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Wealth Management in Cambridge
Investing in today’s uncertain world and maximising investment returns without taking too much risk is a real challenge.
professional advice
Investing in the right assets and achieving the right balance is vital
Therefore, getting investment advice from a professionally qualified investment adviser has become increasingly important.
However, there are other factors to consider and that’s where using the services of an independent professional investment adviser can provide you with greater peace of mind. Why do you need professional investment advice?
Testimonials
Curious what people think about us?
Rachel Rutherford was able to secure us a mortgage very quickly and a much larger borrowing amount than we expected. She was very professional, responsive and gave us excellent advice. I would highly recommend for anyone looking for a mortgage.
– ELIZABETH BREWER 
Professionalism, Quality.
– LUCIENNE MANN
I really value the help provided by Oliver and Sam at Darlington. They have made the management of my pension pot so much easier, and have taken all the worry and hassle out of it. I feel that I can trust them, and that the advice and help they give is good value for money.
– SIMON GOUGH
Both Oliver and Sam have been incredibly helpful, approachable and open. They are very quick to respond to and deal with any, and varied, questions and 'first time investment' worries. It was a very big deal for me to start thinking about investments etc, but they made it all very painless! Very many thanks.
– JACKY LLOYD
Dartington was recommended by a family member and we were delighted with the service and outcome. Nicholas took care of our re-mortgage and was pro-active, responsive, professional and helpful throughout. We’d happily use Dartington again and would highly recommend
– JAMES ABBOTT
Dartington Wealth Management is unique in my view in that all its staff are trained to a very high level and are endlessly helpful and willing to help out even with trivia that is hardly rewarding for them. When it comes to specialist things, their skills stretch to pretty well every area of our financial lives and you know you are getting the benefit of cutting edge advice . Malcolm Coury, the CEO, has looked after me over some 20 years and when things get tough, which they are at present, he is always there with good advice given in a way that shifts panic to one side and brings sweet clarity to only the things that should concern us. Malcolm and his team make sure every communication is answered that day even if it is occasionally just to acknowledge and confirm the date a full reply will come through. I am hugely impressed with them and would have no hesitation in recommending Dartington to someone looking for an IFA.
– SIMON SMITH
All our dealings to date have been excellent, they have listened to our requirements made suitable suggestions and implemented them in a friendly and professional manner.
– MICHAEL DEARMAN
I have had honest advice and when my husband died they did all the necessary paper work for me very swiftlly and did not charge. A friendly professional firm who quickly understand your needs – no hard sell – your protection paramount.
– PATRICIA REVEL
I have been with Dartington since before they were Dartington, and the level of service has continued at the same high standard.
– PENNY HENDERSON
I can't recommend Dartington Wealth Management highly enough. Every time I speak to Rachel and Sam they're professional, friendly and responsive. I'm not exactly a numbers person, but Rachel and Sam always make every super clear and easy to understand. It's great to know that our investments are being looked after so well.
– BERTIE RAPKIN
I get a good personal service from an experienced and thoughtful person whom I have known for 30+ years, and trust. That’s very valuable to me even when we don’t entirely agree on priorities! He also advises me on things I need to get around to doing, and I usually follow his advice.
– ADRIAN MOXON
They were recommended to me and I have already recommended them to others. They are good at explaining things in a way I understand.
– SHEILA THOMAS
professional advice
Restricted versus Independent Advice
It is very easy to receive inappropriate advice from someone acting as if they know what they’re talking about. We have seen many examples of this from organisations with their own agenda, e.g. they offer restricted advice or are promoting their own range of products. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) calls this “shoe-horning” and despite their efforts to drive this out of the advice sector it is still happening every day. Therefore, it is very important to seek out independent advice from an adviser who is properly qualified and not restricted.
Charges
Taxes
Risk
Charges
There’s a saying when it comes to investing “it’s impossible to control investment returns but it is possible to control costs”. We regularly come across clients paying well over 2% per annum in costs despite being told a much lower headline figure. For example, an adviser or investment manager may say they charge 1% per annum and it would be easy not to give that a second thought. However, if they invest in active funds these add additional costs of between 0.65% and 1%, typically, and then add the cost of the administration platform to that, typically 0.25% to 0.45%, and you could easily be paying over 2% each year. Getting value for money means you should be looking to keep your total costs, including the cost of the investment advice, to between 1.0% and 1.5%.
Taxes
Tax on your investments and the income from them is effectively another cost and something that can further reduce your investment returns. The obvious taxes are income tax and capital gains tax. However, there are other less obvious taxes including stamp duty, VAT and inheritance tax to consider. Further, there are many tax advantaged schemes that are approved by HMRC and designed to minimize the affect of taxation and or even achieve tax-free income and gains in return for investing in businesses and, therefore, helping the wider economy. There are also more widely used tax advantaged schemes like Individual Savings Accounts (ISAs) and Personal Pension Plans (PPPs) that attract tax relief on the contributions. An independent professionally qualified adviser will help you understand how best to navigate the tax maze to both minimise tax and take advantage of your personal tax allowances and exemptions.
Risk
Not all investors have the same attitude towards taking risks. Some will have a higher tolerance for risk than others. Therefore, it is important to understand what your own tolerance for risk is and what your capacity for loss might be. In simple language your capacity for loss means how much money you could afford to lose without it affecting your standard of living. One of the first things a professional adviser will do is discuss this with you and, using risk and capacity for loss questionnaires, help you understand how much risk would be appropriate for your personal circumstances, aims and objectives. Once your risk tolerance and capacity for loss have been identified, discussed and understood, only then can you invest with realistic expectations and truly understand the relationship between risk and reward.
