BEWARE - RECENT COLLEGE GRADS - Financial Consultant Equitable Advisors Employee Review

1.0
Apr 27, 2024
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Opportunity to make a substantial amount of money but it takes at least two years for this to build up. Decent team work and senior advisors to learn from.

Cons

1. You do NOT own your clients. Be careful when you sign your contract. When you leave the company, you are under a strict 1 year non-solicitation agreement meaning they will sue you if you attempt to take any of your clients with you. They will send you multiple letters after you leave threatening to enforce this. Management will gobble up your clients and can do so at any time for any reason. 2. CHARGED MONEY TO LEAVE. Equitable will send you a bill for any commissions they allegedly overpaid you when you worked there. A shady debt collector agency - Thomas George Associates - will reach out and demand you to pay - in my case of $12,000 and will threaten legal action. 3. Pressure to sell to friends and family. Without a natural market you are forced to cold call or work their retirement benefits group where you sell high fee variable annuities to teachers. They recently settled a $50M fraud charge with the SEC as a result of non-disclosure of fees to educators. 4. Mandated to Sell Equitable Proprietary Products. Heavy push for Variable Annuity products and variable life products. If you fail to sell these products they will cut your health insurance and other benefits. 5. Base salary is $24,000 for 2 years and you get paid half your commissions during this time 6. Required to pay for your own cubicle, technology, E&O insurance, phone, laptop, license fees, etc. 7. As a result, the turnover rate is astronomically high. Management's goal is to hire as many unsuspecting young people as possible so they get paid a bonus. Their bonus decline after 4 years when you are under DSF and then they cut you loose and try to cut your territory. Then when that person fails out, they will gobble up the clients and enforce the non complete agreement.

Explore other reviews about Equitable Advisors

5.0
Apr 2, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Compensation structure, product availability, brokerage system, overall tools, open structure to do best for your clients

Cons

Support staff are more hands off, not a lot of in house support staff members.

1.0
Jun 8, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Good place for career changers to get financial licenses (they will license anybody)

Cons

Very bad pay model for new hires- will tell you 6% commissions on certain products but then you have to kick up 10% to your manager and the other half of what's left to whoever is working w you because they make you go out in pairs...and mostly seem want to get ahold of all your friends and family for sales you can't participate on without the 66....but you have no time to study that bc you are too busy selling for the products that don't require it to make quota, as your clock starts when you pass the 7, so pretty much they just want your people. It's very eat what you kill, and then only after it's been picked over.... which is fine if you're young with no obligations, but not great if you have a family. If you were an existing advisor and had your own book/contacts it could work. Otherwise get your licenses, learn a little, but don't be afraid to move on to other opportunities.

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