Harry Sit’s Advice-Only Financial Website Question

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Dfwbloke
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Harry Sit’s Advice-Only Financial Website Question

Post by Dfwbloke »

Hello All,

Has anyone used Harry Sit’s Advice-Only Financial dot com website to find an advisor ? Major life changes here and have 450k cash to invest...and probably need to find an advisor. 58 yo recently retired with.

950k in a 401k (2015 Target Fund)
120k Roth IRA (Wellesley Fund)
No debt


Any info most appreciated
MishkaWorries
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Re: Harry Sit’s Advice-Only Financial Website Question

Post by MishkaWorries »

Don't know about the site you are asking about but to me it looks like your doing fine on your own. You have to good funds and no debt.

I'd suggest you start here by posting a request for portfolio review. You'll find the format you need in the search box.

Why pay some strange a % of all the money you earned in a lifetime?
We plan. G-d laughs.
pkcrafter
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Re: Harry Sit’s Advice-Only Financial Website Question

Post by pkcrafter »

Dfwbloke wrote: Sat May 01, 2021 6:53 pm Hello All,

Has anyone used Harry Sit’s Advice-Only Financial dot com website to find an advisor ? Major life changes here and have 450k cash to invest...and probably need to find an advisor. 58 yo recently retired with.

950k in a 401k (2015 Target Fund)
120k Roth IRA (Wellesley Fund)
No debt


Any info most appreciated
I believe Harry Sit charges $200 to find an advisor, which I think is too much. Just looked at his website and it seems Harry may not be making recommendations any longer.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/harry-sit

My first suggestion is to ask the forum for their thoughts. Post according to this, if you haven't already...

viewtopic.php?f=1&t=6212

You can also review this site for an advisor...

https://www.garrettplanningnetwork.com/

Some help...

https://investingroadmap.wordpress.com/ ... n-advisor/


Paul
Last edited by pkcrafter on Sat May 01, 2021 7:18 pm, edited 1 time in total.
When times are good, investors tend to forget about risk and focus on opportunity. When times are bad, investors tend to forget about opportunity and focus on risk.
UpperNwGuy
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Re: Harry Sit’s Advice-Only Financial Website Question

Post by UpperNwGuy »

Dfwbloke wrote: Sat May 01, 2021 6:53 pm 950k in a 401k (2015 Target Fund)
120k Roth IRA (Wellesley Fund)
No debt
You don't need an advisor. Just keep on doing what you're doing.
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pointyhairedboss
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Re: Harry Sit’s Advice-Only Financial Website Question

Post by pointyhairedboss »

MishkaWorries wrote: Sat May 01, 2021 6:57 pm Don't know about the site you are asking about but to me it looks like your doing fine on your own. You have to good funds and no debt.

I'd suggest you start here by posting a request for portfolio review. You'll find the format you need in the search box.

Why pay some strange a % of all the money you earned in a lifetime?
That is the point of Harry Sit's service. There is no shortage of AUM based advisors who will manage your assets for a yearly AUM fee. Its harder to find an advisor who will help you with the initial setup for a one time fee (not AUM based) that you can then manage on your own.
mbt863
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Re: Harry Sit’s Advice-Only Financial Website Question

Post by mbt863 »

He has temporarily suspended his service (https://adviceonlyfinancial.com/service-suspended) noting "A government agency in another state sent me a letter saying they received information that I may be engaging in the business of providing investment advice in their state without a certificate from their agency. While I believe finding financial advisors for clients doesn’t constitute providing investment advice, the state agency may disagree. I suspended my service out of an abundance of caution, pending resolution of this matter with the state agency."

I have not used Harry's service but wanted to and hope this gets resolved. Harry's blog (which is also linked to this website) shows he knows his stuff and posts here from time to time. This is a great service to link people with a hourly/fee only financial advisor who is a fiduciary (note this is NOT a AUM--or % of your portfolio service which I agree is not a good idea).

