Rise of robo-advisors in mortgage business could have an impact

Vancouver-based ModernAdvisor has announced the launch of its new custom portfolios service, which enables investors to work with the firm to personalize the robo-advisor’s standard portfolios to better suit their needs and preferences.

One of the unique features of the news services is that when investors are designing a custom portfolio, ModernAdvisor will take their total net worth into account, not just the portion the robo-advisor manages, the firm states in a news release.

“While our broad range of standard portfolios work well for most investors, we often come across clients with special circumstances,” says Navid Boostani, co-founder and CEO of ModernAdvisor, in a statement. “They may have substantial liquid or illiquid investments outside of ModernAdvisor that should be considered when designing a suitable portfolio. For these clients, we now offer to take a holistic view of their net worth and design their ModernAdvisor portfolio to make sure their overall investment portfolio is suitable.

ModernAdvisor uses low-cost ETFs to build custom portfolios for its clients and the service is available to clients who invest $150,000 or more with the firm at no additional cost.

Clients who qualify can work with one of the firm’s registered investment advisors to personalize their investment portfolios.

“Traditionally, this level of service would cost more than 1% a year, and would often require a higher account balance,” Boostani says. “Now [clients] can get a customized portfolio for an annual fee of 0.40% or less.”

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