Elsewhere on our website, we have addressed what we think are the best, most positive ways to approach financial planning for those in the medical profession. What we have not discussed so far, however, is what we think you should avoid when seeking out a financial advisor for physicians.
It goes without saying that, as a physician, your financial planning needs are unique: the profession typically combines long hours, a high income potential, substantial student loan debt, and your own, personal plans for your family’s future — all of which require a tailored approach to managing your wealth over the long-term.
Unfortunately, not all financial advisors will pay attention to your situation. Instead, you may come across people who care more about their own interests — maximizing the amount of money they can make from their relationship with you — than yours. You might also meet people who lack necessary expertise for your niche, or you might find people who push commission-based products that don’t really work for you.
In this article, we will address all of those red flags and more: we will put forward why we think you would be well-advised to work with a fiduciary; that is, a financial advisor who is legally obligated to act in your best interests. At Iron Point Financial, we take pride in serving physicians with a values-based, fiduciary approach to financial planning, where your needs and goals always come first.
Red Flag #1 — A "One-Size-Fits-All" Approach
One of the first, most significant red flags to watch out for when choosing a financial advisor for physicians is the use of a “one-size-fits-all” approach.
In contrast to that approach, we believe financial planning should be a personalized process that takes into account your individual goals, career stage, financial situation, and values — and this is even more important for those in the medical profession.
As a physician, your financial planning needs differ significantly from those of other professionals, and your advisor would do well to recognize that from the outset. Sadly, advisors who adopt a one-size-fits-all approach fail to see your unique needs as a human being, and are instead likely to treat you more like a number on a spreadsheet — a spreadsheet that serves their needs first and foremost.
Why It’s a Red Flag
Some financial advisors, particularly those who work at large institutions or with purely commission-based models, rely on standardized products and ready-made strategies.
Rather than taking the time to understand who you are, what you care about, and what you would like to achieve, this kind of financial planner is likely to offer you the same cookie-cutter plan they offer everyone else.
In practice, they might push you to invest in or buy a specific mutual fund, insurance product, or retirement plan without first asking about your individual circumstances or preferences.
This “one-size-fits-all” approach is especially dangerous for physicians because:
- Unique Debt & Income Considerations: Physicians typically graduate with high levels of student loan debt and spend years in residency or fellowship before reaching their peak earning potential. Financial strategies that work for other high-income professionals may not be appropriate for a doctor balancing debt repayment with a delayed earning timeline.
- Busy, Demanding Careers: You may have limited time to devote to financial planning, in which case you might need an advisor who can provide wise, reliable wealth management strategies that require minimal time commitment moving forward (especially after the initial, in-depth consultation).
- Retirement & Succession Planning: The structure of your career — whether you’re a small, private practitioner or employed by a large healthcare institution — can have a significant impact on your retirement plans. A cookie-cutter plan that doesn’t account for your specific career path may lead to missed opportunities or misaligned goals.
What to Look For Instead
A trustworthy financial advisor will take the time to understand your financial situation, goals, and concerns before offering any recommendations. They should ask thoughtful questions about your career trajectory, your family, your debts, and your plans for the future, and then curate a truly customized financial plan for you.
By creating a financial plan in a way that reflects your personal values and long-term objectives, a good advisor can help you manage your present and future wealth in a way that aligns with your career as a physician.
At Iron Point Financial, we take things one step further with the recognition that no two physicians are alike, meaning that each client we work with receives a custom plan tied to their unique circumstances.
More than that, we care about your values, the causes you support, and your vision for the future — which is why we will incorporate all of those into any plan we offer you. As Greg Liszka (CFP®, RICP®), President and Advisor at Iron Point Financial would say,
Unlike a lot of the advisors out there, we offer true, comprehensive financial planning. A lot of people say they do that, but they don’t. Most of the time they’ll say something like, ‘Oh, you’ve got an old 401(k)? Well, let’s just roll that over here. Done.’
At Iron Point, we’ll give you a take-home plan with clear instructions: ‘Here’s what you said you wanted to do, here’s where you are now, and here’s how we’re going to build a bridge between those two places — here’s how all the different sections of your life intersect with that bridge.’
Red Flag #2 — Commission-Based Services
We alluded to this in the previous section, but the second significant red flag we are going to mention today is working with a financial advisor who earns commissions by selling you financial products, like insurance policies, mutual funds, or annuities.
