EDITOR'S PICKS

• 3 Questions to Ask a Financial Adviser

  Who your adviser works for and how he's paid can make all the difference in the advice you get.

• 7 mistakes to avoid in hiring a financial adviser

  Many people get it all wrong when hiring a financial adviser, yet are still happy with the outcome. But you should try to avoid the common mistakes when you choose the person who will be the steward of your finances.

• Looking for a Tax Pro?

  Some due diligence is required to find that special person you're willing to trust with your W-2s.

THE LATEST

• May 22, 2012

  For Advisers, Facebook Proves a Cautionary Fail

  WSJ.com

  Facebook Inc.'s disappointing initial public offering and its trading so far this week are helping financial advisers illustrate a point they've been making to investors for years: jumping into a IPO can be dangerous.

• May 20, 2012

  Savings Fall Short for Most Retirees

  WSJ.com

  Your financial adviser doesn't want you to read this column. Many retirement investors, egged on by brokers and mutual-fund companies, put a great deal of emphasis on crafting finely tuned portfolios out of stocks, bonds and—increasingly, ...

• May 11, 2012

  Give your financial adviser clear goals; Commentary: Satisfaction isn’t possible unless you set the terms

  MarketWatch

  BOSTON (MarketWatch) — Investors say investment performance is not what drives them to work with a financial adviser. But when performance sours, the investing results — supposedly a secondary factor in the hiring decision — typically lead ...

• May 7, 2012

  Adviser Alert; News for Brokers, Wealth Managers And Their Clients

  WSJ.com

  How to Ask for Referrals Referrals are a crucial way most advisers build their business. But advisers often make mistakes in trying to score introductions, some specialists in the field say.

• April 30, 2012

  U.S.A., U.S.A., U.S.A.! When investors fear venturing outside the country, advisers feel they have to proceed firmly, but carefully

  WSJ.com

  It's a xenophobic fact of life for many financial advisers: They believe their clients need to put at least some of their money overseas. But many investors don't feel comfortable venturing any farther than, say, New York or California.

• April 30, 2012

  On the Front Lines; Military personnel offer unique challenges to financial advisers. One of the biggest: constant relocation.

  WSJ.com

  For financial advisers who have clients in the U.S. military, the relationship poses some unique challenges—among them, specialized job benefits and the occasional conversation that gets interrupted by mortar fire.

• April 7, 2012

  Finding Social Security Help

  WSJ.com

  Doing your own Social Security planning is a bit like doing your own taxes: You might do a good job, but if your situation is complex, you would be wise to enlist professional help.

• April 1, 2012

  Financial Planning on a Limited Budget

  WSJ.com

  You don't need a high net worth or complicated investments to create a financial plan. There are a crop of new resources that let you get financial-planning services on the cheap. For a flat or hourly fee, a certified financial planner can ...

• March 30, 2012

  Going Passive, Aggressively

  WSJ.com

  Who needs mutual funds, anyway? Taking a page from individual investors, many financial advisers are giving up on actively managed funds in their quest to beat the market.

• March 26, 2012

  As Hunger for Apple Grows, Pros Say to Keep Track of Portion Size

  WSJ.com

  Like many Apple fanboys (and fangirls), David Howard owns an iPhone, iPod and an iPad—not to mention a sizable chunk of the company's shares, which comprise about 25% of his portfolio. And the Austin-based mechanical engineer would ...

• March 16, 2012

  The Rush to Avoid Gift Taxes; How to Make Sure You Don't End Up With 'Donor's Remorse'

  WSJ.com

  As the deadline approaches for taking advantage of the government's $5 million gift-tax exemption, estate planners are dealing with the fear of "donor's remorse." Families are looking to set up so-called irrevocable ...

• March 15, 2012

  5 ways investors can beat the retirement bandits; Commentary: Demographics, taxes, low yields threaten living standards

  MarketWatch

  PALO ALTO, Calif. (MarketWatch) — Millions of Americans have worked hard for a lifetime, paid their mortgages, in some cases put their kids through college, donated to charity, and somehow tucked away enough money to take care of their ...

• March 12, 2012

  New Rules Target Offshore Funds; Regulations are prompting some financial advisers to urge their clients to bring money back to the U.S.

  WSJ.com

  Owning a portfolio of offshore holdings is about to get much riskier, thanks to new U.S. tax-reporting rules, financial advisers say. As a result, some advisers are urging clients to shift money back to the U.S.

• March 12, 2012

  The Game Plan; How some people are saving for retirement—and what financial advisers think of those strategies

  WSJ.com

  The Game Plan takes a look at how individuals and families are saving for retirement—and then asks financial advisers to comment on those strategies. You're invited to share your own retirement-savings plans by sending an email to ...

• March 5, 2012

  Adviser Alert; News for Brokers, Wealth Managers And Their Clients

  WSJ.com

  Tax Returns Can Talk Advisers often wonder about money that clients choose to invest on their own. The pros can get an idea of what their clients are doing—and how well they are faring—by examining a client's tax return.

• March 4, 2012

  How Much You Need vs. How Much You Can Lose

  WSJ.com

  Never gamble unless you can afford to lose. That is essentially the message of a small but growing chorus of academics and financial advisers, who are calling for a new approach to managing investment risk in the wake of the two bear markets ...

• February 29, 2012

  Investors Gird for Higher Dividend Taxes

  WSJ.com

  Financial advisers and their clients are starting to plan for, if not yet act on, a possible jump in taxes on dividends. Dividend-producing stocks have had a special attraction among investors in recent years, in part because of the ...

• February 17, 2012

  Managed futures fund isn’t for all investors; Commentary: Risk-averse buyers should ignore advisers’ sales pitch

  MarketWatch

  BOSTON (MarketWatch) — Rick is a 50-something investor from New Orleans, whose financial adviser has been pushing him to move some of his assets into a “managed futures” fund, saying it will smooth out results.

• February 11, 2012

  Congress Eyes New Rules For Inherited IRAs

  WSJ.com

  A surprise proposal in Congress to drum up tax revenue from inherited IRAs is raising eyebrows—and making some financial advisers nervous. A Senate Finance Committee proposal floated this past week as part of a highway-funding bill would ...

• February 5, 2012

  6 rules for being your own best financial adviser; Commentary: Show your money you care about it

  MarketWatch

  BOSTON (MarketWatch) — No one wants more for your money than you. But are your savings and investing plans working against you? That’s a big question in the financial-services world nowadays because of the ongoing battle over the fiduciary ...