How do you get a Series 6?

[arnguy]

Al, Winter has it down right. When I first started in the business I took the Series 6 which was maybe slightly more difficult than the insurance exam. The reason was that Jefferson Pilot had their own MF family which agents were supposed to sell. When I went to New England Life, the Series 7 was mandatory because they established New England Life Financial Services and all agents were to sell MF, Variable Annuities, and even stock programs. As Winter stated, the requirements were atricious. You had to have a separate business card, separate files, and all kinds of accountability which was a PIA. The Series 7 test was a ballbuster. It was am allday affair divided into two halves (before lunch and after lunch sessions). At that time it was a paper exam----probably is computerized today. The most difficult section of the exam IMHO dealt with stock options. I later went into selling 403(b) plans and mutual funds to school teachers. However, the income and the licensing renewal costs made it econmically unfeasible. I wish you well in your future endeavor.

 

[Guest]

Al, Winter has it down right. ....However, the income and the licensing renewal costs made it econmically unfeasible. I wish you well in your future endeavor.

I've heard that a lot. I'm going into this with my eyes wide open and my mouth tightly closed. I'm too 'old' and way to experienced to be fooled by anyone in fin-sales, much less a stock-jock. If MWA meets MY requirements I will continue with their process, but if not... then there are only about a thousand other alternatives!

I like insurance, annuities, CDs, and other safe-money products. I believe in these products. I don't believe in funds or stocks... as it's all built on the greater-fool theory. It's good to have a little bit, but having been down the equities road before, as I've posted earlier, at the end of the day (year, quarter, etc.) it is NOT how much you make, it is how much you DON'T LOSE that will determine if you are a 'winner' or a 'loser' at the equities game.

Thanks for all the good advice.

Al

 

[Agent]

Winter and arnguy are right on with their comments especially when it relates to compliance. I would add however, that my BD only mandates that I keep correspondence records of and must go through the approval process for security related material. Unless the letter, correspondence, brochure mentions securities or market returns etc... that is if all I am addressing is fixed business then I do not need to submit it to compliance nor do I need to keep records (though keeping notes of appointments and applications on file is a must).

When I was with NYL they did want me to submit everything to their BD's compliance...so it depends on the BD. Perhaps being with a independent BD is the reason for that little added freedom.

Some BD's are a pain and some are helpful, all regulate your business to some degree.

Nak4Life

 

[Winter_123]

When I was with NYL they did want me to submit everything to their BD's compliance...so it depends on the BD. Perhaps being with a independent BD is the reason for that little added freedom.

Nak4Life

B/D's tend to set their rules based on the last big lawsuit or NASD violation they were hit with. They are however responsible for supervising everything a rep does. If an agent is captive then it is one thing because everything the agent does is sort of under the umbrella and approved somewhere. However, I know of B/D's who suddenly changed their entire outlook after they were sued bigtime for something an agent did with a product that the B/D did not even offer- a health insurance product for example. It was proven that the B/D failed to supervise because that work was never reviewed.

In other instances, you see more and more B/D's either requiring EIA's to go through the B/D as though they are a security even though they are not, and also more and more B/D's are going in the other direction and just prohibiting their reps from selling EIA's. Some of it obviouly is that they dont want the competition but also the NASD/SEC is hot onto EIA's so they do not want to supervise their sales.

So, it does depend on the B/D but they all have the responsiblity to provide total supervision including fixed products from other carriers that the rep may be appointed with. The degree to which they do this depends on their latest wake up call as I mentioned.

Winter

 

[Agent]

Indeed...whatever "freedom" or lack of interest my or anyone's BD has in the fixed side of things is not guaranteed to remain that way. My BD' s fixed supervision standards could be changed next month if they felt it necessary because of lawsuits, law changes, violations or questionable products such as EIA's (which my BD also requires go through them).

It's a personal choice if you don't mind, or rather willing to tolerate the added supervision then go at it. However, if you run a business a certain way and are successful/set in your ways with it then perhaps affiliating with a BD could hamper you style.

Al: If Woodmen has any detached agents/planners (have their own office) call them up and quiz them about woodmen. I have done this with companies and got a hold of dozens of agents and they were very open with me.

