{"id":107925,"date":"2025-07-31T16:00:10","date_gmt":"2025-07-31T16:00:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/107925\/"},"modified":"2025-07-31T16:00:10","modified_gmt":"2025-07-31T16:00:10","slug":"i-want-to-make-some-changes-to-my-investments-but-i-dont-know-how-to-talk-to-my-financial-advisor-about-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/107925\/","title":{"rendered":"I want to make some changes to my investments, but I don’t know how to talk to my financial advisor about it."},"content":{"rendered":"

Pay Dirt is Slate\u2019s money advice column. Have a question? <\/strong>Send it to Kristin and Ilyce here<\/strong><\/a>. (It\u2019s anonymous!)<\/strong><\/p>\n

Dear Pay Dirt,<\/strong><\/p>\n

I am someone with a relatively stable nest egg and some investments. Recently, I have been thinking that I would like to make a change\u2014but I have no idea how to speak to my financial advisor, since this is not necessarily something they will want to hear.<\/p>\n

I want to move my investments from where they are now (a major bank with shoddy climate policies) and try to invest them in something more aligned to my values (like green energy).<\/p>\n

I have no idea how to approach this, however. I feel like I need to have a script prepared. Any advice?<\/p>\n

\u2014Less Evil?<\/p>\n

Dear Less Evil,\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

You\u2019re not asking for anything that should send a financial advisor into a tizzy. More and more people<\/a> are becoming interested in sustainable investing, so there\u2019s a good chance your advisor can walk you through it.<\/p>\n

But before you approach them about it, you might as well do some research on your own. Look into ESG funds<\/a>, green bonds<\/a>, and maybe also credit unions or banks that have better environmental policies\u2014they might be pitched as \u201cgreen\u201d or \u201cclimate friendly\u201d institutions. There are also platforms specifically for this kind of investing, like some of Vanguard\u2019s ESG options<\/a> or firms that focus on socially responsible investing<\/a> (SRI). Start your research here so you have some specific intuitions or funds in mind to talk through with your advisor.<\/p>\n

You asked for a script, so I\u2019d say something like: \u201cI want to move toward more sustainable investments. What are my options and what would it cost me tax-wise to make changes?\u201d If your advisor acts like this is some outrageous request or there aren\u2019t good options available, that\u2019s useful information about whether you want to keep working with them. (If you\u2019re thinking of switching advisors you could also search for a Chartered SRI Counselor<\/a>.)<\/p>\n

That said, there\u2019s a good chance your advisor will against dumping all of your investments at once, and that\u2019s financially sound advice, because the tax implications alone could put a big dent in your nest egg. They might encourage you to start by figuring out which of your current holdings are the worst offenders when it comes to the issues that are important to you, then look into the penalties for selling, and maybe plan a gradual transition into investments that align more with your values.<\/p>\n

This is all something your advisor should be comfortable helping you with, but the more you understand the terminology and implications associated with what you\u2019re asking, the better prepared you\u2019ll be.<\/p>\n

\n Please keep questions short (<\/p>\n

Dear Pay Dirt,<\/strong><\/p>\n

I\u2019d like to find a good, inexpensive \u201cpersonal finance\u201d program for my use. I\u2019ve been using Quicken for some time now, and in general, I think it\u2019s a huge help.\u00a0 It lets me keep a close eye on my finances and easily look things up.\u00a0 But\u2026I\u2019m not that happy with the program itself. It\u2019s a clunky program, and I can\u2019t even rely on it to maintain a balance correctly\u2014and my use of it is very basic, just downloading credit card and bank accounts.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m using Quicken on a very basic level\u2014I download all my expenditures from two credit cards, checking primarily (and a few related accounts).\u00a0 Then I review it, assign categories and put a short memo on each describing what I bought. \u00a0 (I have no experience with bookkeeping and no real aptitude either.)<\/p>\n

I tend to do a lot of small shopping trips for groceries, for example, so if possible I\u2019ll list what I bought, as well as notes on any other purchase.\u00a0 I\u2019m elderly, live alone, so I\u2019m not a big spender. \u00a0 I find it\u2019s a huge help, in routine tracking, but also when I need to locate a particular expense, from last year, for example, or for a category over time.\u00a0 I keep a running list of charitable donations in Excel, but if needed, I can run a search on Quicken to doublecheck a particular donation (when, how much and so forth). \u00a0 Then I get totals by category, so I can see spending for groceries, utilities\u2014and on subscriptions\u2014somewhat.<\/p>\n

