The sequence of planning is important for clients to understand. Wealth management in Canada has long had it backwards - open account, invest money, plan maybe. This is Part III of a series on Alternative Investments that focuses on what goes into knowing what kind of portfolio makes sense for investors.

Click on Part I and Part II if you want to catch up.

Many Canadians struggle with the question of ‘what should I be invested in?’  It’s the classic cocktail party question from people who know I’m a planner and help people manage their wealth.

The answer always starts with ‘it depends what you’re trying to do’.

Investing is the final step in planning – the implementation.  There are too many up-stream items that an advisor needs to do before they should even remotely be talking about what to invest in, so if I, or anyone else were to say ‘here’s a good investment’ – run the other way.

This post is about how investors should expect their advisors to be approaching a decision.

One of the issues that Canadians continue to face is that still many people – 43% according to JD Power, 2023 – who pay for financial advice don’t have what they themselves would describe as a financial plan.

The article can be found here.