What to do with an awful lot of money

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Bluebells

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An elderly relative has inherited a six figure sum. He has asked me to find out where is the best place to put it. I have advised him to get an independant financial advisor, but he wants me to find that advisor and deal with him/her on his behalf , as he says he wouldn't understand any of that "stuff". Sadly for him, I really don't know much about that 'stuff' myself.

My question: How can I choose an advisor ? What should I be looking for when deciding who I choose. Are there 'good' and 'not so good' advisors. I looked at the thread on IFAs and noticed that people differed on who to use.
Any advice on how I should go about this ? If it was my own money I would have to live with my mistakes, but I don't want to err with somebody elses.

Thanks.
 
Bluebells

The question has been asked often and answered often. I don't see any point in you asking it again?

Why not post the details in the Money Makeover forum?

Brendan
 
Bluebells said:
An elderly relative has inherited a six figure sum. He has asked me to find out where is the best place to put it.

...

I don't want to err with somebody elses.
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Personally I would not get directly involved in this due to the risk of things turning sour if you make decisions that do not suit the individual involved. By all means offer them a shortlist of financial intermediaries to talk to but stay out of it otherwise. IFSRA can give you a list of regulated itermediaries (tied agents, multi-agency intermediaries and authorised advisors) but you will need to get specific recommendations from those who you can trust. I would recommend that you find a good/well recommended MIA or AA and avoid tied agents unless you know that you want their products in the first place. There are more detailed explanations of the different classes of intermediaries and specific recommendations in other threads here on AAM.
 
I disagree with Clubman although it has to be recognised that there are dangers in this. You cannot leave your relative to sort it out for him/herself. They will need your help. You should be able to get a list of IFAs from the IFSRA. However, it may be late in his/her life to take on risk so maybe a scan of the Best Buys and maximise the deposit returns without risking the money might be a better approach.

Slim
 
Slim said:
However, it may be late in his/her life to take on risk so maybe a scan of the Best Buys and maximise the deposit returns without risking the money might be a better approach.
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They should certainly do that while considering what to do longer term anyway.

Bluebells - are you the only or closest living relative of the individual in question? If not then almost certainly don't get involved in my opinion!
 
The relative also needs to take into account the stage of life they are at and whether they will live to see the fruits of any longer term investment. There is not much point in investing in a 5-7 year stock market-based product if they are in their eighties and in poor health!
 
Thread very carefull as there a lot of sharks out there. The best option for all concerned is probably to put this money on deposit in a bank at the best interest rate possible.

There are too many stories of financial advisors and relatives ripping off the elderly who don't know much about that sort of thing. At that age it's more important that the money is safe and they can get their hands on it.
 
tim2070 said:
Thread very carefull as there a lot of sharks out there. The best option for all concerned is probably to put this money on deposit in a bank at the best interest rate possible.
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I think I would have to agree. Given the type of request your relative made, I'm not convinced that they would understand the risks, if say, you recommended a portion be lodged in a managed fund for example.
For that type of person, a reasonably high-yielding set of savings accounts is your best bet. Everyone then has the comfort of knowing where the money is at all times, and how much it is worth.
For everybody's sake, this would eliminate a lot of unnecessary worry

if you do a search, there are threads which demonstrate the most efficient allocation of funds between the various high-yielding savings accounts on offer
 
Thanks so much everyone, for your replies. Much appreciated. It made things a bit clearer for me.

Brendan, I'm sorry, I had read the previous posts, but I just hoped somebody could have suggested points to look for when choosing an IFA. It is difficult to get ' word of mouth ' recommendations for such a service, not like looking for a plumber.

Clubman,
I am the nearest geographically !

I think he is best to just put it on deposit somewhere. I think he ( and I ) would be happier knowing that the money is not at risk. The age thing simplifies it a bit too - he won't be looking at long term investments, as he is 86, although hale and hearty.
Thanks again
 
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