Client communications

Avoiding the pitfalls of managing client finances can be challenging. Here's how some advisers fared — some successfully, others not so much.

Changes can substantially reduce the value of delaying widow(er) benefits for surviving spouses.

By using this analogy, advisers can break through reluctance or fear and provide a clear vision of what success will look like.

Greater transparency can help land prospects with the industry focused on the Department of Labor's fiduciary rule, experts say.

By acting immediately when stocks turn, you can position yourself to receive significant additional assets, columnist John J. Bowen Jr. says.

Sobering results from a light-hearted survey prompts columnist Bob Veres to change his tune about how advisers use "retainer."

Clients who make these prohibited transactions can face devastating penalties.

By putting clients’ interests first and documenting conscientiously, advisors will comply with the rule, while also building trust.

Concerns about medical expenses are sky-high, but there are solutions.

Advisers, clients and the industry are all best-served when fees are based on the value delivered, not on asset calculations.

For years, it seemed that a decline in monthly benefits was a long way off. Now it may be sooner than expected. Here’s what advisers need to know.

Gap in coverage concerns older clients; planners are also taking a closer look at HSAs.

When advisers are deeply involved in clients’ charitable plans, both families and firms may find real gratification.

There are limits to how much clients can contribute — exceeding these thresholds can result in costly penalties.

Why advisers should use age-banding to plan for retirees’ spending levels to flex and adjust.

This approach to planning remains a strong way advisers can add value for clients.

The benefits of transitioning to a full-service independent platform are clear, but the process can be tricky and firms must take great care when making the switch.

Your clients may lack knowledge when it comes to Social Security.

Adviser Zaneilia Harris seeks out clients who resemble a former version of herself — young, single, African-American women struggling to make wise choices — and keeps them by structuring compensation in an atypical way.

It turns out that these principles aren’t limited to investment strategies.