About Me

pensionfinancialservices
View my complete profile

Followers

Powered by Blogger.

Total Pageviews

Wednesday, April 4, 2012

HAVE A CLEAR—NOT CLOUDY—UNDERSTANDING OF YOUR 401(k)

12:09 PM | Posted by pensionfinancialservices | | Edit Post

In the interest of full disclosure, we admit in this space to a lifelong skepticism about assumptions. Remember, as Marshall McLuhan famously said, “most of our assumptions have outlived their usefulness.”

That’s not to say that some assumptions don’t have about them a seemingly timeless aura of usefulness. Success in real estate, say, is thought to be forever about location, location, location.  And in the matter of one’s retirement plans, it should be education, education, education.

Now, depending on your point of reference, a little knowledge may or may not be a good thing. But when it comes to being in sync with all things financial, the experts at Pension Parameters FinancialServices, Inc., take knowing a lot—actually, knowing just about everything-- as definitely trumping a little as sound advice any day of the week. And that includes retirement plan advice for employers as well as their employees.

Unfortunately, as Denis Storey notes in a smart piece from BenefitsPro.com, many of us may be more amateur than pro in thinking we know all that needs to be known about our 401(k)s (like, for instance, whether there are any fees involved). Regarding the new fee disclosure rules, Storey explains:

“It’s not as sexy as employee lawsuits and it doesn't grab as many headlines as health reform, but retirement planning’s about to get a little more interesting for employers – and their benefits managers.

 “As you’re probably already aware, with the rising dawn of July 1, a Department of Labor regulation kicks in that compels 401(k) providers to clarify their standard fee disclosures. Subsequently, employers will then be forced to pass that information along to plan participants by the end of August.
.
“This is no small feat. We’re talking about roughly $4 trillion worth of assets spread across 67 million 401(k) plans across the country, according to the latest numbers from ASPPA.

“While this sounds all well and good – and certainly is a strong step in the right direction with regard to empowering employees – the bump in the road remains the presumed education level of plan participants. Like a lot of other things in life – such as parenting and political candidates – I think a lot of us assume we know more about 401(k)s than we really do. In fact, I saw some numbers just last week that suggested more than 70 percent of retirement savers in this country have no idea there were any fees at all involved with their retirement plans. Talk about culture – or sticker – shock. It’s like learning there’s no Easter bunny.”

This is where Pension Parameters comes in- both for its customers and those who are looking for a retirement planning advisor. “Our clients are being kept updated on this process, and we will continue to help educate their employees as the process moves forward,” says Kevin McCormack, President, Pension Parameters.

If you have any questions about new disclosure regulations, please contact: Pension Parameters Financial Services, Inc.

28 West 44th Street
New York, NY   10036
Phone: (212) 675-9360  Fax: (212) 675-9363
675 Line Road
Aberdeen, NJ  07747
Phone: (732) 583 -1313  Fax: (732) 583-6991





Labels:

0 comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)

Blogger created by vwebdeveloper.