The Shift to Fee-Based Advice: What Massachusetts Public Employees Should Know About Index Funds
With the financial advice industry undergoing a significant shift over the past decade, retirement planning increasingly focuses on fee-based advisory models and minimizing conflicts of interest.
BOSTON, MA — May 20, 2024 — In a recent analysis, Financial Advisor Tim Hayes examines how the financial advice industry has evolved over the past decade. He reviews how the Obama administration introduced the 2015 Fiduciary Rule, designed to require financial professionals offering advice on retirement plans to serve as fiduciaries. That initiative prompted many financial institutions and advisors to transition toward fee-based account structures.
While federal courts vacated the 2015 rule, the subsequent administration incorporated portions of the standard through the SEC's Regulation Best Interest (Reg BI). In 2024, the Department of Labor proposed a revised Retirement Security Rule seeking to extend fiduciary requirements to one-time rollover recommendations.
Hayes examines other key shifts across the retirement landscape, including the growth of index funds, the impact of regulatory shifts on index fund adoption, and how advisory fees affect long-term net returns.
“Over this decade of transition, retirement plans have seen broader adoption of low-cost indexing alongside fee structures,” notes Hayes. “Understanding whether you are paying an ongoing advisory fee or a one-time product cost is critical to evaluating your overall net retirement savings.”
About Tim Hayes: Tim Hayes is an independent financial advisor registered under both the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the Investment Advisers Act of 1940. This dual registration enables him to provide both advisory services and brokerage implementations through fee or commission accounts based on client needs. He is an Investment Adviser Representative with Cambridge Investment Research Advisors, Inc. and a Registered Representative with Cambridge Investment Research, Inc. Previously, he spent two decades at MetLife Resources specializing in public employee retirement plans and portfolio management.
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Tim Hayes
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Website: www.independentadvisorthayes.com
Securities offered through Cambridge Investment Research, Inc., a broker-dealer, member FINRA/SIPC. Advisory services offered through Cambridge Investment Research Advisors, Inc., a Registered Investment Adviser. Cambridge and Tim Hayes are not affiliated.
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