Edward Jones...Yay or Nay?

[FroSSty]

Well just what the title says. I am opening a ROTH IRA with them so I wanted to know what experiences were had with them from you guys and gals.

[FroSSty]

Come on... somebody must invest some money with them instead of blowing it all on there cars right??? no? hmm.....

[Gary94Formula]

I haven't invested with them. I would check the expense ratio of the funds they invest in. You can open one almost anywhere. The kicker is that you may get higer returns, but the expenses can eat up the higher returns. Shop around and look for overall return and long term average. 3, 5 and 10 years returns if they have it. Good Luck.

[FroSSty]

They showed a 12% average gain over the last 10 years. Last year, with this portfolio, they showed a 14% gain. This is one of their most conservative portfolios...

[Gary94Formula]

Those aren't bad returns at all for that length of time. What are the expense ratios and annual costs to have/manage the account?

[Performin Norman]

They are fine as long as you don't mind their fees or no having as much control. I prefer to invest myself and save the fees. There's nothing wrong with using a broker. It's all about what you prefer.

[Bug Lover]

This is the most important thing you will ever need to know about having a ROTH - you need to understand the IRS rules on them, whether you actually get the benefits of it or it is passed onto your heirs. I inherited one and now face the possibility of a penalty for not withdrawing the funds on time because NONE of the brokers involved were able to give me a straight answer on when I needed to withdraw the funds.

There are lots of ways to invest, both yourself and through a broker that are not overly expensive, but if you want someone else to do the majority of the worrying, you really need to pay attention to the fees.

I really don't have any experience with Edward Jones, so I can't say yay or nay to them. Most of my experience is with Charles Schwab, using an independent financial manager/CPA and have been quite satisfied with the performance of the funds the manager is putting my investments into. The fees haven't killed me yet either.

I also have experience with Bear Stearns, Smith Barney and Merrill Lynch. Some from a reporting standpoint only and others from personal experience. As for those three, Smith Barney is my preference because their reports are easy to follow and the investments seem to do well. With Bear Stearns, the reports are horrible, but those investments are also doing well. As for Merrill Lynch, reports are good, but the service is awful. A LOT depends on the actual broker you use too.

Quick rundown on my experience with Merrill Lynch - I'd ask the broker a question and he would give me an answer, then call me back a few days later with a change in the answer. We're talking legal/IRS questions - really important stuff. If he didn't know, he should have said that he would do some research and get back to me. A few months later, I tried to call the broker again - his phone would answer and tell me that there was no one at that extension. It would not allow me the option of transferring to an operator or another person. Finally, I changed the last digit on the number until I got someone else's extension and was told that the broker was no longer with the company and someone else was handling the accounts. Shortly after, I removed all my investments from Merrill Lynch and have never even considered using them again. The company I work for won't either.

This may be way too much information, but you need to be aware that you are ultimately responsible for your investments, whether you use a broker or not. Good luck - an IRA is a good investment strategy, ROTH or Regular.

[FroSSty]

Good info guys... As for the fees...They will get 30 bucks annually and 5.75 % on each initial investment. My broker seems to be knowledgable about every question I had for him. I think I have decided to go for it. Thank you all for your input.