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BIPBRIAN View Drop Down
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Joined: Sep/10/2014
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    Posted: Sep/10/2014 at 3:51pm
Hi Everyone,

I am a licensed admin for my father's business, and am slowly working in to take over in a few years. To bridge the gap, I also have an online advertising consulting business that pays the bills and continues to grow. I have my 7, 63, and Life Insurance License.

Yesterday, I passed my last course to become a CFP. Over the next 6-9 months I'll be doing plans and reviewing for the big 6 hour final exam.

The main thing that brought me to this forum is research on the best Financial Advisor software for the money. We have a small office with no planning software in use. Plans are put together manually, in addition to all calculations. As someone with an IT background, this doesn't sit well with me as there is too much potential for human error.

The discussions here look interesting and it appears that this site could offer more than I initially thought.
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Doesn't the CFP Board provide you with software to use in your practice? I have never used it, just curious.
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I like Money Guide Pro. Fairly cheap. Easy for clients to understand. Lots of tools.
You ever take a dump that made you feel like you slept for 12 hours?
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Guests Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Sep/10/2014 at 4:22pm
Lol.  There is a vendor on the board here - Retireup.  Check them out.  MoneyGuidePro is overcomplicated if you ask me.  I used it for a year.

Personally, if you are going to be writing plans, I don't think you really need to have any software. 
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I use Money Tree Silver for its simplicity.
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Money guide pro complicated!!

starting it up can be complicated because you have to enter your models and historical and projected returns and standard deviations. After that its easy.

I have just been using it this year. Maybe they updated it recently to make it easier.
You ever take a dump that made you feel like you slept for 12 hours?
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Guests Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Sep/10/2014 at 7:01pm
It's complicated for the client.
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Originally posted by FEEonly FEEonly wrote:

I like Money Guide Pro. Fairly cheap. Easy for clients to understand. Lots of tools.

Agree with this. MoneyGuide Pro is designed to be goals based, and to be worked on with the client if you want to, rather than you gathering data, entering it, spitting it out and presenting it. It makes the client feel like its their plan. And its relatively easier to use 
If you eat an entire cake without cutting it, then technically, you only had one piece
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Originally posted by Moraen Moraen wrote:

It's complicated for the client.

How so? The finished product shows them their chances of meeting all their goals based on assumptions used (like all plans). Thats really all they want or need. The most complicated part for the client is guessing at what age they will die.
If you eat an entire cake without cutting it, then technically, you only had one piece
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Guests Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Sep/10/2014 at 8:13pm
It's too much.  Clients glaze over. 

Also, the model predicting the probability of success is based on a distribution that financial returns don't follow.
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Originally posted by Moraen Moraen wrote:

It's too much.  Clients glaze over. 

Also, the model predicting the probability of success is based on a distribution that financial returns don't follow.

I've never had a client glaze over. Sometimes i need to explain the monte carlo success rate and how it is different than the result offered by average return each year, more than once. But they get it. The probablility of success is based on 10,000 different return combinations. Its not perfect, since there are more than 10,000 combinations. But its the best I've seen

If you want to get into a debate on the validity of the concept of Monte Carlo based on emprical evidence and peer group studies, I'm not mentally equipped. 

But i find it does the job as well as anything, better than the Sunguard piece of shit we used to have that almost made me put my fist through the computer monitor.
If you eat an entire cake without cutting it, then technically, you only had one piece
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Points: 49907 		Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote RIArules Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Sep/10/2014 at 9:09pm
^ This
“We are all Antifa” - Hacksaw 9/12/2025
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Yeah the monte carlo debate is for a different forum. I'm no statistician. However, I do know its a useful way to get some idea about your retirement plan compared to 10,000 other scenarios. There are not many other ways to achieve that.
You ever take a dump that made you feel like you slept for 12 hours?
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Points: 49907 		Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote RIArules Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Sep/10/2014 at 9:42pm
iMo has an advanced degree in a statistics from a serious university, IIRC. He's a stats snob.
“We are all Antifa” - Hacksaw 9/12/2025
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Guests Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Sep/10/2014 at 10:37pm
I refuse to use Sungard just because they make compliance software that makes my life difficult (and that software sucks balls also).  
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Originally posted by Sportsfreak Sportsfreak wrote:


I've never had a client glaze over. Sometimes i need to explain the monte carlo success rate and how it is different than the result offered by average return each year, more than once. But they get it. The probablility of success is based on 10,000 different return combinations. Its not perfect, since there are more than 10,000 combinations. But its the best I've seen

If you want to get into a debate on the validity of the concept of Monte Carlo based on emprical evidence and peer group studies, I'm not mentally equipped. 

But i find it does the job as well as anything, better than the Sunguard piece of shit we used to have that almost made me put my fist through the computer monitor.



+1
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Guests Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Sep/11/2014 at 4:09pm
Originally posted by FEEonly FEEonly wrote:

Yeah the monte carlo debate is for a different forum. I'm no statistician. However, I do know its a useful way to get some idea about your retirement plan compared to 10,000 other scenarios. There are not many other ways to achieve that.




Is it? 
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LOL

I love this place.
If you eat an entire cake without cutting it, then technically, you only had one piece
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Points: 108 		Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote FEEonly Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Sep/11/2014 at 8:42pm
Originally posted by Moraen Moraen wrote:

Originally posted by FEEonly FEEonly wrote:

Yeah the monte carlo debate is for a different forum. I'm no statistician. However, I do know its a useful way to get some idea about your retirement plan compared to 10,000 other scenarios. There are not many other ways to achieve that.




Is it? 

Isn't it?
You ever take a dump that made you feel like you slept for 12 hours?
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Guests Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Sep/12/2014 at 7:52am
Originally posted by FEEonly FEEonly wrote:

Originally posted by Moraen Moraen wrote:

Originally posted by FEEonly FEEonly wrote:

Yeah the monte carlo debate is for a different forum. I'm no statistician. However, I do know its a useful way to get some idea about your retirement plan compared to 10,000 other scenarios. There are not many other ways to achieve that.




Is it? 

Isn't it?


Not if you are assuming that the distribution of returns is normal.  Their planning tool does not take into account log-periodic events, nor even fat tails (yeah, that's riiiight).
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