Sure, becoming an independent financial advisor sounds great, though sometimes the independence part can be a drag. Compliance headaches and mundane operational chores, coupled with the lack of resources and support formerly enjoyed at the corporate office, can make some employee advisors think twice before leaping to the independent space.

That’s why advisors from wirehouses, large broker-dealers and insurance companies are more likely to join an existing registered investment advisor than to start their own firm if and when they go the independent route, according to Cerulli Associates. In the fourth quarter 2015 edition of The Cerulli Edge—Advisor Edition report, the Boston-based financial services consultant’s survey of employee advisors found that 34.5% would prefer to join an existing independent firm as a partial owner or principal, while another 17.9% said they’d prefer to join such firms as an employee.

That’s slightly more than half of the tally, with the rest saying they’d prefer to start a new firm with another advisor or advisors (29.8%), or start a new firm on their own (17.9%).

“Many advisors are daunted by the task of forging their own path and the accompanying headaches,” said Bing Waldert, director at Cerulli, in the report.
“Advisors considering the RIA channel are increasingly looking to join existing firms that can provide them with not only the necessary operational infrastructure, but also a sense of community.”