Unlike fiduciary financial advisors, commission-based advisors are not legally required to act in your best interest. Instead, they may recommend products that rake in higher commissions for themselves and the institutions they represent, even where those products are a poor fit for your life circumstances.
Why It’s a Red Flag
When a financial advisor earns commissions from the products they sell — especially where their commission fees are buried in the small print or never mentioned at all — that’s a prime example of a conflict of interest.
Instead of focusing on what’s best for you, these kinds of advisors may be incentivized to push products that maximize their income at your expense. For physicians, this could result in unnecessary or inappropriate investments that clash with your financial goals, needs, and values.
Here’s how commission-based services can negatively impact physicians like you:
- Biased Recommendations: A commission-based advisor might prioritize products that offer them the highest commission over those that provide the best value or benefit to you. This could mean higher fees, lower returns, or products that aren’t aligned with your risk tolerance and personal values.
- Pressure to Buy: Advisors earning commissions may use high-pressure, pushy sales tactics to convince you to purchase specific products, even if you’re not ready or don’t fully understand what you’re being asked to commit to. They may hide behind complex ‘financial-ese’ to confuse you and engender a ‘fear of missing out’, when there could be much better options elsewhere.
- Hidden Costs: Many commission-based products come with hidden fees, including management fees, surrender charges, and other costs that can eat into your returns. This lack of transparency can leave you paying far more than you should over time.
What to Look For Instead
If you choose to work with a fee-only fiduciary financial advisor, like the team at Iron Point Financial, you do not need to worry about your financial advisor’s motivations: they are legally required to work for you, and you only, and to do so with the utmost transparency and care.
When you work with a fee-only advisor, you typically pay a flat fee. That’s their only income source. They don’t earn hidden commissions and they are not bound to sell one or two financial products only. This helps to ensure that the advice you receive is unbiased and based only on what is best for your financial situation.
As Greg explains it:
As your Registered Investment Adviser (RIA) through Vicus Capital, we are going to charge you an annual fee, which is a fee for service. Normally, I charge 1% annually.
We agree to that figure right up front: there’s a form. It’s very transparent. There’s a small platform fee, and there’s what I get paid. I’m not selling you anything. You’re hiring me to fix a problem, or to do a job — that’s it.
At the end of the day, the idea is that the more money you make, the more both of our incomes go up. It’s meant to be a win-win.
At Iron Point Financial, we offer personalized financial planning services that put your needs first: to help physicians like you grow wealth while aligning your financial decisions with your long-term goals and values.
For more information on Iron Point’s financial planning credentials, you can check out Greg Liszka’s registered certifications on FINRA’s BrokerCheck site here: https://brokercheck.finra.org/individual/summary/4613331
Red Flag #3 — Pushing Unnecessary Insurance Products
Another common red flag to watch for is when a financial advisor pushes you to purchase unnecessary or overly complicated insurance products. We mentioned that in passing already, in relation to our first red flag (a one-size-fits-all approach), but in when it comes to finding the right financial advisor for physicians, insurance products warrant further scrutiny.
This issue is also closely tied to the commission-based model we just discussed. Advisors who earn commissions are also likely to recommend specific insurance policies not because they’re a good fit for your needs, but because they generate lucrative, repeated paydays when such an advisor successfully sells you a policy.
Why It’s a Red Flag
Insurance is a key element of risk management, especially for physicians who may need protection from malpractice lawsuits, disability, or any other risks unique to those in the medical profession.
However, commission-based advisors may try to target physicians in particular, precisely because of the unique risks they face. They might try to argue you should buy overly expensive or unnecessary insurance policies (e.g. whole life insurance), instead of more cost-effective alternatives (e.g. term life insurance).
Here’s how this red flag could manifest:
- Fear-Based Tactics: Commission-based advisors may use fear-based tactics to convince you that you need expensive insurance policies to protect your family or your practice. They might exaggerate risks or make you feel as though you’re not adequately protected unless you purchase the high-cost insurance products they are the gatekeepers for.
- Overcomplicated Products: Some advisors push complex insurance products like whole life insurance, which combines insurance with an investment component. While whole life policies can be appropriate in certain situations, they are often more expensive and less flexible than term life insurance. Many physicians can achieve their financial goals with simpler, less expensive policies.
