Research from CoreData has found the effect of government policies is frequently discussed in client conversations with advisers.
A survey of 790 Australian adults, commissioned by the Association of Independently Owned Financial Professionals, found 55 per cent have used a financial adviser in the past 12 months, and 89 per cent of this group (317 respondents) say they are willing to vote against unfavourable financial services policy.
“Most advised respondents consider politics an important topic to discuss with advisers and value their adviser’s input,” the report said.
The majority (85 per cent) of advised individuals “sometimes” (36 per cent of respondents), “often” (33 per cent) or “always” (16 per cent) discuss the “impact of government policies on you and your portfolio”, with only 15 per cent saying “rarely or never” (chart 1).
Clients more frequently discuss the impact of government policy than they discuss the impact of global events (83 per cent at least sometimes discuss) and the transfer of wealth to the next generation (68 per cent at least sometimes discuss).
Cryptocurrency was only spoken about at least sometimes only 25 per cent of the time, and only 12 per cent believed it was an important topic of discussion.
Chart 1: Frequently discussed topics with financial advisers
Source: CoreData Research
The research found that almost two-thirds (64 per cent) of clients believe the impact of government policy on portfolios is important to discuss, with 35 per cent neutral and 2 per cent stating it isn’t important (chart 2).
And although some 65 per cent of clients say they at least sometimes discussed socially responsible investments (chart 1), only 34 per cent said it was important.
Chart 2: Importance of topics discussed with financial advisers
“Around half of advised respondents say they talk to their advisers about the impact of government policies on their portfolios ‘often’ or ‘always’,” the report said.
“Financial impact of government policies is a chief concern among the general population and advised people alike.”
But although the survey found clients were happy to discuss political issues with their advisers, only 17 per cent considered a financial adviser a valued source of information about politics, with 36 per cent saying they’re not valued as a source.