Best of luck Al, with your experience you should do well in estate related planning with woodman or not.

Nak4Life

 

[NHB_MMA]

Why am I interested? Well for three reasons. First, at my age (59) most "top tier" companies that I'd be interested in (Met, NYL, etc.) won't look once, much less twice at me. They want young guys/gals to start a career and stay for 30 years... and I don't blame them... although I think it is a rather short-sighted approach.

My office would snag you up in a heartbeat. They'd love to have you. In fact, an agent joined shortly before I did that is close to 70 and didn't even have previous insurance experience.

If you want, I can ask a couple people and find some stuff out for you. You would qualify for a contract that is not captive, has small production requirements, and you would even qualify for group health coverage and possibly retirement benefits. I know of one guy that basically joined just to sell enough small whole life policies and annuities to pay for his health insurance every month. Meanwhile, he sells mostly health insurance (which he has done for years) and some permanent insurance for college funding. He walked in telling them he wasn't giving up anything he was doing and they were okay with that. I have no idea how the other major captive players work, but NYL has non-captive contracts available for experienced agents.

 

[Guest]

I have no idea how the other major captive players work, but NYL has non-captive contracts available for experienced agents.

Hmmm. I didn't know that. I interviewed with Marc Hamm at NYL in Roseville, CA last August. Nice man, but it was evident that he was just being polite when he did the interview and that he was seeking a younger guy. When they ask "Do you think you will be able to work well with people half your age?" you KNOW. Or "Are you thinking of retirement in a few years?" There was no 'enthusiasm' on his part. It ended with "Why do't you think about it and let me know" as opposed to "We really think this is a great place for you... let's have lunch next week and talk some more..." Anyway, I'm looking at all sorts of options. I would not mind being 'captive' IF I could get the training and support I would like AND still be able to sell health care. Best of both worlds for me, if it can be done.

Al

 

[NHB_MMA]

Hmmm. I didn't know that. I interviewed with Marc Hamm at NYL in Roseville, CA last August. Nice man, but it was evident that he was just being polite when he did the interview and that he was seeking a younger guy. When they ask "Do you think you will be able to work well with people half your age?" you KNOW. Or "Are you thinking of retirement in a few years?" There was no 'enthusiasm' on his part. It ended with "Why do't you think about it and let me know" as opposed to "We really think this is a great place for you... let's have lunch next week and talk some more..." Anyway, I'm looking at all sorts of options. I would not mind being 'captive' IF I could get the training and support I would like AND still be able to sell health care. Best of both worlds for me, if it can be done.

Al

Yeah, age seems to be no issue where I'm at. I could talk to someone and find out who you might want to call in your region. I would go above the guy I work for, as there are issues in case you've never read any threads about it, and I've only vented about a tenth of it.

I know there are some agents in the office that sell for "the Duck" and it's worked out well for them, because they were already used to the business owner market and now able to go in with some bigger products. They don't get training allowance like new, captive agents, but they have the freedom to sell most anything. I think it might be called a TEA contract, but I'm not sure. You would be required to attend training programs, which is what you want anyway. In fact, when I get a chance, I'll ask "the Duck" guy about the finer details of his contract and I'll get back to you. What I do know is there are several guys that have been there for years or entered as experienced agents doing at least half their work on the health side of things.

 

[Alsky]

Yeah, age seems to be no issue where I'm at.

If you dont mind me asking... Where are you at?

 

[espressoguy]

I am a few years younger than you (52) and at the end of 2005 sold my restaurant business and decided to become a financial advisor. I passed the series 7 and 66, both on the first try. They are significantly more difficult than the insurance exam. I studied approximately 4 weeks for the 7 and 1 week for the 66. For what you are planning to do, a series 6 should be sufficient. You will also need to get a series 63, which covers state regulations.

As far as online study goes, I used www.keirsuccess.com for the series 7. For the series 66 I used a 3 year old copy of Dearborn (now Kaplan Financial) that was laying around the office.

Second if MWA not work out, perhaps I will want to go down the Edward Jones path and open my own office? I have the personal assets to do that. I'd need a 7 for them as well (obviously)

My guess is, if you fail with MWA, you will fail even faster with EJ.

Best of luck to you.