Harry hope this gets resolved for you soon as this is baloney in my view--how is him finding you a fiduciary financial planner providing investment advice? Answer--it isn't and I suspect an AUM advisor complained and Harry hope this gets resolved soon! :sharebeer

I don't have a financial advisor but like to check in every couple of years and get some advice. Bogleheads is great but some people want a bit more assistance or to talk with an hourly advisor which I think is often a good idea. OP...I'm giving Mark Zoril a try (you can search threads on Plan Vision https://planvisionmn.com/; its cheap and found him through Bogleheads). Other avenues noted on Harry's website:

The following organizations are good starting points for *fee-only* advisors but please keep in mind only a small subset of them are Advice-Only. Many members of these organizations still charge asset-under-management fees.

National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (NAPFA)
Financial Planning Association
Garrett Planning Network
Fee-Only Network
XY Planning Network

The problem (as he notes) is finding Advice-Only (i.e. not an AUM advisor) who is a fiduciary--not as easy as it sounds and that is why I hope Harry can get his service back on line soon. OP you could try Rick Ferri (https://rickferri.com/) or search threads to find another advisor--good luck.
MishkaWorries
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Re: Harry Sit’s Advice-Only Financial Website Question

Post by MishkaWorries »

pointyhairedboss wrote: Sat May 01, 2021 7:15 pm
MishkaWorries wrote: Sat May 01, 2021 6:57 pm Don't know about the site you are asking about but to me it looks like your doing fine on your own. You have to good funds and no debt.

I'd suggest you start here by posting a request for portfolio review. You'll find the format you need in the search box.

Why pay some strange a % of all the money you earned in a lifetime?
That is the point of Harry Sit's service. There is no shortage of AUM based advisors who will manage your assets for a yearly AUM fee. Its harder to find an advisor who will help you with the initial setup for a one time fee (not AUM based) that you can then manage on your own.
That doesn't sound too bad. I think Vanguard should offer that type of service rather than their AUM fee structure.

But as mbt notes, it looks like a governmental agency is trying to shut this guy down. That sounds like BS to me.

I still think OP should take advantage of all the experts, some worldwide authorities, on this site first. It always blows my mind the quality of advice given for free by people who could charge hundreds of dollars per hour.

I'm afraid to list them all but we have the founder of the 3 fund portfolio, the best advisor on social security matters, world famous authors, annuity experts, prior HR professionals, numbers crunchers and retired probate attorneys. If this website was a firm, they'd charge $500-$750 per hour!
We plan. G-d laughs.
ncbill
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Re: Harry Sit’s Advice-Only Financial Website Question

Post by ncbill »

I used his service...it's to find 3 (not 1) fee-only advisors.

All were around $2,000-$2,500 for a one-off plan...one was $500/quarter, one year minimum.

I didn't go with any of them...ended up buying cheaper but paid retirement planner software online.

I will probably sign up for Plan Vision soon, though.
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retiredjg
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Re: Harry Sit’s Advice-Only Financial Website Question

Post by retiredjg »

Rick Ferri offers the service you are asking about. I understand that Rick himself is booked up for months, but I heard there is now a second advisor available sooner.

Your investments seem fine as they are, but you may have other questions too.

Consider if you want to post here for suggestions. See the link at the bottom of this message for how to do that.
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KingRiggs
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Re: Harry Sit’s Advice-Only Financial Website Question

Post by KingRiggs »

I used Harry when I was looking for a one-time financial check-up/planning session, and was unable to find a fee-based advisor who didn't want to lock me into an AUM arrangement. Tried NAPFA, Barrett network, but couldn't find what I was looking for despite being in a million-plus population center.

Harry provided three potential advisors, who I contacted. Clicked with one of them who happened to be local to me (the others were in my general region, but would have been virtual meetings). Paid about $1,000 for a 2 hour meeting plus the advisor's time spent making my plan. For this, I got good feedback on my current situation, ideas about changes I could make going forward, some tax optimization going forward. There was never a push to sell me investments or even manage/recommend them.

