Im turing 18 in 3 weeks,and im recieving 350k of inherentince.My mom hired me an accountant last week and..?

Question

I dont trust her,my accountant/Finacial advisor.....She stalks me everday everwhere.Ever since we met i see her everywhere.School,Job,mall etc.

She calls my cell phone twice a day to just talk?"hey you like baseball?"My accountant/Fianacial advisor even hired me an attourny.

I dont even have the money yet and people are up in my face.

My question is my accountant crazy or are all accountants wack jobs who want a piece of your pie?

Answer 1

No, this is not normal.

I don't know your mom - how good a judge of character she is, how wise she is with money, how trustworthy, etc. But even if she is the most wonderful and smartest person in the world, I can't imagine even the slightest circumstance where you would want to keep this accountant / FA - sounds like she is trying to be your friend, and that is okay but what are you paying her in the meantime and what are her motives? Sounds hard to trust.

I recommend (after firing this person) you take one of the following actions:

1. If you really want professional advice, put your money in a CD at a bank until you find somebody you're certain (and that somebody you trust and is good with money is also certain) you can trust - and I mean certain. Even if it takes months or years to find such a person, you will still be safely gaining interest on the CD (certificate of deposit, a very common and safe investment offered by almost all banks and other financial institutions).

2. Do-it-yourself option A - if you prefer to just invest it somewhere and be done with it, then invest in mutual funds (you can do this directly, online and/or over the phone). I recommend T. Rowe Price or Vanguard - they both have low costs, strong performance, and many choices to choose from. If you go this route, I would select one of each of the following and divide the 350K evenly between them:
a. US 'total stock market' fund - invests in a way that represents the entire market
b. US small cap fund - invests in small companies
c. US value fund - invests in companies regarded undervalued by market
d. International 'total market' fund - see a. but in non-US companies
e. International small cap fund - see b. but non-US
f. International value fund - see c. but non-US
g. Emerging markets fund - high risk / reward but at your age plenty of time to realize the reward even if some declines along the way

3. Do-it-yourself option B - if you are interested in learning how to better invest and manage your own money, there are many free and low-cost resources available to you: American Association of Individual Investors (AAII), FundAdvice.com, Morningstar.com, Yahoo Finance, MSN Money, etc. Put all the inheritance in a CD (see item 1) until you've learned enough to be able to begin investing on your own.

No matter which of these you choose, I strongly recommend also doing the following - give some of it to one or more worthy causes. You have been tremendously blessed with this inheritance, now become a blessing to others less fortunate.

In summary, you want to put your money somewhere reasonably safe but also still want a decent return - so beware of anybody trying to sell you something as you have many many choices and investing is a very common thing so beware of people that seem overly friendly or act like they're doing you a big favor.

One more thing to remember - whatever choice you make isn't worth it if it's going to keep you awake at night or otherwise cause you pain or misery. Lots of money doesn't guarantee quality of life, so whatever choice you make should be one that will enhance your quality of life (and hopefully your investment returns as well).

Answer 2

At 18 you can hire your own financial advisors; insurance man; bank advisor; attorney, CPA, etc. And you can see them right now before your birthday. You definately need these people to advise you. That's a whole heckofa lot of money and you will want to have it make money for you. Sure, you'll want some for a new car, perhaps an apartment and some to just pi** away.

Your money must be being held by your local Probate Court as you are under 18. Contact that office (nobody needs to know you did this) and ask about it. You are entitled to read the records. You need to know if the full amount of your inheritance still exists or if your "Guardian" (that's what your mom or someone would be called) has dissipated some of it. You tell your mother you want a full disclosure if she says it's not all there. I'm not trying to belittle her because she is really doing the right thing setting you up with professional people to help you.

And listen to what I'm going to tell you now: Your advisor will be billing you for all the meetings that she see fit to bill you for. All the nonsense phone calls, etc. so you better ask her about this and tell her you are not okaying random calls and meetings. You might even want to discuss this with your Mom. Sometimes a financial advisor and attorney work hand in hand for your good; sometimes for their own. I don't mean to sound cynical but I know these things first hand.

Good luck to you and don't let new people become your 'friends' now that you have money! (Sorry I couldn't be brief!)

Answer 3

350k isn't that much that it warrants you being "stalked" by a "whack job". I wouldn't worry about hiring an attorney as of yet, but it does sound like you could use a good financial advisor/planner or a CPA. Most reputable CPA's do charge a fee to handle your account and so forth, but unless you're a multi-millionaire, they would have no reason to call you twice a day or even daily. If I were you I'd hold off on signing anything or even entering into any verbal agreement with anyone until you've done some of your own "homework" on who you want to handle your money and or investments. I'm sure your mom has your best interests at heart, but maybe she isn't the best person to go to for financial advice. I wish you the best of luck with this situation and hope you find someone to trust.

Answer 4

This Site Might Help You.

RE:
Im turing 18 in 3 weeks,and im recieving 350k of inherentince.My mom hired me an accountant last week and..?
I dont trust her,my accountant/Finacial advisor.....She stalks me everday everwhere.Ever since we met i see her everywhere.School,Job,mall etc.

She calls my cell phone twice a day to just talk?"hey you like baseball?"My accountant/Fianacial advisor even hired me an attourny.

I dont...

Answer 5

BE WARE! I have a simple suggestion which will give you the time to decide for yourself. In the mean time arrange to have the funds temporarily put into triple tax free short term notes. You can do this through any portfolio manager while you listen and learn what to do. Go to school to learn, tapping into the funds as needed. When you are finished it will all be waiting for you then to give you an easier start. The accountant/financial planner sounds too incompetent and unsure of what they are doing... with all the contact being made except of course to collect fees for services. I would tell her to stop harassing you, if she expects to have anything to do with you. After you meet at-least a few different advisors (Costing you nothing) then you can make your own decisions.

Answer 6

When you turn 18, hire your own financial planner.

Don't sign anything with your current accountant or attorney once you turn 18, and don't pay them.

You don't owe them anything because you are still a minor right now.

Call the licensing board and ask for a referral for a CFP.

Answer 7

Most accountants fine but not when it comes to investments. Have to make it clear to your mom that her choice does not have your confidence. Last thing you need is a lawyer. Need to have your mom let both of you sit down and chose someone if (and only if) someone needed I doubt someone is. I speak as someone who has done accounting since 1981.

Answer 8

Most of the answers you got are scams. Run away from www.aid4families.com and anyone else offering outrageous returns. These people appeal to the greed in all of us.

A far as your question is concerned.... stay away from this one... they're up to no good.

Call Schwab, Vanguard, T.Rowe Price, Fidelity brokerage. Low fees, good products & out to help the customer.

Answer 9

I suggest you to fire him.

I will help you for FREE.
I don't call.
I don't live in your city.

I am a Portfolio Manager.

My job is simple:
Turn those $350,000.00 into $3,500,000.00

I don't usually handle small accounts but it seems somebody in your family really wants to control your money.

Do not let them!
It's your money!

Drop me a line.
I bet you don't even know what a Portfolio Manager does.

Answer 10

about a yr ago i opened a high yield savings account with aid4families.com I receive my interest through monthly payments which are directly deposited into my bank account each month. There are other program options which allow for compounded interest and such. This programs really pays the highest APY around. You should check it out for yourself www.aid4families.com