Wealth management

In this low interest rate environment, some financial planners are advising their clients to cut the middleman out entirely with intra-family loans.

Krawcheck calls for more diverse perspectives -- not necessarily based on gender or race -- and talks about the importance of appealing to younger investors put off by the struggling economy and Wall Street scandals.

Advisors of the future are gravitating toward financial planning programs. Here are the schools on many students' short lists.

Problems arise when a parent adds a child's name to an asset or aids elderly loved one who needs assistance.

Investors contributed $748 million to Fidelity Charitable, the largest donor-advised fund in the U.S., in the first nine months of 2011, a 23% increase from the first three quarters of 2010. Thus, the fund is on course to receive the largest amount of contributions in its 20-year history, Fidelity said.

Here are five of the most common scams that advisors and their clients either managed to avoid or fell victim to this year.

Advisors and their investor clients should be on the lookout for these popular scams. According to the North American Securities Administrators Association, here are five of the most common scams that advisors and their clients either managed to avoid or fell victim to this year.

As the parent company announces earnings, the Americas unit sees more net new money and higher FA productivity.

What is the difference between elite practices and other firms? One hint: Seminars are not what they used to be. Cetera Financial Group found out that it’s really more about a firm’s overall approach to marketing. The El Segundo, Calif.-based broker-dealer recently partnered with The Oechsli Institute to survey 352 financial professionals, including elites, in the report “Marketing Tactics of Elite Advisors”. Here are seven marketing tips that will boost your firm’s profile and assets under management.

Al Davis, the long-time principal owner and general manager of the Oakland Raiders, died last week at age 82. As legacy expert attorneys Andy and Danielle Mayoras point out, estate taxes are huge concern for NFL owners and it appears that Davis, unlike other professional sports owners, made the necessary arrangements to keep the franchise under his heirs’ control.

Trust and customer service are the most important reasons why clients opt to work with registered investment advisors, according to TD Ameritrade’s latest RIA survey.

Soon after the tragic news of Steve Jobs' death broke, people began wondering what would become of the Apple co-founder and innovator extraordinaire's fortune. Forbes recently estimated Jobs’ wealth at $7 billion. According to legacy expert attorneys Andy and Danielle Mayoras, it appears Jobs had his estate planning act together.

In our second annual Influencer Awards, Financial Planning honors six advisors whose innovative ideas and wide-reaching work are forging new paths for the planning industry. When the editors of Financial Planning sat down to decide which nominees deserved to win in each category in the magazine's second annual Influencer Awards, we found we had far too many worthy contenders. That was only natural: The financial planning community has consistently turned out smart individuals who strive to bring their best to clients and the profession as a whole. Here’s a look at this year’s honorees:

Celebrities and athletes need tailored estate planning to minimize the risks of being in the spotlight.

To ensure estate planning and tax goals are a good fit, owners of unique assets need a risk management process.

The director of the MetLife Mature Market Institute discusses how financial advisors can best serve baby boomers.

Whether it's simple or not, retirement plans are suddenly important to small business owners.

Taxpayers Beware: Gifts to charities have come under IRS scrutiny.

Schwab Advisor Services is launching a multi-million dollar marketing and education campaign aimed at promoting the registered investment advisor (RIA) sector in an effort to differentiate the channel from other, more traditional models in the eyes of affluent investors.

Last week’s deal between The Colony Group and Focus Financial Partners is just the latest in what’s turned out to be a very busy merger and acquisition period for registered independent advisor firms. Here's a look at this year's five-largest deals: