The most important decision you can make is to take action and get started now. The sooner you decide on a plan, the sooner you can begin to make progress. If you decide to prioritize paying down debt, make sure you put in place a mechanism that automatically directs money toward the debt so you won’t be tempted to skip or reduce payments. Pay Down Debt or Save for Retirement? You can use a variety of strategies to pay off debt, many of which can cut not only the amount of time it will take to pay off the debt but also the total interest paid. But like many people, you may be torn between paying off debt and the need to save for retirement. Both are important; both can help give you a more secure future. If you’re not sure you can afford to tackle both at the same...
Continue readingA Retirement Income Roadmap for Women
More women are working and taking charge of their own retirement planning than ever before. What does retirement mean to you? Do you dream of traveling? Pursuing a hobby? Volunteering your time, or starting a new career or business? Simply enjoying more time with your grandchildren? Whatever your goal, you’ll need a retirement income plan that’s designed to support the retirement lifestyle that you envision, and minimize the risk that you’ll outlive your savings. When will you retire? Establishing a target age is important, because when you retire will significantly affect how much you need to save. For example, if you retire early at age 55 as opposed to waiting until age 67, you’ll shorten the time you have to accumulate funds by 12 years, and you’ll increase the number of years that you’ll be living off of your retirement savings. Also consider: The longer you delay retirement, the...
Continue readingRetirement Advisor Council Plan Sponsors Series Conclusion
Plan sponsors who retain the services of a Professional Retirement Plan Advisor entirely dedicated to the business reap tremendous benefits from the partnership. Most salient is the enhanced participant retirement and readiness that stems from repeated measurements, participate reporting, plan design changes, participant guidance, and advice. Specialized Advisors apply a wealth of insight and experience to create an environment conductive to participation and contribution levels that lead to retirement success. – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – Plan Study Sponsors: Fidelity Investments Franklin Templeton Investments MFS Funds Mass Mutual Financial Group Principal Financial Group John Hancock Investments TransAmerica Retirement Solutions Source : Retirement Advisor Council ...
Continue readingProfessional Advisors Help Boost Contribution Levels
Retirement Plan Sponsor Series: Professional Advisors Help Boost Contribution Levels Retirement Outcomes plans sponsors enjoy are attributable in part to plan design changes to their Professional Advisor recommends. Design changes draw more employees into the plan and help convince them to raise contributions closer to levels needed to achieve retirement success.* Plans that work with a specialist Advisor are more successful at increasing deferrals. Among plans that partner with a Professional Retirement Plan Advisor who works exclusively with retirement plans, 83% have experienced deferral rate increases in the last two years-and one-third of those have enjoyed a deferral rate increase of 6% or more. *Retirement Advisor Council – Enhancing Retirement Readiness: Consensus on a Course of Action recommends consistent contribution levels in the rage of 10% to 16% of pay over a 30-year or 40-year career. These compelling numbers testify to the participant outcome enhancements Professional Retirement...
Continue readingRetirement Advisor Council: The Retirement Plan Sponsor
Retirement Plan Sponsor Series: Partner with a Professional Retirement Plan Advisor and Achieve Higher Participant Retirement Readiness Scores A fundamental research study of 400 employers that sponsor a 401(k) or 403(b) plan found that sponsors who partner with a Professional Retirement Plan Advisor enjoy superior outcomes in many areas. In particular, partnering with a Professional Retirement Plan Advisor entirely dedicated to retirement plans helps plan sponsors enhance the retirement readiness of employees. Professional Advisors Enhance Participant Retirement Outcomes Enhancing the retirement preparedness of plan participants is a primary objective of many plan sponsors. Increasingly, sponsors look to their Advisor and service provider to keep participants apprised of personal progress toward achieving retirement readiness. The study provides evidence partnering with an Advisor entirely dedicated to retirement plans may confer plan sponsors an edge: The vast majority of participants in plans that partner with such an Advisor receive an indicator of their personal retirement readiness. Going one step further, most sponsors partnering with an Advisor entirely...
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