Wealth management is a professional service for individuals with a high net worth. This service usually includes financial advice, advice about investments, tax and accounting services, estate planning, legal planning, and retirement planning. Clients pay a fee to a single wealth manager who gathers and synthesizes input from various financial and legal professionals, including financial advisors, attorneys or lawyers, insurance agents, bankers, and/or accountants. Wealth managers may also provide advice on philanthropic gestures.
Wealth management is far more comprehensive than investment advice from a financial advisor. Instead, it encompasses many aspects of the client’s financial, legal, and even personal life. This is a highly valuable service for high net worth individuals, who would otherwise have to try to coordinate an array of information from a group of independent professionals on their own. Having a single manager to address the client and his or her family’s present and future needs is a more efficient and effective solution.
Though most wealth managers have a wide variety of knowledge within several different financial fields, they may also choose to specialize in a particular area. Clients may choose a wealth manager based on the professional’s expertise in a given area. Or, wealth management professionals may be employed by firms that specialize in certain fields.
What does wealth management look like?
Wealth management professionals are a form of financial consultants. They may work for investment firms, and in that case, they might possess more knowledge about market or investment strategy. Wealth management professionals who work for large, international banks might have more information about credit options, savings accounts, estate planning, or insurance. The primary goal of wealth management is to provide direction and guidance to a client looking to manage his or her wealth and plan for the future. As such, it’s important to spend some time researching and interviewing wealth management candidates in order to choose the one with the most relevant experience and background.
Where do wealth managers work?
Wealth managers may work in a variety of settings. Some may work as independent consultants. Others may work for small businesses or large firms, most of which are directly associated with finances and/or investing. Some wealth managers may have different titles and responsibilities. They may also offer financial consulting or advising services to clients with a lower net worth. Some firms allow clients to access various members within a team.
What strategies do wealth managers use?
The main goal of a wealth management professional is to maintain and increase the clients wealth over time. Most of the time, achieving this goal involves creating a comprehensive plan that takes into consideration the client’s financial status, goals, and desired level of risk. Developing an original plan may require the input of various professionals, including attorneys, investment advisors, estate planners, and notaries. Once the plan is developed and the client is satisfied with it, the wealth manager has regular meetings with the client to outline progress made and make any necessary changes to the client’s financial portfolio. Over time, the client’s financial goals will change, and the plan should be updated to reflect those changes. Additional services may be brought into the project.
