Here's What Prompts Investors Under 45 to Seek Advisors
These clients are more likely to seek needs-based counsel, according to the Dynasty Connect Survey.
High-net-worth investors aged 44 and younger tend to wait for a specific life event before seeking financial advice, including getting married, buying homes and starting families, according to survey results released this week by Dynasty Financial Partners.
Within this group, 54% of participants between 35 and 44 exhibited this behavior, as did 42% of those younger than 35. By comparison, 31% of survey respondents 65 to 74 waited for a milestone, typically liquidity events tied to inheritances or business sales, before seeking advice.
“These findings have a clear message for financial advisors,” Andrew Marsh, vice chairman of Dynasty Financial Partners, said in a statement. “People seek expert financial advice to fulfill specific, and often age-related needs. Advisors can use this information to craft services that match their clients’ priorities.
The Dynasty Connect Survey was conducted in partnership with Absolute Engagement between April 20 and May 1 among 1,000 respondents who work with a financial advisor and have a say in household financial decision-making. Each respondent had a minimum of $500,000 in investable assets.
The survey also found that 61% of those in the 35-to-44 age group who have switched advisors made the change because they needed an advisor with different or specific expertise. Dynasty said this reinforces the idea that people need to find advisors who are well suited to meet their specific needs.
The Dynasty Connect survey also highlighted generational differences in use of social media to source financial advice. For example, while only 5% of respondents between 45 and 54 said they would use social media to find a new advisor, 40% of those younger than 35 and 38% between 35 and 44 said they would do so.
“This gets to the reach social media has in communicating with millennial and Gen Z consumers,” Brendan Bell, head of Dynasty Connect, said in the statement. “This demographic is accustomed not only to making purchase decisions online, but also to self-educating themselves on those purchases.
“Additionally, once they are ready to engage, they much prefer digital communication and ‘chatting’ — oftentimes directly on social media — over phone calls.”
Next-generation clients also prefer to work with advisors who have diverse teams and track records of helping women, business owners and minorities, and offer remote services, according to the report.
“Big picture,” Bell said, “this survey uncovers age-based patterns of behavior that financial advisors can’t afford to ignore.”