Mapgirl’s Fiscal Challenge

I went to a reunion this weekend and one of my old classmates is a financial advisor. We got to talking and I admit, I was feeling the waters a bit for a consultation. I also was complaining that my parents’ broker has wandered around to about 3 firms in the past 15 years, which I think is sketchy. My classmate thinks that could be sketchy too and advised that I check into his record to see if he’s ever been disciplined by NASD, the National Association of Securities Dealers.

NASD’s disciplinary actions webpage has a monthly report of which firms and brokers were disciplined, fully barred, etc.

This site also has links for arbitration requests as well.

Of course, I’m not saying that my parents’ broker is actually sketchy, but I know my classmate has been with the same firm since we graduated college and in the same period, my parents’ broker has moved at least once.

I just resent that every time he’s moved and taken my parents with him, it’s incurred fees for them that probably weren’t necessary if they had just stayed put and got reassigned to someone else. They aren’t too crazy with their money so I just don’t see the point of eating up their gains with stupid fees just because their broker is unhappy with his firm. That’s his problem, not theirs.

Anyhow, my only other comment is that I actually know a person who went to arbitration against their broker. It turned out the broker was freshly minted, but had a bad history with the insurance industry and had been barred from selling insurance, which is how they turned to securities work. So even if you go check this site, you might want to check a few other trade associations and the Better Business Bureau as well.

Good luck to you!

This weekend I was describing autism to my mother and my weirdly autistic tendencies. (I tend to listen to one CD in my car over and over again every day, even though I have an in-dash 6 fully loaded up with 5 other options. I also like to repeat the same song over and over too, but I don’t do it when I have passengers. But it tempts me.) As I described the condition, my mom asked me if I thought my cousin was autistic. I said no, but he is developmentally disabled. My cousin went to a special high school for developmentally disabled kids, so I’m not making a casual diagnosis. He’s been tested and evaluated. Somewhere in the back of our minds, we are all a little worried about how his older brother will care for him when my aunt and uncle die. He’s just getting started on his career path as a dental technician and it sounds like a good career one that isn’t physically taxing that he can do for the next 35 years.

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Generally I avoid posting on weekends, but I wasn’t sure how long this WaPo article was going to last.

Jack Kent Cooke’s daughter is suing her trust fund.

Jack Kent Cooke, for those who don’t know, was the late, some would say great, owner of the Washington Redskins. (Whom I only ever cheer for when they play the even more hated Dallas Cowboys. What can I say? I grew up in Philly. I’ll always hate America’s Team. Says who?) At the time of his death, his finances were poorly structured and put the ownership of the team into turmoil, allowing Dan Snyder to takeover.

I think it’s rather sad that Mr. Cooke did what he could to care for his daughter’s future, but it had unintended consequences. Young Miss Cooke’s trust fund means that she does not qualify for financial aid. $50K a year in annual income is quite a lot. Sheeit. That’s more than I used to make at my last job. But if you’re trying to pay taxes, full tuition, and live at school at the same time, you’re going to have a problem. I think it’s rather unfortunate that the executors of the trust are strictly reading the trust and will not allow disbursements for tuition.

I’m sure people reading this will think Young Miss Cooke is spoiled and ridiculous for going to school full-time instead of part-time or to a cheaper school, etc. But I think I got a lot of the full-time school experience and I don’t think I ever could have focused on school as a part-time student, given how much work-study was a distraction for me already.

It’s essential when you do your estate planning that you plan for stuff like this. I don’t think your good intentions will always get lost, but I certainly don’t think the late Mr. Cooke intended for his daughter to be denied a college education from the executors of her trust fund. The best way to have your intentions known is to state them clearly when you plan it out. If you have a will, make sure it says what you want it to say.

Don’t even ask me what I think happened to the $25K she received annually till she turned 16.

This story makes me want to cry.

Brooke Astor or not. No elderly person deserves to be treated this way. Maybe it’s the conservative old-school Asian in me, but I am horrified that Anthony Marshall does not respect his elders. I am completely disgusted by his treatment of his mother.

This just goes to show you that not even money can protect you from elder abuse. I don’t know about you, but saving for retirement is to provide for yourself so hopefully you can avoid a situation like this. And at the same time, no amount of money can save you from it when the people around you are snakes.

Choose your caretakers wisely. I’m sure if you talk to a good estate planning lawyer about living wills, trusts, etc, they can help reduce the likelihood of your being abused by those who are taking care of you.

Hello loyal readers! I need to go on a small hiatus due to an emergency. Let me just leave you here with a few thoughts on my mind, which I reserve the right to expand upon later.

1) Long-Term Care: If you haven’t discussed it with your folks or your spouse, please do so.

2) Life Insurance: Who depends on you? I am single without minor dependents, but I have parents who do.

3) Advanced Medical Directives: They kind of suck because they’re not very flexible. Consider a Durable Medical Power of Attorney instead. Keep in mind who is legally allowed to sign consent for things like blood transfusions and surgery.

Talk about all these things before anyone gets sick. Luckily we had a nice advertisement/picturesque discussion about a few of these topics last year, seaside, while on vacation. It couldn’t have been a more perfect ad for financial planning products.

mapgirl out