This was exactly what I was looking for. Money well-spent having Harry find me candidates.
Advice = noun | Advise = verb | | Roth, not ROTH | | "Remember, there's always money in the banana stand." - George Bluth, Sr.
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Wiggums
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Re: Harry Sit’s Advice-Only Financial Website Question

Post by Wiggums »

Do you think you need advice because of the windfall? Without other information, the TDF or Wellesley would be reasonable choices. Your current allocation is very reasonable and conservative. If you do anything, you are to the point where Roth conversion and consider future tax implications. that might be something to work on.
"I started with nothing and I still have most of it left."
Doctor Rhythm
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Re: Harry Sit’s Advice-Only Financial Website Question

Post by Doctor Rhythm »

So if you pay someone $2000 to recommend a portfolio, how do know whether you’ve gotten good advice? Because they “seem to know what they’re taking about”? Because they had a professional or empathetic demeanor? Because someone on the web recommended them? These are criteria I might use to pick a mechanic for a $500 job, but not to manage a seven-figure life’s savings. Unfortunately, by the time you’re able to distinguish good advice from bad, you no longer need an advisor.

That’s why I would post your questions and portfolio here to get some initial feedback and education. Some of the specific recommendations will vary from poster to poster, but I think there will be consensus on the main points. You may find that you no longer feel the need for a paid advisor afterward, but even if you still want one, you’ll at least have some knowledge to gauge their advice.
mbt863
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Re: Harry Sit’s Advice-Only Financial Website Question

Post by mbt863 »

New model coming for Harry's service....glad this was resolved but still silly Harry had to jump through these hoops.

https://adviceonlyfinancial.com/regulat ... oming-soon
Gaston
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Re: Harry Sit’s Advice-Only Financial Website Question

Post by Gaston »

The OP has not expanded on the type of advice he feels he needs. Is it “just” investment advice? Or does it extend to health insurance, disability insurance, taxation issues, estate planning, etc?

What can initially look like a “which ETF do I buy” type of question can quickly become something more. Maybe I’m reading between the lines, but the OP’s reference to “major life changes” suggests it is something more.
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retiredjg
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Re: Harry Sit’s Advice-Only Financial Website Question

Post by retiredjg »

mbt863 wrote: Sat Jul 10, 2021 6:02 am New model coming for Harry's service....glad this was resolved but still silly Harry had to jump through these hoops.

https://adviceonlyfinancial.com/regulat ... oming-soon
Yay! :sharebeer
mbt863
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Re: Harry Sit’s Advice-Only Financial Website Question

Post by mbt863 »

Got an e-mail today that Harry's advice only model is up and running (https://adviceonlyfinancial.com/how-to-find-advice-only). For $200 you get access to his list of financial planners for 12 months.
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ruralavalon
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Re: Harry Sit’s Advice-Only Financial Website Question

Post by ruralavalon »

Dfwbloke wrote: Sat May 01, 2021 6:53 pm Hello All,

Has anyone used Harry Sit’s Advice-Only Financial dot com website to find an advisor ? Major life changes here and have 450k cash to invest...and probably need to find an advisor. 58 yo recently retired with.

950k in a 401k (2015 Target Fund)
120k Roth IRA (Wellesley Fund)
No debt


Any info most appreciated
Harry Sit is very good, I would not hesitate to use this service. The $200 price is very reasonable in my opinion.

mbt863 wrote: Tue Aug 10, 2021 10:57 am Got an e-mail today that Harry's advice only model is up and running (https://adviceonlyfinancial.com/how-to-find-advice-only). For $200 you get access to his list of financial planners for 12 months.
It is good to see that this site is back in operation.
"Everything should be as simple as it is, but not simpler." - Albert Einstein | Wiki article link: Bogleheads® investment philosophy
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