Retirement benefits

The Hartford's recent announcement to divest its retirement division has more to do about the economy and the parent's corporate direction, perhaps instigated by an activist investor, than it does about the quality of its retirement business.

The pending implementation of the Department of Labor's new rules on fee disclosure was one of several topics that had hundreds of financial advisers, consultants, fiduciaries, IRA experts and record keepers gathered in the Big Easy, at the American Society of Pension Professionals and Actuaries 401(k) Summit buzzing with nervous anticipation.

Despite recent tax reform proposals, experts testified at a House committee hearing Tuesday that cutting the incentives for retirement plans would be detrimental to savings in this country.

After a long, winding legal road, involving no fewer than six federal court decisions, Ameriprise Financial finally won a suit alleging that it had charged excessively high adviser fees.

Confidence in retirement security is shaky with only 36% of baby boomers saying they have enough assets to live comfortably in retirement, according to a new study.

Most American investors mistakenly believe that target-date funds provide guaranteed income in retirement, among other misconceptions of how the instruments work, the SEC found in a recent investor survey.

Life insurers may want to take a closer look at their annuity offerings. The 2008 financial crisis has changed a lot of financial advisers’ minds about insured retirement solutions, namely variable annuities, according to a new survey by AllianceBernstein L.P. and the Insured Retirement Institute.

Continued economic uncertainty has led all workers to dip into their retirement savings, but minorities have been the hardest hit, according to a new study from Ariel Education Initiative (a nonprofit affiliate of Ariel Investments) and Aon Hewitt. Compared to their Asian and white counterparts, African-American and Hispanic employees are eroding their retirement savings at an alarming rate.

Most marketing executives at Wall Street firms believe that new regulations governing the financial services industry will go a long way toward helping banks, brokerage houses and investment banks improve their reputations.

Americans who use the services of a financial professional are significantly more likely to have taken steps toward preparing for retirement than those who do not, finds the first quarterly results of a Principal Financial Well-Being Index.

Over the past two years, fees charged by financial advisers to new mid- and large-market defined contribution/401(k) clients have been shrinking at an alarming rate. This decline is driven by a number of factors. As with many other trends, it is likely that deflationary pricing will move downmarket. More than ever, it is essential that advisers clearly define their value proposition to employers and participants who, for the first time, will be able to easily determine what they are paying as a result of the new disclosure regulations - or risk being commoditized competing on fees.

On July 1 - when fee disclosure regulations go into effect - there may be questions about advisers trying to reduce their fees. They should keep in mind that in some cases a plan sponsor's ERISA counsel may perceive that action as an admission of guilt that previous fees may have been excessive or unreasonable.

Creating an adequate amount of income for individuals to live comfortably in retirement will require a combination of several income producing strategies, as well as knowing what constitutes realistic and "safe" withdrawal rates from retirement plans, according to a new issue brief by the Institutional Retirement Income Council.

More Americans are feeling optimistic about their retirement savings, according to a new survey.

Financial services firms, advisers and brokers can get themselves caught in their own tracks on social media, worrying excessively about Securities and Exchange Commission rules on disclosures, marketing and communication, as well as Financial Industry Regulatory Authority guidelines.

Although hundreds of financial advisers, consultants, fiduciaries, IRA experts and record keepers gathered in the ‘Big Easy,’ event goers can agree that fee disclosures and regulations are anything but simple when it comes to the retirement industry.

Americans often view saving for retirement as a choice between contributing to a workplace 401(k) plan or funding an IRA, even though the majority of people are allowed to contribute to both at the same time. A new report by Fidelity Investments indicates that as companies cut down on pension plans, more workers are contributing to both Individual Retirement Accounts and 401(k) plans. Those who contribute to both end up saving much more overall, the study showed. In addition, workers are more likely to save for retirement if they seek financial advice.

The odds of being single at some point during retirement are high and present unique challenges for both “ever single” retirees who never married and for those who become “suddenly single” in retirement due to divorce or death of a spouse. In fact, 43% of Americans age 65 and older are single due to divorce, having never married, or the death of a partner.

Many small business owners are unprepared for retirement, with a third of the women and a quarter of the men in a new survey having no estimate of how much they will need when they retire.

Every election year brings a certain degree of uncertainty to the financial markets, making life a bit more complicated for financial advisers and clients trying to anticipate how whatever happens in November will impact publicly traded companies, the tax code, Social Security and the full gamut of investment products going forward.