Retirement benefits

Most retirement planning exercises begin and end with a simple question: How much income will you need to replace after you quit work?

The fifth annual national survey assessing household saving revealed that — despite hopeful macroeconomic signs — an increasing number of Americans are having difficulty saving to meet goals ranging from meeting emergencies to affording retirement. Over the last three years, the number who spend less than their income and save the difference, are building home equity, have adequate emergency savings, and think they are saving enough for retirement has declined. However, the survey also revealed that having a savings plan has beneficial financial effects, even for lower-income families.

There’s no sense in denying it: Since its launch in 2004, Facebook’s effect on the Internet, the way we share and receive information, and the way we interact with one another has been profound and irreversible. I remember getting smacked with this reality once, as I updated my Facebook status while sitting in a movie theater waiting for “The Social Network” to start, and again as I watched a cable news report that invited viewers to…

Financial advisers have turned decidedly more optimistic about the market’s prospects for 2012, according to an SEI Quick Poll. Nine in 10 of the advisers surveyed in early February, including bank advisors, say they expect a positive return for the S&P 500 in 2012, up 18% from a similar survey conducted in mid-January. More than six in 10, 63%, predicted gains greater than 5%, a sentiment that spread dramatically from just three weeks ago.

Despite evidence that younger investors are well-positioned to benefit from long-term retirement savings less than half (45%) plan to contribute to an Individual Retirement Account for the 2011 tax year, according to research.

A growing number of younger participants in 401(k) retirement plans are investing in target-date funds, according to a recent analysis. Using data from the EBRI/ICI 401(k) database, Employee Benefit Research Institute finds that the percentage of recently hired 401(k) participants with two or fewer years of tenure holding TDFs jumped from 43.6% in 2008 to 46.6% in 2009 increasing slightly to 47.6% in 2010. …

Big shifts may be coming in how retirement plans are managed after the the Labor Department Thursday announced the final version of its rules under Section 408(b)(2) of ERISA, which require broker dealers disclose their services and fees to plan sponsors for individual plans.

The U.S. Labor Department has removed a controversial part of its proposed 401(k) fee disclosure rule that would have required retirement plan providers to create a summary document, or "roadmap," of all their fees for employers.

Based on 30+ years of plan sponsor experience, I believe negative press about 401(k) loans are aimed at the wrong target. Rather, hardship withdrawals should be in the crosshairs, not loans.

Offering a retirement plan can be one of the most challenging - yet rewarding - decisions an employer can make. The employees participating in the plan, their beneficiaries, and the employer all may benefit when a retirement plan is in place. Administering a plan and managing its assets, however, requires certain actions and involves specific responsibilities governed by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act.

Though the 401(k) and defined contribution market gets lots of attention from all sectors of society and has a significant amount of assets, there are only about 110 national providers and advisory firms focused on this market.

Employees do not save enough for their eventual retirement needs, research shows. But, with tools, help and education from financial advisers that paradigm may shift - benefiting not only the employee but the employer and adviser.

Employees around the country are in need of direct, simple guidance to help them reach their retirement goals, according to a survey released by State Street Global Advisors.

The ongoing shift from defined benefit (DB) to defined contribution (DC) plans has prompted the financial services industry to rapidly develop products that deliver a steady stream of retirement income, one of the biggest shortcomings with DC plans. While numerous retirement income products are hitting the marketplace, employers and regulators are grappling with how they fit within qualified retirement plans.

Baby boomers appear to be taking a second look at their life insurance policies as an alternative financial solution to paying for retirement, where they sell an unneeded life insurance policy for a portion of the face amount. These transactions, known as life settlements, have become a mainstream practice in the past several years, particularly as baby boomers begin exploring all financial options to paying for retirement, including previously unconventional alternatives.

Only 25% of plan sponsors with 100 or more employees and plan assets between $5 million and $500 million partner with a professional adviser, according to a recent report from The Retirement Advisor Council. The study demonstra

Broker-dealers are up in arms over a little-known provision of the Department of Labor's 401(k) plan fee disclosure rules. Ready why some industry observers say the brokerage industry only has itself to blame.

Last week's report on unemployment shows that the economy continues to gather steam - payrolls grew by 200,000 and the jobless rate ticked downward again, to 8.5%.

Birds of a feather flock together, and it seems the saying also rings true for small business owners looking for a financial advisor. According to a new study released yesterday by The American College, small business owners prefer to speak to financial advisors of the same sex, with men exhibiting a stronger gender bias than their female counterparts.

Planners have been hearing about and preparing for the baby boom ever since the first 1946er became a client. Yet their single-minded focus on boomers may mean they've missed another demographic trend: the singles surge.