Financial Advice and Household Financial Portfolios*

We explore the demand for financial advice and the role of such advice in shaping household financial portfolios. Since taking financial advice may not be randomly allocated among households, understanding the drivers behind receiving financial advice is important before exploring the role of financial advice in shaping the composition of household portfolios. A number of specification tests are undertaken, including exploring the sensitivity of the results to selection as well matching estimation techniques. The analysis reveals that financial advice is inversely (positively) associated with the share of wealth held in real estate (bonds and stocks).