401(k) Resources

According to a recent survey, 76% of Americans reported having at least one financial regret. Over half of this group said it had to do with savings: 27% didn't start saving for retirement soon enough, 19% didn't contribute enough to an emergency fund, and 10% wish they had saved more for college.1

What's preventing Americans from saving more? It's a confluence of…

If you have the opportunity to contribute to both a 401(k) and a health savings account (HSA), you may wonder how best to take advantage of them. Determining how much to contribute to each type of plan will require some careful thought and strategic planning.

A traditional, non-Roth 401(k) allows you to save for retirement on a pre-tax basis, which means…

Each year, the Plan Sponsor Council of America (PSCA) surveys employers to gauge trends in retirement plan features and participation. Results are used by employers and plan participants to benchmark their plans against overall averages. How does your plan compare to the most recent survey results, released at the end of 2018?1

Plan participation (that…

The Bipartisan Budget Act passed in early 2018 relaxed some of the rules governing hardship withdrawals from 401(k)s and similar plans. Not all plans offer hardship withdrawals, but the ones that do will be required to comply for plan years beginning in 2019.

In order to take a hardship withdrawal from a 401(k) or similar plan, a plan participant must demonstrate an "immediate and…

Each year, the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI) conducts its Retirement Confidence Survey to assess both worker and retiree confidence in financial aspects of retirement. In 2018, as in years past, retirees expressed a higher level of confidence than today's workers (perhaps because "retirement" is less of an abstract concept to those actually living it). However, worker confidence…

If your financial plan for 2017 didn't work out the way you wanted it to, don't beat yourself up. Instead, ask yourself the following questions to determine what you can learn from reflecting on your financial situation in the last year.

Did you meet your financial goals and expectations for 2017? Perhaps you started the year with some financial goals in mind. You wanted to…

The opportunity to acquire company stock — inside or outside a workplace retirement plan — can be a lucrative employee benefit. But having too much of your retirement plan assets or net worth concentrated in your employer's stock could become a problem if the company or sector hits hard times and the stock price plummets.

Buying shares of any individual stock carries risks specific to…

In an effort to retain the best employees some industries are finding it necessary to increase the company match to remain competitive. In addition, to help offset the rising cost of healthcare for older employees some companies are finding it more economical to increase the 401(k) match. This helps to ensure they reach their financial goals and retire on time which then allows …

The choice to use index funds rather than actively managed funds is a significant one. Index funds tend to be rather straightforward, easy-to-own, and cost-effective investment vehicles. But, just like actively managed funds, index funds also have their differences that investors should be aware of.

Cost Still Counts. Different index funds can charge different fees. Funds that are…

Accumulation is a key facet of reaching your retirement goals. However, we tend to see far less about portfolio drawdown, or decumulation—the logistics of managing a portfolio from which you're simultaneously extracting living expenses during retirement. This can be even more complicated than accumulating assets.

Pitfall: One of the big mistakes of retirement distribution can be not…