Making the Right Decision for Your 401k Investments is Important

One really important thing to remember about your 401k investments is that the IRS, through the tax code 401k, will give all qualifying employees an immediate tax reduction along with an upside market potential for your savings. So, with that information alone it’s something you really should consider taking advantage of.

When thinking about 401k investments you should figure out how much of your gross not your net income that you can save by following the current limits that are set by the IRS. You should sit down and probably talk with a benefits counselor as well. Your company will have one or they should at least be able to get you the information that you need so you can set up your retirement account.

Before you do anything else you need to study the various savings as well as investment options that are available for you, this is generally going to be mutual funds. Then you can determine how you are going to want to have your regular contribution dispersed into those options.

If you feel like you need more information, find out when an investment adviser might be coming to visit your place of employment so that you can get more in depth information on certain kinds of investments. A really important thing to find out is if your account is portable and if so how much can you take with you. You will also need to find out when you will be vested.

You might want to visit your library as well and go up to the reference librarian and find out where you can find the most current resources that might give you information on the different investment choices that you have available to you. If you don’t want to do that you can always look this kind of information up on the Internet.

Once you feel comfortable with your 401k investments then you should go in and sign all the needed paperwork so that your contributions can start to be deducted from your paychecks each time you are paid.

Which Is Best for My Small Business? a SEP IRA or SEP 401k?

A retirement plan for a small business can be tricky to find. You would want a plan that has low contribution minimums and affordable administration fees without sacrificing the benefits that your employees may receive. Of all retirement plans available for small business proprietors and self-employed individuals, the SEP IRA and SEP 401k plans are the top choices. What is a SEP IRA and what are the SEP IRA rules? A SEP 401k? What are their similarities and differences? Which is better for my business?

A SEP IRA is a retirement plan that allows the employer an easy method of contribution to the employee’s IRA. When to make contributions and how much will be contributed is all up to the employer. The limits of contribution are generous: $49,000 or 25% of the worker’s annual salary. The contribution to be made will be the lesser of the 2. An advantage of this plan is that it can include a big number of employees under the SEP.

Similar to a SEP IRA, the SEP 401k contributions are also employer discretionary. Contribution limits for this plan are: $15,500 maximum from employee’s salaries plus an additional 25% of the employee’s compensation as employer contributions. The catch is that this plan is only for the account older and his or her spouse, any employee cannot be part of the plan.

Of the two, the SEP 401k can potentially have a bigger contribution allowance. Say for example, an employee is receiving $100,000 a year. In a SEP IRA, maximum contribution possible would be 25% or $25,000. For a SEP 401k, that would be $15,500 taken from the salary, plus an employer contribution of 25% or $25,000. That would amount to a maximum possible contribution of $40,000fot the SEP 401k. The only drawback of the SEP 401k is that employees are not catered in the plan, so if you plan to expand your business and hire more to work from you, then the SEP IRA is the obvious choice.