Financial planning

The toughest conversations that advisors need to have with their clients have nothing to do with investment strategies.

From now to December 7, seniors can decide whether to look for flexibility in original Medicare or cost savings in a private Medicare Advantage plan.

Taking notes during client meetings is important, but what are you missing while you’re busy trying to jot down what you are hearing and (not) seeing?

Activities unfolding within 3 separate industry rulemakers -- the SEC, FINRA and the Labor Department -- suggest changes ahead for both brokers and advisors.

The use of social media within an advisory practice has been the subject of much debate within the industry, but one of the most common arguments for advisors limiting or altogether barring sites like Facebook and YouTube within the firm -- compliance -- might be dramatically overstated.

It’s all about the story – if you want to attract and retain more women clients an advisor consultant told attendees at the Schwab Impact conference.

Married clients can arbitrage Social Security benefits for maximum long-term payouts.

Deciding whether to impose a uniform fiduciary standard for brokers and investment advisors was a “high priority” for the SEC, but there is no timeframe for a rule, Commission Chair Mary Jo White said.

Wealth, widowhood, retirement strategies and practice management tips were all in focus in at the Women Advisors Forum in Chicago in October. Here are a few of the smartest things we heard in Chicago.

Wealth management firms seeking to recruit new advisors need to first develop a clear business strategy, executives tell attendees at Schwab Impact conference.

Despite a recent show of political opposition, the Labor Department seems poised to press ahead with a proposal to broaden the definition of fiduciary to cover advisors working in the retirement plan segment, a leading opponent of the measure warns.

The new model has to be able to serve clients "any time, any place and anyhow," said Bernie Clark, the head of Schwab Advisor Services at the financial service giant's annual Impact conference in Washington, D.C.

There’s been a steady increase in opportunities for overseas investment and clients’ willingness to include international investments in their portfolios.

The IRS’s ability to detect identity theft has improved, but billions of dollars were lost to criminals in 2011, according to a new report.

Social media marketing is a key component in an effective inbound marketing strategy, but it’s important to capture the right “voice” on your social media sites.

Demand is high for experienced executives across all channels. While advisor migration to independent RIAs remains the dominant trend, large wirehouse and bank players are also very much in the game for talent.

Municipal managers and strategists, still reeling from Detroit's bankruptcy, the surge in Puerto Rico yields, and a mid-year sell-off that was the worst in a quarter century, are getting their portfolios ready for the next expected hurdle as 2014 approaches — another spike in interest rates.

Janet Yellen, vice chair of the Federal Reserve Board and President Obama's pick to run the central bank, will appear before the Senate Banking Committee on Nov. 14.

State securities regulators have been ramping up examinations of investment advisors in the aftermath of the Dodd-Frank Act, which required more than 2,000 midsized advisors who had been overseen by the feds to register with state authorities.

Our IRA expert answers questions on recharacterizations, the withdrawal penalty and the 5-year rule.