Before you work with or partner with any financial professional or brokerage firm, you need to research them in detail. Two key things to look for include:
- Does the advisor or firm have disclosure events against them?
- Is the advisor or firm properly licensed or registered in your state?
FINRA has a tool called BrokerCheck (http://brokercheck.finra.org/) which provides you with the background and information you need to properly assess your advisor or broker.
Take a look at the information about myself and my firm: