Registered representatives must understand their customers well enough to make suitable recommendations. New account forms ask detailed questions to build a complete picture of a client’s financial situation, including:
This suitability information can be grouped into two categories: financial and non-financial considerations.
When a suitability attribute relates directly to money, it’s a financial consideration. These are the financial considerations you’ll want to understand:
Annual income is the amount of money an investor receives from employment, investment income, or other sources. It affects both:
Higher annual income generally means more money is available to invest toward goals (a child’s education, retirement, etc.). With more cash flow, an investor may be able to pursue more aggressive strategies - especially if they’re saving more than they need to meet their goals. In that situation, the investor may be willing to take additional risk with “extra” funds in pursuit of higher returns.
Annual income also connects to liquidity. Investors with strong ongoing income may be more comfortable holding less liquid investments (like municipal bonds and limited partnerships) because they’re less likely to need to sell quickly to cover expenses.
Lower annual income usually means less money available for investing and saving. In that case, taking significant risk may not be prudent. A major market decline could interfere with the investor’s ability to meet important goals. Lower-income investors should also be cautious with investments that have high liquidity risk if they might need to sell holdings to pay for living expenses.
In the common stock chapter, we learned about income statements for corporations. Individuals can also create personal income statements to track cash flow. Here’s an example:
| Event | Amount (monthly) |
|---|---|
| Retirement benefits | $2,000 |
| Investment income | $1,500 |
| Social security | $1,000 |
| Rent payment | -$3,000 |
| Utilities | -$300 |
| Various bills | -$500 |
| Total | +$700 |
When reviewing an investor’s income statement, watch for potential red flags. In this example, rent is a large expense and the investor is only saving $700 per month. That would justify follow-up questions about expenses and whether any costs could be reduced.
Keep in mind that an income statement is only one piece of the picture. The investor could also have substantial assets in a bank account or in investments that don’t generate current income, and those wouldn’t appear here.
In the common stock chapter, we learned about corporate balance sheets, which help determine a company’s net worth. Individuals can do something similar by listing assets and liabilities to calculate personal net worth. For example:
| Assets | Liabilities | Net worth |
|---|---|---|
| $250k home | $200k mortgage | |
| $20k car | $10k car loan | |
| $100k IRA | $10k credit card | |
| $25k cash | ||
| $5k jewelry | ||
| $400k | $220k | $180k |
In general, higher net worth can support higher-risk investing because the investor has more financial capacity to absorb losses. For example, a $1,000,000 portfolio yielding 4% could provide $40,000 per year in income without touching principal. Investors with substantial assets may have capital they can expose to higher risk in pursuit of higher return potential.
Lower net worth typically points toward lower-risk investing. It may reflect lower income, higher debt, or significant family obligations. In these situations, the investor may have limited ability to save and less room to take on risk.
An investor’s tax status can provide useful context about their financial situation. In the U.S., income taxes are based on a marginal tax system: as income rises, the marginal tax bracket increases. As of tax year 2025, these are the income tax brackets for individuals and those filing jointly:
| Rate | Individuals | Married filing jointly |
|---|---|---|
| 10% | $0 | $0 |
| 12% | $11,926 | $23,851 |
| 22% | $48,476 | $96,951 |
| 24% | $103,351 | $206,701 |
| 32% | $197,301 | $394,601 |
| 35% | $250,526 | $501,051 |
| 37% | $626,351 | $751,601 |
Do not memorize these tax brackets; this chart is only for context.
Higher income generally means a higher marginal tax bracket. When a suitability question includes an investor’s tax bracket, it often signals both annual income level and which investments may be more appropriate. For example, if an investor is in the 37% bracket, you can infer they have very high earned income and may be able to save and invest significant amounts.
Tax brackets also affect after-tax returns:
Liquidity is the ability to convert an investment or asset into cash easily. Liquidity needs depend on an investor’s financial situation and stage in life.
For example, older investors living on fixed incomes typically should avoid investments with high liquidity risk. If an unexpected expense arises (such as medical bills), they may need to sell investments quickly to raise cash. Securities that can be difficult to sell include:
Liquidity concerns aren’t limited to older investors. Younger investors living on disability, unemployed investors with children, and investors planning a major purchase soon (like a home) may also need ready access to cash.
In general, these securities are more suitable for investors with short-term liquidity needs:
An investor with high annual income or high net worth is often less constrained by liquidity needs and may be able to hold investments with higher liquidity risk.
When a suitability attribute isn’t directly about money, it’s a non-financial consideration. These attributes focus on preferences, goals, and personal circumstances. Here are the non-financial considerations to understand:
A person’s stage in life often shapes time horizon, income needs, and willingness to take risk.
Younger investors are often employed and may invest more aggressively, with a heavier emphasis on stocks. Because employment income covers living expenses, they typically don’t rely on investment income. They also tend to have longer time horizons, which gives them more time to recover from market declines.
Older investors are often retired and tend to be more conservative (risk averse), with greater emphasis on fixed-income securities. Without employment income, they may rely on retirement benefits (defined benefit plans, defined contribution plans, IRAs, and annuities), social security, and investment income (from bonds, preferred stock, and mutual funds that invest in these securities). With shorter time horizons, they typically take less risk and may avoid growth-oriented investments.
Earlier in this unit, we discussed the specific investment objectives. Registered representatives use a client’s suitability information to help determine the most appropriate objective.
Risk tolerance falls on a spectrum:
Risk discussions are essential because higher potential returns usually require taking on higher risk. Investors who want large returns should also understand that markets can move against them, leading to significant losses.
Investment experience isn’t always the most important suitability factor, but it can affect how complex a recommendation should be. Some investments are difficult to understand and monitor, including hedge funds and leveraged and inverse ETFs. Before recommending complex products, registered representatives should confirm the client understands how they work. Investors with stronger market knowledge and financial understanding are typically the only ones suitable for these investments.
Goals often change across life stages, and most goals require funding that can be supported through investing. Setting clear goals is a key part of building a suitability profile because recommendations are often shaped by what the investor is trying to accomplish.
Examples include:
Time horizon matters. The longer the time horizon, the more risk an investor may be able to take in exchange for return potential. For example, a 25-year-old saving for retirement or parents saving for a young child’s college education may have decades to invest. Over 10-20+ years, there’s typically enough time to recover from market declines.
Markets can be volatile in the short run but have historically trended upward over long periods. For example, the 1-year S&P 500 return from April 2019 to April 2020 was approximately -3%, while the 30-year annualized return from April 1990 to April 2020 was roughly 9.5% (including dividend reinvestments).
Shorter time frames usually call for safer investments. Over a short period, a market decline can create a loss that’s difficult to recover from before the money is needed.
For example, assume an investor has $50,000 for a down payment on a first home purchase in the next 3 months. If the $50,000 was invested in an S&P 500 ETF in January 2020, the investor would’ve lost almost $15,000 (the S&P 500 was down nearly 30% from early January 2020 to end of March 2020). That would leave about $35,000 for the down payment, and the investor might lose the opportunity to buy the house if $50,000 was required. This is why short-term goals generally shouldn’t be funded with high-risk investments. In this situation, a short-term debt security like a Treasury bill or a money market fund would be more appropriate.
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