Financial advisors have a problem giving quality retirement advice

1. they work for a large firm that pushes them to sell products and services not in your interest
2. the advisor does not understand the products and services he sells and relies on his firm for advice and training
3. the advisor has little to no background in personal financial matters or retirement issues (to become a financial advisor, one must pass a simple test, mostly about regulatory rules and passing this multiple choice test in no way indicates any ability to advise on financial matters)
4. financial advisors have never been trained to analyze
   • your tax return
   • a company’s financial statement
   • a prospectus

So unfortunately, there is very little protection other than your own investigation and interview that will give you insight into your advisor’s knowledge, experience and competence. Don’t end up like this