How to find accountants and/or financial advisors for elderly California Ma.

July 1, 2009 6:04 AM

Several years ago after her stroke, Mom moved to California to be near family. She has been very stubborn about keeping her out-of-state accountant and stock broker and bristles at the thought of changing them. She has a large portfolio of investments in the family trust. Now Mom is 87, in assisted living and getting very forgetful. Her kids feel it's time to find advisors that are closer. I've been chosen to look for: 1. A local accountant / CPA to advise us on tax issues and the trust. 2. A local financial planner (may be included with #1?). 3. A local stock broker. Local = Walnut Creek, CA area. I need advice on finding the right people, what kind of questions to ask when interviewing them and any other helpful tips or resources.
posted by anonymous to work & money (5 comments total)

I know you can't answer this - but it matters how large large is. There are many good high net worth firms in the bay area. They would handle both the investment policy and the tax and estate planning for you. I decidedly would recommend against using three different people for these tasks. It ends up being more expensive and probably will give you worse advice.
posted by JPD at 6:09 AM on July 1

Your first consultation should be with an attorney. You won't be able to move your mother's assets against her wishes unless you get a power of attorney from her or have yourself appointed her guardian. IANAL, but you need one.
posted by decathecting at 6:24 AM on July 1

There's a threshold question here. Is she competent? If not, then one of the kids should take control, or be given control by Mom. Then the accountant, broker etc. can be chosen according to the wishes of the new custodian. BTW, there's no specific reason that the advisers must be local, except that personal meetings are comforting to some.
posted by JimN2TAW at 7:56 AM on July 1 [1 favorite has favorites]

1) Your mom has lost a huge support network and probably isn't able to create the same kind of history and trust with new ones. Please respect her position- it's a hard and scary one. I, too, would bristle at the thought of my kids deciding who will handle my money when I had perfectly good and trustworthy people handling it already.

2) What about getting one new professional at a time? For instance, getting a new CPA right away makes sense because California taxes are different. You may even be able to talk to her current financial planner to see if he or she agrees. It's likely they will. (For confidentiality reasons, unless your mom's given permission they won't be able to tell you anything, but you can tell them whatever you want.)

3) What if you ask her current professionals for local recommendations? She may feel less powerless that way.

4) If you are taking over her assets, you are a fiduciary. This comes with a raft of legal responsibilities you need to look into. (A financial planner with an AIF designation could be useful for this.)

5) Will these professionals be yours? Or your mom's? They will have very different priorities depending on this. (quick example: Is the priority to preserve her estate? Or giving your mom the best in life even if it means burning entirely through her assets?)

6) Not everyone agrees with me, but I believe that one's financial planner should be completely independent from the CPA, the estate attorney, and the broker. They need a clear-eyed look at everything that's going on and no matter how scrupulous, I think that's harder for people who have a strong focus in a different direction. As an example, most CPAs let taxes rule way too many of the financial planning decisions. This is not a bad thing- you WANT a CPA to focus on taxes! But if they are also the overall financial planner, you end up letting taxes rule your life, which is not how it should be.

Again, it sounds like moving your mom's professionals to someplace local won't make any difference to her, since she's bedbound. If the sole motivation is so that you have easier access, tread very carefully.

Please remember that money is never just money. Your mom isn't hanging onto her money- she's hanging onto her independence, or maybe her earlier life when things made more sense and when she had more power and social standing? I don't know. But be cognizant of the depth of the waters you're wading into, and please don't dismiss her actions as simply "being stubborn."
posted by small_ruminant at 8:06 AM on July 1 [2 favorites has favorites]

Anon, email me. My email is in my profile. I know someone local you should talk to.
posted by incessant at 8:28 AM on July 1