I absolutely love what software can do for us, freeing up our time and energy to focus on the less mundane. And when Robo-Advisors first launched, with simple portfolios of low-cost index funds, they were great. Taking away the human emotions, keeping you invested correctly with a massively diversified portfolio - what's not to love?
However, I've recently come across a few problems that stem from both the Robos themselves changing and how to handle distributions and tax situations with my clients - some first-hand information that I want to pass along.
Robo-Advisors are getting more sophisticated and complex - which is never in the client's interest. You want simple, easy-to-understand investments. Robos that used to create portfolios of 5-10 funds are now are holding 15-20 funds. And they are holding more complicated investments such as risk parity funds. You simply don't need this level of complexity to be successful.
But a bigger problem is Tax planning. The Robo-Advisor has no idea of your unique situation. They do not adjust rebalancing based on your outside assets (401k, IRAs, etc), nor your changing tax situation (i.e. wait until you are in a lower tax bracket next year due to a life change). I've had client situations where these are easily over $30k in taxes that could have been avoided.
I haven't researched all the options, so there may be some simple Robo-Advisors that just buy-and-hold for you. Unfortunately, I can no longer recommend those that I have interacted with for my clients.
