I sat in the chair, he checked my teeth and then charged me £60. I was in and out within minutes.
I am not complaining about the service. Just fascinated by perspective.
The dentist didn’t say to me… “The teeth we replaced last year, well, they might need changing again. They are not what we expected. What we need to do is replace them with new ones. Of course, there’s no charge for the check-up…all part of the service”
If that actually happened each year, you may wonder if they are looking after your best interests.
If you invest £500,000 with a wealth manager. They design and build a portfolio. If they said to you in 12 months, the investments purchased don’t have the same opportunity, let’s change them. What seemed great when you invested is no longer great. But at least they are trying, right?
What if you invested £500,000 and in 12 months they did nothing? You may start to wonder what you are paying for.
In most cases, as Warren Buffett alluded, they trade a proportion of your portfolio, say 20%. It’s enough to show they are doing something but not enough for you to question their expertise! We call it investment politics.
In the visit to the dentist, you want to identify any problems quickly before they get too big. In my case, whilst no action was taken, they deliver peace of mind. It’s a service that should be paid for.
In the world of money management, it is easy to let others manage your money without impartial oversight. To identify if there is a problem. It’s also easier to stay with the same wealth manager or advisers for years, which is more than acceptable, providing, from time to time, you rethink your decisions. If Investors get complacent, so do their wealth managers.
Whilst no one wants to spend what seems more money on checking their investments, the consequences of not doing so can be significantly more expensive that doing nothing.