Unless you are a seasoned investor or work in an insurance firm, I bet you never heard the term “Investment Management” or “Portfolio Management”. Since always, these terms have been associated with rich people. Why would a poor or middle-class person want their money to be managed by someone else? It’s a sad thing to point out they don’t have a lot to worry about in the first place. This post is intended to help out a not-so-rich person understand the importance of Investment Management. Your finances are important too!
What is Investment Management?
Investment management can be defined as a strategy to handle various personal and professional assets like real estate, shares, bonds, and securities to achieve the financial objectives of a client. Both individuals and companies hire portfolio managers to handle their financial assets. There are plenty of other terms like Asset Management, Portfolio Management and Discretionary Management which means more or less the same thing.
Here are 3 things about Investment Management you should know
1) Investor managers go to school to learn their craft
Just like any other profession, there are college degrees dedicated to Investment Management as well. Most finance professionals with a few years of work experience in the relevant industry opt for this career path. So, before hiring an Investment Manager, make sure they have the required credentials. If the candidate claims to be self-educated, talk to his/her ex-clients, read testimonials online, etc.
2) Managing an investment portfolio requires one to have a basic knowledge of the market
Whether you choose to hire a portfolio manager or take charge of your finances yourself, you will need to have some basic knowledge of how the market functions. There is no option of trial and error here. One mistake and you could lose your investment. Hence, read books, take courses and strive to expand your knowledge about the market.
3) Portfolio management apps can save you a ton of money
If you are an investor, you would want an app that will let you manage multiple portfolios at the same place, keep you updated of the changes in the market and also have a separate section for reports(including graphs, statistics, charts, estimations, etc). These are the duties usually performed by an actual portfolio manager. Now, a mobile app can do these mundane tasks so you don’t have to pay thousands of dollars every month to your portfolio manager.
To have your wealth managed by your phone, I recommend downloading an app called “Personal Capital”. This app is available for both Android and iOS devices. Once you install Personal Capital on your phone, you will be able to manage your bank accounts, retirement funds, and other investments all in one place. This app lets you view your wealth in a more dynamic and orderly way. You will never miss out on your bills, installments and investment opportunities.
Summary
Wealth management may seem like a confusing mess, but a qualified and trustworthy manager is all you need. Along with that, you can also use portfolio management apps to stay updated on your accounts. You do not want to hand over your account to a manager and forget about it. They are there just to assist and support you.