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Beth A. Botti, CFP®, ChFC, CLU, CDFA™

Financial Consultant

California Insurance License #0G24537

 

612 Wheelers Farms Road, Milford, CT 06460

 

Phone:  203-877-6556 Ext. 169

Fax:      203-301-0736

Email: beth.botti@equitable.com

July/August 2018

Beyond Plan Defaults

Beyond Plan Defaults

If you have a 401(k) plan at work, you have a powerful vehicle through which you can save for retirement. Today, more employers are offering automatic tools to help participants put money away into their 401(k)s. While these work for many employees, they may not be right for you. Here’s a look at some of these auto tools and ways you might improve on them.


Auto Enrollment
The idea behind this innovation is that employees fail to contribute to a retirement plan because of inertia, so they are automatically enrolled in the plan when joining the company (with the choice to opt out). Contributing toward your retirement is good, so there’s little to improve on here. You might, however, compare it to a Roth 401(k) plan if you have that option.


Auto Contributions
With this option, employers choose the percentage of employees’ salary to initially contribute to a plan. This is often a low number: With many plans, 3% is the default rate. Anything, of course, is better than nothing. But you will typically have the option to raise or lower your contribution on your own. Consider raising it, especially if you’re not putting away enough to match a potential employer contribution match.


Auto Escalators
Automatic contribution escalators raise the percentage of salary contributed to a 401(k) plan over
time. This is an attractive way to bump up your retirement savings efforts as you receive promotions and pay increases. You might even decide to raise it more on your own, perhaps up to the maximum allowed by the plan.


Auto Accounts
The default account of the majority of plan sponsors is a target date fund — a diversified fund that includes stocks, bonds and cash. Typically, this is a somewhat conservative way to invest according to your retirement timeframe. However, you may want to choose your own investments if you have a more conservative or aggressive approach to investing.


Talk to your financial professional to learn how investing in a 401(k) plan or IRA can help you prepare financially for retirement.

GE-133484 (6/18) (Exp, 6/20)


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Duly registered and licensed financial professionals offer securities through Equitable Advisors, LLC (NY, NY 212-314-4600), member FINRA,SIPC (Equitable Financial Advisors in MI & TN), offer investment advisory products and services through Equitable Advisors, LLC, an SEC-registered investment advisor, and offer annuity and insurance products through Equitable Network, LLC (Equitable Network Insurance Agency of Utah, LLC in UT; Equitable Network of Puerto Rico, Inc.). Equal Opportunity Employer - M/F/D/V. Equitable Advisors and its associates and affiliates do not provide tax, accounting, or legal advice or services. Representatives may transact business, which includes offering products and services and/or responding to inquiries, only in state(s) in which they are properly registered and/or licensed. Your connection to this website does not necessarily indicate that the sender is able to transact business in your state. The information in this website is not investment or securities advice and does not constitute an offer. For more information about Equitable Advisors, LLC you may visit https://equitable.com/crs to review the firm's Relationship Summary for Retail Investors and General Conflicts of Interest Disclosure.

GE-6572038.1 (4/24)(Exp. 4/26)

CFP®, and CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ are certification marks owned by the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards, Inc. These marks are awarded to individuals who successfully complete the CFP Board's initial and ongoing certification requirements.

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