is brutally important, it’s understanding where you are for retirement. People spend more time planning their vacation than planning retirement,” he adds.
Jones says people often benefit from receiving financial advice and make better decisions as a result of it. The survey found that receiving financial advice often leads to actions such as making a plan to pay off loans, establishing an emergency fund or directing more money into retirement funds.
[Read: Why Financial Education Might Not Work.]
Similarly, Deloitte’s annual survey on defined contribution plans found relatively low levels of employee engagement. While average retirement account balances have reached an all-time high of $95,000 and more employees are participating (77 percent), some people are still forgoing their company match by failing to sign up for the benefits. “We’re finally seeing the results of a positive economy with account balances growing, but employee engagement is still low,” says Cheryl Ouellette, a manager in the human capital practice of Deloitte.
The takeaway for employees, she says, is to pay attention to your retirement plan — and make sure you’re maxing out any employer match that’s offered. “If you’ve got financial counseling and advice available, use it,” she suggests, adding that it’s often free. Plan sponsors might also offer group meetings instead of just individual counseling, since they seem to appeal to employees.
A survey of 6,015 adults from LIMRA, a financial services industry group, released last month suggests members of Gen Y, at least, might be more open to professional advice in the future. The survey found that 52 percent of Gen Y consumers — individuals ages 18 to 32 — said they do want professional advice when figuring out their life insurance needs. A significant chunk of that demographic — 45 percent — said they were interested in learning more about investing basics, and 41 percent named asset management as an area where they wanted more education.
[Read: 5 Things to Know About Financial Literacy.]
Alison Salka, senior vice president and director of research for LIMRA, says as millennials get older and build their assets, they will be more interested in seeking professional advice. Many, though, might be turned off by the false belief that they first need to have amassed a certain about of investable assets, like $100,000. “Advisors can help modify behavior at a time when people are creating savings habits that determine whether they are financially secure,” she says.
While millennials often say they are more comfortable turning to friends and family for financial advice, Salka says that can lead to biased suggestions. “People make suboptimal decisions because you have inherent biases. Having an additional person [like an advisor] can help you overcome inertia or whatever biases or blinders that you have,” she says.
Indeed, the TIAA-CREF survey found that Gen Y relies primarily on personal networks, such as family and friends, for financial advice. Younger Americans are also more likely than older adults to say they look to their parents or other family members to get financial advice. “The majority of Gen Y prefer face-to-face interactions around financial advice,” Jones notes, despite their reputation for being addicted to their smartphones.
Douglas Boneparth, a certified financial planner and COO of the New York firm Life and Wealth Planning, says one challenge for Gen Yers is finding advisors who are close to their age. “The average Gen Yer doesn’t want to sit down with someone that reminds them of their parents who tells them what to do,” he says, adding that they also don’t want an advisor pushing products on them. Instead, he says, Gen Yers generally prefer to work with younger advisors, like himself. (He turns 30 at the end of the month. The average age of financial advisors is 50, according to the research firm Cerulli.)
Boneparth’s Gen Y clients are also busy professionals who welcome the chance to outsource aspects of their money management. “My clients hardly have time for themselves, let alone dealing with their finances, so there’s a lot of value for them in placing their trust in a professional who can call or meet with them regularly,” Boneparth says.
[Search: U.S. News Financial Advisor Finder.]
For an annual fee of around $750 to $1,000 a year, Boneparth helps clients identify and prioritize their goals, manage their cash flow, plan for retirement and tackle tax and estate planning, as well as investing. He typically checks in with clients at least four times a year. He also thinks many millennials might avoid advisors because they think you have to have significant investable assets first. “A lot of Gen Y clients might not have a lot of investments today, but in the future, they might,” he says.
Masood Vojdani, president and CEO of the wealth management firm MV Financial, says while the basic advice doesn’t differ much across generations, younger clients tend to be marrying later, buying homes later and delaying other milestones that can impact their finances. He also says Gen Yers can be overly cautious, both in life and with their investments. “We used to think that Gen Xers were willing to take on more risk, but I don’t think Gen Y is going to be that way.”
One job for advisors, he says, is to walk Gen Yers through their fears and focus on their bigger goals. “They need to pare down the noise that’s around them and find the best way to go forward and achieve their goal,” he says.
If Americans are willing to accept that kind of advice, it could help give their retirement savings a much-needed boost.
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Why You Might Need More Financial Help Than You Think originally appeared on usnews.com
