Absolutely worse brokerage I've ever dealt with. My employer's stock grants were held there. I've been trying for 2 months to get them to mail be a check for my cash balance since I left my employer. And every time they cancel the check with no notification or reason. The customer service reps are unhelpful and clueless. Nothing can be done online. Everything requires a phone call and 10 million forms. Everything comes with fees. Trying now to explain to a customer service rep why they shouldn't charge me for a wire transfer when its their issue that they have been unable to mail a check after issueing 6 requests over 2 months. No a wire transfer does not give me the benefit of speed, when I've waiting 2 months for you do do your jobs.
Don L.
May 2018
So I was tired of getting 0% on my cash. I went to ML asking for an investment targeting the Dow with a weighting toward dividends. I hoped to watch this for 5 to 10 years so I'd know it would be right for retirement. I emphasized this was to be "safe" money focused on the Dow. They invested me in a dividend focused fund and explained it was focused on the Dow. After 3 years of under-performance by as much as 15%, I asked why they were not tracking the Dow. They explained they put me into a dividend maximizing fund and NOT a Dow focused dividend weighted fund. I took them to small claims court. They said I should not have trusted my advisor. It was up to me to read the prospectus to know what I was buying. Why have an advisor if they aren't going to put you into what you ask. I do not advise going to Merrill Lynch OR Driscoll Decanto. Obviously they do not understand how to invest your money the way you ask. The outcome of my court case is public record and you will see it doesn't matter what you tell your advisor, it is up to you to read the prospectus and understand what you as buying.
Paul M.
Jan 2017
The Cambridge Merrill Lynch Office is not one I would consider to manage money. My experience was fuzzy information, an uncomfortable feeling about the safety of my retirement funds. Monthly reports for a conservative strategy showed spikes, some up and some down, that were out of sync with what was planned for a low annual return in the 2% to 4% range. Lots of talk about technology driven money management, at the end of the day the talk didn't end up with a positive experience.
Tara N.
Absolutely worse brokerage I've ever dealt with. My employer's stock grants were held there. I've been trying for 2 months to get them to mail be a check for my cash balance since I left my employer. And every time they cancel the check with no notification or reason. The customer service reps are unhelpful and clueless. Nothing can be done online. Everything requires a phone call and 10 million forms. Everything comes with fees. Trying now to explain to a customer service rep why they shouldn't charge me for a wire transfer when its their issue that they have been unable to mail a check after issueing 6 requests over 2 months. No a wire transfer does not give me the benefit of speed, when I've waiting 2 months for you do do your jobs.
Don L.
So I was tired of getting 0% on my cash. I went to ML asking for an investment targeting the Dow with a weighting toward dividends. I hoped to watch this for 5 to 10 years so I'd know it would be right for retirement. I emphasized this was to be "safe" money focused on the Dow. They invested me in a dividend focused fund and explained it was focused on the Dow. After 3 years of under-performance by as much as 15%, I asked why they were not tracking the Dow. They explained they put me into a dividend maximizing fund and NOT a Dow focused dividend weighted fund. I took them to small claims court. They said I should not have trusted my advisor. It was up to me to read the prospectus to know what I was buying. Why have an advisor if they aren't going to put you into what you ask. I do not advise going to Merrill Lynch OR Driscoll Decanto. Obviously they do not understand how to invest your money the way you ask. The outcome of my court case is public record and you will see it doesn't matter what you tell your advisor, it is up to you to read the prospectus and understand what you as buying.
Paul M.
The Cambridge Merrill Lynch Office is not one I would consider to manage money. My experience was fuzzy information, an uncomfortable feeling about the safety of my retirement funds. Monthly reports for a conservative strategy showed spikes, some up and some down, that were out of sync with what was planned for a low annual return in the 2% to 4% range. Lots of talk about technology driven money management, at the end of the day the talk didn't end up with a positive experience.