Wealth management

Are health savings accounts simply better than 401(k) plans?

Amid mounting concern about the nation’s savings rate and financial illiteracy, employers face enormous pressure to move the needle on retirement preparedness. One possible solution is to tap the wildly popular gaming trend, which, in turn, can actually help make retirement planning fun and more engaging than traditional approaches to employee education.

The warning signs continue to mount that Americans are not saving enough for retirement – a recent study predicted three in five retirees will outlive their money if they try to maintain their working standard of living, but one financial adviser says most of her colleagues are still doing all the wrong things to help clients avoid this fate.

The Labor Department this week issued guidance on rules requiring companies to disclose 401(k) fees to employees that will be welcome news to most employers. But for some small companies with 401(k) plans, the guidance may raise more questions, experts said.

Private enterprise is limbering up for the 2012 EBN-EBA Financial Fitness Challenge, an online financial-education program sponsored by Employee Benefit News and Employee Benefit Adviser in partnership with Educated Investor.

When we brought home our NEW cockapoo puppy, Cali, our two older dogs were less than enthusiastic. Our husky, Torik, was patiently annoyed, but our big Akita, Connor, strenuously objected to the rambunctious puppy from the beginning. Cali jumped at Connor's face, chased his tail and ran circles around a dog that was five times her size. In response, Connor barked and growled - we were fearful that he would injure her.

Financial services firms are broadening the scope of their retirement advice tools and planning a major push to help advisers understand them. That’s the key takeaway of an industry survey by Hearts & Wallets, a research firm that tracks retirement income trends.

Target date funds, the most popular investment option in 401(k) plans, are increasing their exposure to exchange traded funds (ETFs), which are rarely used in retirement savings accounts.

Worries persist that working Americans aren’t saving enough to afford a life of leisure, but maybe retirement isn’t all that it’s cracked up to be.

The Department of Labor is looking into whether JPMorgan Chase & Co. violated its fiduciary duty under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act in connection with one of its stable value funds.

Employer matches aren’t as strong an inducement to get employees into the 401(k) plan as you might think, according to Brigitte Madrian, professor of public policy and corporate management in the Aetna Chair at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government.

The health care trust affiliated with the United Auto Workers named a former Stanford University official and Hewlett-Packard Co executive to manage its $54 billion in assets earmarked for retiree medical benefits.

Advisers are more committed than ever to helping clients with their retirement income planning, but they face a host of challenges, including not knowing where to go to build their knowledge of retirement planning.

Even with women making great strides in workplace parity and achieving greater financial independence, they continue to lag behind men in many key areas of financial planning.

I turned 55 on July 2. As a member of the Baby Boom generation who hopes he’s aging like a fine wine and not turning into vinegar, I abhor the idea of losing money again in a 2008-style meltdown.

Individuals planning for retirement are increasing their diversification and turning to professional managers for help, according to a study by Vanguard.

Congress has approved a pension stabilization provision that is expected to give employers a more historically accurate and less volatile method of achieving full funding, but defined benefit plan sponsors also face an additional $9 billion in PBGC premiums.

This summer, thousands of employees will be improving their financial knowledge and pitting their know-how against others in the first Employee Benefit News Financial Fitness Challenge.

At least once a year plan sponsors and/or other plan fiduciaries should take a critical look at their investment fund lineups. Eight items that are normally considered in a review include:

Employee Benefit News and the Personal Financial Employee Education Foundation wish to help employers share benefit sponsorship information and core beliefs about financial education with a new survey and upcoming networking opportunities.