Florida has long been known as a great place to spend your golden years, and many older Floridians rely on investment income to maintain their standard of living. While retirees once relied on federally insured products, such as bank savings accounts and certificates of deposit, for retirement income, a number of factors - including the current low interest rate environment - have fueled the movement into riskier investments.

While no investment is a sure thing, there are some common pitfalls seniors should be aware of when choosing where to put their nest egg. These include:

• Commissioned salespeople posing as impartial advisors.
  Research shows that older consumers tend to be more trusting, and may be confused by the common use of confidence-inspiring titles such as "investment consultant" and "financial advisor" by commissioned investment salespeople.



• Uninsured products sold by brokerdealers in financial institutions.
  Older investors in Florida are most likely to place particular trust in banks. It is important for seniors to remember that investments, whether purchased on bank premises or at brokerage firms, involve risk and are not insured against loss by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.



• Confusion over government insurance.
  Investments such as mutual funds are not insured by the FDIC against loss. If interest rates rise or market values decline, investors may lose money



• Inadequate disclosure about investment products.
  Older investors in Florida must be on their guard about unwarranted claims by some financial professionals in their sales pitches. Inadequate or misleading communication about products is compounded by a prospectus (and other investment disclosure documents) that may be very difficult to understand. Many elderly investors claim they are not informed of, or fail to understand, sales charges, up-front fees and/or rear-end charges.



• Misleading fund names.
  Often a mutual fund name may not adequately reflect its actual investment objective. Unsophisticated investors may be misled by terms such as "income" or "government" funds into believing that investments made in such products will not entail risk. In fact, the asset value of any mutual fund may fluctuate due to changes in market conditions. It is important to obtain information on the fund's investment objective from the fund prospectus.



• Account statements that do not clearly indicate investment performance, fees and commissions.
  Most brokerage and mutual fund account statements reveal very little about investment performance, fees and commissions. Older investors should ask their financial professional to calculate these figures and provide them in writing if they are not available.

• Check out your financial professional.
  Be sure that any investment professional you consult is properly licensed in the state of Florida. Call the Department of Financial Services Consumer Helpline toll-free at 1-800-342-2762 to find out if the company, broker and investment are legitimately registered, and if they have a complaint history.