The reasons given for not engaging an advisor were that they are too expensive, that investors would rather purchase index funds or automated investments directly or that the investors thought they could invest better on their own.
Investors are optimistic about the future. Fifty-one percent said they are either somewhat optimistic or very optimistic that they will achieve their investment targets over the next 12 months, and 62 percent said they are somewhat optimistic or very optimistic about achieving their goals in the next five years. Seventy-five percent said they are highly or somewhat confident they will have enough money to maintain their lifestyle in retirement, an increase of 6 percentage points from a similar survey last August.
To achieve their investing targets, 61 percent of investors said their goal is to maximize growth, while only 39 percent said their first goal is to protect themselves from major losses.