What to Look For Instead
A ‘green-flag’ financial advisor will instead provide clear, balanced information about different insurance options. Instead of zeroing in on specific products, they’ll help you assess your overall risk management needs and explain the pros and cons of various policies, allowing you to make an informed decision.
That’s exactly what it means to be a fiduciary in this context. As Greg would say,
Being a fiduciary is all about communication. It’s about showing clients the math and providing different options to fulfil their needs. At the end of the day, if the client gives an order, that’s it. They’re the boss.
As fiduciaries, it’s our job to educate people about the consequences of their decisions, and that’s it. When a client gives an order, it gets executed. Ultimately, they decide what’s best.
At Iron Point Financial, we don’t believe in fear-based sales tactics; we believe in empowering you to make the decision you can feel most confident with. So, when it comes to insurance, our team can work with you to develop a comprehensive, cost-effective risk management strategy, where we present you with the right protection options for your situation.
Red Flag #4 — Overall Lack of Transparency
A lack of transparency is the last red flag we will discuss today, and it can also be one of the most insidious and far-reaching when it comes to finding a suitable financial advisor for physicians.
If your prospective financial advisor gets vague or evasive when answering questions about fees, their compensation, or their decision-making process, that could be a major cause for concern…
Why It’s a Red Flag
We believe that transparency should be the cornerstone in any financial advisor-client relationship, but it could be even more important for physicians with complex financial needs and little time to manage them personally.
Where an advisor is unclear about how they’re compensated, what fees you’ll be paying, or why exactly they’re recommending certain products, it’s possible they could be hiding untoward conflicts of interest.
Here’s why a lack of transparency is dangerous:
- Hidden Fees: Non-fiduciary advisors may obscure hidden fees within the financial products they recommend, such as high expense ratios, front-end loads, or back-end loads. These fees can significantly reduce your investment returns over time.
- Conflicts of Interest: If an advisor is vague about their compensation structure or relationships with product providers, they may be earning commissions or kickbacks for selling you certain products.
- Unclear Recommendations: A lack of transparency and reasoning around why certain products or strategies are recommended could indicate that the advisor is prioritizing their own interests over yours.
What to Look For Instead
A fiduciary financial advisor should be completely transparent about their fees, compensation, and the strategic reasoning behind their recommendations. They should be open to answering all of your questions and explaining their advice patiently and in a way that you can easily understand.
At Iron Point Financial, we pride ourselves on complete transparency according to the fiduciary standard. We work on a fee-only basis, meaning you pay us directly for our services. There are no hidden fees, commissions, or conflicts of interest—just clear, values-driven financial advice tailored to your unique needs.
We don’t want to confuse you or hide things from you; we want to help you. In Greg’s words,
The financial planning industry has its own language. It’s a bit like the legal field, where everything is in Latin. The financial world has a way of thinking that boggles most people’s minds.
When I’ve listened to clients, I’ve heard a desire to feel like they’re not being sold anything. They want an education on the service we are providing to the extent they can trust in our competence and abilities. They want to know we know what we’re doing, so they can get on with their lives. That’s what we strive to provide.
Iron Point Financial: A True Financial Advisor for Physicians
As a hardworking and deserving physician, your financial future is too important to leave in the hands of someone who doesn’t have your best interests at heart. By avoiding advisors who rely on a one-size-fits-all approach, push commission-based products, recommend unnecessary insurance, or lack transparency more generally, you can better discern the right financial planner to work with long-term — someone who is truly aligned with your goals and values.
At Iron Point Financial, we take a fiduciary, values-based approach to being a financial advisor for physicians — in other words, the exact opposite of all the red flags we have described in this article. No matter who you are or where you have come from, we are committed to understanding your unique needs and helping you achieve financial success in a way that aligns with the impact you want to make in the world.
So, if you’re ready to work with a financial advisor who puts you first, why not reach out to one of our team to schedule an appointment today?
And if you you enjoyed this article on the red flags to avoid when looking for a financial advisor for physicians, why not sign up for regular updates here, so you don’t miss any future blog posts?
Iron Point Financial is here to empower you to secure a brighter tomorrow. We operate physical offices in Grove City, PA and Greenville, PA.
We primarily serve residents of Pennsylvania, Ohio, West Virginia and Florida but we also have registered broker licenses for 22 other states across the continental USA.
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Disclosures
All investing involves risk, including the possible loss of principal. There is no assurance that any investment strategy will be successful.
