Stop the Investing Rip-off

The questions every investor should ask before parting with their hard-earned cash

This book serves as an advocate of the consumer and brings to light what insiders know about the side of the sales pitches that consumers don't, but need to hear. Stop the Investing Rip-Off reveals the questions every investor should ask during a financial sales pitch before they pull the trigger and buy the next mutual fund, stock, advisory service, or other investment product.

Based on David Loeper's nearly twenty-five years of experience of seeing the inner workings of the industry, this updated edition of his classic book offers new strategies based on the performance of the stock market over the past two years.

• Sheds light on the oft unseen deceit of the financial services industry
• An updated and revised edition of the bestselling Stop the Investing Rip-Off
• Written by David Loeper who is regularly quoted in Kiplinger's Money and Investment News and regularity contributes to Forbes Intelligent Investing

Stop the Investing Rip-Off, Revised and Updated is filled with advice for investors who want to avoid becoming victims of smooth talking salespeople and the effective advertising and marketing campaigns designed to evade reality and prey on your emotional desires.

Preface ix

Acknowledgments xix

Chapter 1 Major Brokerage Firms 1

Chapter 2 Investment Advisers 19

Chapter 3 Hybrids—Advisory Services Provided through Brokerages 27

Chapter 4 Discount Brokers 33

Chapter 5 Financial Planners and Wealth Managers 43

Chapter 6 The Financial Press 49

Chapter 7 The Broadcast Media 55

Chapter 8 Authors, Self-Help Books, and Financial Celebrities 61

Chapter 9 Mutual Funds and ETFs 73

Chapter 10 Insurance Agents (and Insurance Companies) 87

Chapter 11 Your Company-Endorsed Retirement Plan Adviser 119

Chapter 12 Banks and Trust Companies 123

Chapter 13 Software, Web Sites, and Financial Educators 127

Chapter 14 Pitches They All Use to Sacrifice Your Life 139

Chapter 15 Resources to Protect Yourself 161

Conclusion 179

Appendix A The Other Millionaire You Make with 2.5 Percent Excess Fees 181

Appendix B The Other Millionaire You Make with 1.5 Percent Excess Fees 185

About the Author 189

Index 191

David B. Loeper is the CEO of Financeware, Inc. Prior to founding Financeware in 1999, Loeper was Managing Director of Strategic Planning for the retail brokerage division of Wheat First Union and served on the Investment Advisory Committee of the almost $30 billion Virginia Retirement System. Loeper has been active in several industry associations, including the IMCA (Investment Management Consultants Association). He has also been a featured speaker at numerous industry events and often contributes to industry publications, as well as appearing on CNBC, Bloomberg TV, Fox Business, CNN, and Yahoo! FinanceVision. Praise for the Second Edition of Stop the Investing Rip-off: How to Avoid Being a Victim and Make More Money

"There are money morons everywhere! I'm sick of running into them at neighborhood gatherings and family holidays and business lunches and in every form of media, always making mistakes that make other guys millionaires. It makes me want to clap my hand over their flapping lips and jam a copy of David's book into their paws. It's a sucker-bait neutralizer—and, boy, do we need fewer suckers." —Jason Kelly, author of The Neatest Little Guide to Stock Market Investing

Investment firms lie. Many are packed with charlatans and smooth-talking salespeople using insidious advertising and marketing techniques designed to prey on your emotional desires against your better financial judgment. But that isn't to say there isn't money to be made. Based on investment management expert David Loeper's almost twenty-five years of experience studying the investment industry from the inside, this fully revised and updated edition of Stop the Investing Rip-off is the only book you need to avoid being scammed and to make sure you are getting the most out of your money.

Shedding some much-needed light on the often unseen deceit practiced by the financial services industry and offering all-new strategies based on the performance of the stock market over the past two years, the book provides—and explains—the questions every investor needs to ask before parting with their hard-earned cash. A staunch advocate of the consumer, the book teaches you the tricks that insiders use to make attractive sales pitches and how to dig deeper to uncover whether these opportunities are the real deal.The complete guide to avoiding hidden charges and making more money, Stop the Investing Rip-off is the one-stop resource for the savvy individual investor.