Annual review process

Each year we will send a preliminary report, including the value of your current assets, contrasting this with last year’s value. In addition it will contain benchmarked performance of your portfolio against a number of factors. This will be accompanied by an agenda detailing the areas of discussion for the meeting. During the annual review meeting the partner who is your dedicated adviser will take notes, which will be typed up to form a report and permanent record of the agreed strategy for the coming year. This will be required to be signed by you the client, to authorise us to rebalance the portfolio and alter so matching any change to your risk profile.

How do we seek to add this value?

In our Document on risk profiling and Asset Allocation, we place less emphasis on Particular Fund performance and considerably more on the appropriate mix of the asset classes. This is the main driver of how an Investment/pension etc will perform ultimately. This does not entirely however discount the impact of the underlying funds within each asset class, as this still has an important role to play.

This works best when we have full access to the market for funds. Anything less than this restricts our ability to move from poorer performing funds to better as the situations arise.

The whole point of adding advice to the process is to add value. With our process we feel that in this way we can best defend the ongoing interests of our clients. Not considering this advice, can lead to “Portfolio Drift” over time. The impact of which will invariably lead to one of two outcomes:-

A) The risk profile will increase by default which will leave you more exposed to variations in fund value out with your risk profile and comfort zone.

B) The risk profile will decrease by default which will leave you more exposed to performance risk and thus potentially cause returns to fall below your expectations.

Therefore on this basis, dependent upon the costs involved, the most relevant course of action we would advise, would be as follows;

• An appropriately risk adjusted and efficient portfolio ongoing against your current holdings.
• Give the widest access to funds.
• The above at a efficient cost.
• Benchmark any additional cost against the “Active Process” applied above.

 

The value of investments and income from them can go down. You may not get back the original amount invested...

 

Summary of the Platform Benefits and our advice

A platform can deliver enhanced benefits over traditional Life company products. This is by way of cost and through on-line access to view and monitor your portfolio on an ongoing basis, vast fund range, model portfolios as well as other functionality. Non platform assets such as property, cash deposits and other investments can be added to give a complete picture of your current financial position and wealth.

There is complete transparency of charging, reduction in paperwork, and simple movement of monies between different tax wrappers in the future. There is online reporting facilities which include, valuations, capital gains certificates to simplify tax issues (if appropriate), performance analysis, income tax certificates, and adviser payment statements.

The ongoing Advisory process will include;

• Annual review and re-assessment meeting
• Re-establish the risk profile and asset balance (to Counteract Portfolio Drift)
• Carry out any re balancing of the funds.
• Supply an Annual Report to this effect.