Quicken fails in many respects, though.\u00a0 I can\u2019t get it to balance, and I can\u2019t find an easy way to remove payment transfers from the spreadsheet (they clutter up the page).\u00a0 It often gets the category wrong, even with payees that I use all the time.<\/p>\n

So, I\u2019m wondering:\u00a0 What else is there, and what does it cost? I\u2019ve looked briefly QuickBooks, and it seems expensive, for my purposes and I don\u2019t know if I\u2019ll wind up with the same issues.<\/p>\n

Do you have advice, or do you know of a good source? I have Googled this a bit but I would appreciate some more specific advice.<\/p>\n

\u2014Not Exactly a Moneybags<\/p>\n

Dear Not Exactly a Moneybags,<\/strong><\/p>\n

As a budget nerd who has experimented with more budgeting tools than I can count, I can tell you that I have yet to come across a single platform that is sheer perfection. All of them have at least some minor issues with clunkiness.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m not sure if you\u2019re using Quicken Classic or Quicken Simplifi (the latter has a simpler interface and might be a good option for basic budgeting), but if your main issue is that the balances aren\u2019t updating correctly, you might have that same issue with either platform. I\u2019ve used a handful of different budgeting tools and have had this issue with all of them at some point or another. Before you switch tools, it might help to first reach out to Quicken\u2019s customer service team and ask if there are easy solutions for some of the problems you\u2019re encountering. The fix might be as simple as reconnecting a bank account or turning on a feature that allows you to hide those transfers, for example.<\/p>\n

That said, here are a few budgeting alternatives, if you\u2019re curious.<\/p>\n

1. You Need a Budget<\/a> (YNAB) has a huge fanbase of people that sing its praises. It\u2019s a little too complicated for my liking, but I seem to be an outlier, because anyone I\u2019ve met who has tried YNAB swears by it. It\u2019s $14 a month and focuses on budgeting, but handles transaction tracking really well. It\u2019s meticulous about accounting for every penny, so you get an accurate and detailed view about where your money is going.<\/p>\n

2. Empower<\/a> is another popular option, and they have a free version that\u2019s a solid choice for basic account tracking and transactions. It\u2019s also useful for tracking investments and net worth.<\/p>\n

3. PocketGuard<\/a> is another simple option.<\/p>\n

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    4. Tiller<\/a> works through Google Sheets if you like the idea of customizing your own setup while still getting automatic bank downloads. Since you already use Excel for tracking, Tiller might feel familiar and give you the customization control you need at around $7 per month.<\/p>\n

    5. Monarch Money<\/a> is another excellent option. It\u2019s $8-14 per month depending on whether you pay monthly or annually. Reviews say it excels at automatic transaction categorization and has a clean interface. So if you\u2019re looking for more simplicity, Monarch might be your best bet.<\/p>\n

    The truth is, there are so many budgeting apps and tools out there, though, and it\u2019s hard to keep track of them all (here\u2019s<\/a> a pretty comprehensive and up-to-date comparison, though). When you\u2019re comparing these, look for an app that can reliably connect to all your banks and credit cards without login issues, since that seems to be your frustration with Quicken\u2014maintaining an accurate view of your balances. Some apps are great but have a steep learning curve, while others are intuitive but limited in features, so think about whether you want something simple that just works or something more detailed that might take time to learn.<\/p>\n

    \u2014Kristin<\/p>\n

    More Money Advice From Slate<\/p>\n

    Back in May, I legally changed my name, including reporting the name change to the Social Security Administration. (For the record, my Social Security number did not change.) Once that was done, my understanding was that the change would be reported to the various credit bureaus, and my existing credit records would simply be updated with the new name, and continue to reflect all of my credit history.<\/p>\n

    The latest sex, parenting, and money advice from our columnists delivered to your inbox three times a week.\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Pay Dirt is Slate\u2019s money advice column. Have a question? Send it to Kristin and Ilyce here. (It\u2019s…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":107926,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[600,64,255,4329,5597,67,132,68],"class_list":{"0":"post-107925","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-personal-finance","8":"tag-advice","9":"tag-business","10":"tag-personal-finance","11":"tag-real-estate","12":"tag-slate-plus","13":"tag-united-states","14":"tag-unitedstates","15":"tag-us"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/114948684097024101","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/107925","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=107925"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/107925\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/107926"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=107925"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=107925"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=107925"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}