Good financial planner; reliable stock broker

Hi,

I have some doubts for which I need to consult a financial planner but have no idea of how to go about finding a reliable one. I have made a few investments but those have been random and I need some professional advice on how to structure and maintain my financial portfolio.

Can any of you suggest a good financial planner in Chennai? It must be someone whom you have done business with or consulted regarding your financial life planning. Any names/telephone numbers would be welcome rather than generic suggestions to approach HDFC Bank or other places.

Also, do any of you know of any reliable stock broker whom you use who is upfront in his manner and has good experience in the line? Or agencies that you have had happy experiences with? As I am a newcomer who is trying to learn about the stock market, I feel that initially, one should use professional advice. Of course, I will also be making smaller investments on my own to learn about the game.

Any suggestions would be most welcome, thanks!

NOTE: I didn't get their advice but you can give it a try. I think they don't charge for this.

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Tks for the suggn, hotcolain! Any others? Pls do let me know.

My advice to anyone going into the stock market: DON'T TRUST ANYONE INCLUDING STOCK BROKERS AND FINANCIAL PLANNERS. Do you homework and learn about investments and only use those people as having ideas but make your own decisions. They can lose your money at least as fast as you can if not faster. They sell stuff that makes them money not what is best for you...it's what's best for them. Beware!

To add to tashidelek2002, a good Financial Planner will never handle your money for you. You should handle your money and he should just provide you with insights and tips. Unless you are going in for a PMS from a reputed firm, don't trust anyone with your money. Even if you have a PMS, make sure it is not your entire portfolio. It should be a small part of your portfolio and you should be handling the majority of your portfolio.

Hi,

I too agree with tashidelek2002 and Laks09, stock brokers and financial planners sell stuff to get commissions on sale of shares or mutual fund etc. Same applies to PMS. PMS works well during bull market but during bear market, they don’t work well.

Try consulting an investment training/education firm. There is one such firm in Chennai, (old Mahabalipuram road). They conduct workshop and mentoring sessions for small investors and part-time traders.


Hope this helps you
Manju

Sometimes, a financial planner will suggest investments based on what you want such as planning for a child's education 20 years from now or a daughter's wedding or coverage for unforeseen medical expenses. While it is definitely better to handle your money yourself, I think there are also advantages to using financial planners judiciously. And while we should also know about the investments in the market, it is always better to talk to a few people in the industry such as planners, etc to get a sense of what products are in the market and then make one's decision. That is why I was asking for names of reliable financial planners; not for someone to take over my investment decisions but someone who can take a look at my investment patterns and point out the flaws in it from a long term perspective. For example, I may have too much life insurance and not enough health insurance (most health expenses go up significantly after retirement when your income has dried up) and may not realise it because I have not sought advice on this. Or what I think may be sufficient for retirement will not be enough in the long term.
Have you seen the planning suggestions by Gaurav Mashruwala or the investment life planning in Outlook Money where a 30-year-old's current investments are analysed and he is told how much he should invest and in what kind of schemes (not companies, mind you but general financial schemes) to reap the benefits he wants by the time he retires? Take a look at this link to get an idea of what I mean.
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As for stock brokers, yes, perhaps it is better to learn yourself as you will learn the lessons yourself! :)

Suse - I tried folks from Kotak and another local firm. They were pushing me to invest in their funds/managed services rather than providing me with inputs and helping me with my financial plan. IMO, it would be better if you got referred to an individual through a friend or co-worker whom you trust.
I found mine through a friend. He helps us with our plan and keeps us on the right track based on our goals and needs. We did have a lot of random investments and he put it all together and helped us come up with a good plan. He did the same for the friend who recommended him. I feel individuals with good FP knowledge and experience do a better job than the firms. With firms, they really lack the depth and don't spend enough time on our goals. This is just my 2 cents from my experience.

Yes, laks09, tks for your input!
I agree with you absolutely regarding what you have pointed out. I am not looking for advice from a firm as they will often try to push their products as you have pointed out. This is why I was asking for recommendations about individuals with financial planning knowledge. I am based in Chennai and am looking for Chennai-based people who have benefitted from such financial planning guidance. I also have some random investments (some of these investments were made by my parents a couple of years ago) and need professional advice to come up with a good plan to meet my long term financial needs. None of my colleagues/friends have been able to suggest names as they themselves have random investments!
If you don't mind my asking, are you based in Chennai and if so, would you mind sharing details of the person who helped you. Or if you prefer, you could send a post to my hotmail account with the same name as used here. I do not have enough posts for you to PM me as yet...
Any other suggestions from other ppl on this forum as well?

Suse,
I'm not based out of chennai, sorry : :.

It might be useful to do the FP course yourself. It is not difficult and during your course you will be introduced to FPs and experts whom you can interact with. I'm looking for a course myself, I'll let you know if I find any.

Regs,
L