Many people hate looking at their investment account statements. They are usually page after page of numbers, with little context and liberal use of jargon. The core of the problem, however, is that most statements are not designed to answer the three fundamental questions on the minds of most investors.
Most statements are only useful to answer the first question, What Do I Own? While the layout and presentation may not be user friendly, statements do provide detailed information on each security or investment in the account and what it was worth on the date the statement was created. But statements rarely provide clear and useful information on the other two questions: How Are My Investments Doing? And What Am I Paying in Fees? To get these answers, investors generally need to ask their financial advisor for supplementary information and reports. Because it can be time consuming and frustrating to do this, some investors retain independent third-parties like Minerva Wealth Advisory to do this essential work on their behalf.
While investment account statements may be frustrating to use, there are some important statement features that investors need to be aware of.
DISCLAIMER: This information is not intended to provide legal or accounting advice, or to address specific situations. Please consult with your legal or tax advisor to supplement and verify what you learn here. This is presented for informational or educational purposes only and does not constitute a recommendation to buy/sell any security investment or other product, nor is this an offer or a solicitation of an offer to buy/sell any security investment or other product. Any opinion or estimate constitutes that of the writer only, and is subject to change without notice. The above may contain information obtained from sources believed to be reliable. No guarantees are made about the accuracy or completeness of information provided. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.