There are many good sources of information on 401K plans, 401K plan providers, 401K advisors and 401K calculators available online today. The idea behind a 401K plan is to help the average person set aside dollars from their paycheck, many times matched in part by their employer, to help provide additional funds besides those expected to be provided by Social Security in the future.  What I am trying to provide on this page is some additional resources that may not be found so easily or educational articles that may not be readily available to the average 401 k plan adminstrator or 401K plan participant. Also, if you are interested in the newest additional feature to 401K plans, the Cash Balance Plan, we can help.

For a good source of valuable 401K plan information and to see how your company's 401K plan compares, go to Brightscope. This company provides a color coded point score on many 401K plans,easily showing how that company's 401K plan compares to it's peers.  Usning this report card, you can easliy see if there is room for improvement in your company's 401 K plan. Brightscope is a good 401K calculator to use.

It is very important that companies file their form 5500 with the Department of Labor in  timely fashion.  Failing to do so can result in significant fines or penalties.  If you are late filing, there are ways to correct this prroblem while minimizing penalties.  Contact us for help.  To see if your 5500 filings are up to date, go to 5500 Filings.

In July of 2012, plan sponsors received a detailed report known as the 408(b)(2), on the fees in the company 401K plan. Here is a great article talking about the 408(b)(2) disclosure document and what is important to know when reading the 408(b)(2).

• Benefit Pro Fees

Here is another great article about 401K plan fees and why keeping fees as reasonable as possible is so crucial to the long term success of a participants retirement strategy.

• Shining Light on 401k Fees

With the increasing popularity of "Target Date Funds" in 401K and other type of retirement plans, the Department of  Labor has recently published a new set of "Tips" for ERISA Plan Fiduciaries to help them wade thru the different offerings in this investment category.  Some of the "tips" are pretty common sense and the others may require working with a good 401K plan advisor who has many different plan providers to offer.  To reasd the DOL "Tips" on "Target Date Funds" click on the link below.

• DOL Target Date Funds Report

Many 401K plans include funds that invest in "Alternatives" as part of the menu of investment options.  These have been shown to help reduce volatility and even increase returns, all in the long run. They are pretty sophisticated though and may not be for the unsophisticated investor.  FINRA has come out with this guideline report recently.

• FINRA Alternatives Report

If you are interested in other types of Employee Benefits that we offer, both Employer Paid and Employee Paid thru voluntary payroll deduction, visit our sister website, Employee Benefits.