Oct 15, 2026 · 37 min · 13 segments
On this month’s DSM Wealth Podcast, host Suzanna de Baca explores the question: What is the point of building wealth if you do not have a plan to protect it? In “Safeguarding Your Wealth: Managing…
So Annie, I'm actually gonna ask you a different question then is there's so many of these products people, you know, are saying, "Here, you can have safety, you can have income, you can have protection," getting calls, you know, and s- in-invitations to seminars.
How can consumers really tell what they need versus what they're being sold?
Um, it's a really good question, and something I heard in a previous role that I had at another financial institution, and it's come up several times, is the two-sentence rule.
So I don't know, um, if you're familiar with that or not, but if you are speaking with an advisor or an expert that can't explain how the product works, its fees, and how you access your cash in two quick sentences, you should walk away.
Um, and then I think there are a couple other questions that you can ask as well, and sorry, backing up just a little bit.
Um, so starting that conversation is oftentimes the hardest part, but then once you get into a conversation, you should be able to h- answer or have answers to some of these questions.
So, um, the expert or the advisor or the banker or whomever that you're speaking with, you could ask them, "Are you legally bound to act as a fiduciary for me in all instances?" So that's kind of a s- a safety question.
Um, and then it's very acceptable, and again, Joe, I'd be interested in your take on this, but to ask, "How do you get paid on this, and what are the line item fees?" And, and again, that goes for banking, working with an advisor.
Um, and then another question that I encourage people to ask is, "If my life changes in ... a couple years, in two years, and I need my cash back, what does that mean? Are there exit penalties? How, how do I do that? Um, so the, that's, that's where I would start in kind of assessing, is this person the right person for me? Is this institution the right institution for me? Um, and those are things that you can also ask online, 'cause as Joe mentioned, there are lots of online vehicles as well, which is great.
So, um, we're almost coming to the end of our time, so I'm gonna give you guys a couple seconds to just think about a question, and then I'll come back to you.
But if you would help us sort of think about, what is one thing you would encourage our listeners to do this month to better safeguard their wealth? You think of that, and I'll come back to you.
So Annie, I'm actually gonna ask you a different question then is there's so many of these products people, you know, are saying, "Here, you can have safety, you can have income, you can have protection," getting calls, you know, and s- in-invitations to seminars.
How can consumers really tell what they need versus what they're being sold?
Um, it's a really good question, and something I heard in a previous role that I had at another financial institution, and it's come up several times, is the two-sentence rule.
So I don't know, um, if you're familiar with that or not, but if you are speaking with an advisor or an expert that can't explain how the product works, its fees, and how you access your cash in two quick sentences, you should walk away.
Um, and then I think there are a couple other questions that you can ask as well, and sorry, backing up just a little bit.
Um, so starting that conversation is oftentimes the hardest part, but then once you get into a conversation, you should be able to h- answer or have answers to some of these questions.
So, um, the expert or the advisor or the banker or whomever that you're speaking with, you could ask them, "Are you legally bound to act as a fiduciary for me in all instances?" So that's kind of a s- a safety question.
Um, and then it's very acceptable, and again, Joe, I'd be interested in your take on this, but to ask, "How do you get paid on this, and what are the line item fees?" And, and again, that goes for banking, working with an advisor.
Um, and then another question that I encourage people to ask is, "If my life changes in ... a couple years, in two years, and I need my cash back, what does that mean? Are there exit penalties? How, how do I do that? Um, so the, that's, that's where I would start in kind of assessing, is this person the right person for me? Is this institution the right institution for me? Um, and those are things that you can also ask online, 'cause as Joe mentioned, there are lots of online vehicles as well, which is great.
So, um, we're almost coming to the end of our time, so I'm gonna give you guys a couple seconds to just think about a question, and then I'll come back to you.
But if you would help us sort of think about, what is one thing you would encourage our listeners to do this month to better safeguard their wealth? You think of that, and I'll come back to you.
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