As the longest bull market in history stampedes into another year, wealthy investors are getting nervous.
According to Fidelity Investment’s 10th Millionaire Outlook Study, released on Monday, those investors are better off consulting a financial advisor than not.
The study examined investing attitudes and behaviors of more than 1,000 high-net-worth households, including more than 600 millionaires. Fidelity found that millionaire sentiment on the present has reached a record disconnect to their feelings on the future - the sutdy recorded the highest-ever current financial outlook among millionaires, but near-record low future financial outlook.
Financial planners with good advice and a sympathetic ear to clients’ concerns are the solution to the problem, according to the study.
“What we continue to hear from investors is that managing the money is the foundation of their relationship with advisors – but they want more,” said David Canter, head of the registered investment advisor segment at Fidelity Clearing & Custody Solutions. “Advisors need to think about how they’re helping their clients achieve their life goals and dreams.”
Millionaire clients said that the services they receive are not necessarily the services they want. One in 10 millionaires said their advisors had proactively reached out to them regarding the impact of tax reforms, but about half that number said their advisors had not.
Advisors may be missing out on an opportunity to not only provide sound money management advice, but to allay jittery investors’ fears of a sudden downturn in the bull market that could drastically affect their plans.
Canter said that all advisors need to add a new dimension of customer service to their financial planning services in order to satisfy clients’ expectations.
“We’re in the midst of the longest bull market in history, which means that most investors have seen upside in their portfolios for almost 10 years, but they’re beginning to think about how to prepare for a future that may have some more bumps,” Canter said. “So right now in particular, advisors are going to be hugely important in helping their clients plan for the future.”