29. Retirement Planning Fundamentals with David Elder of Merit Financial Advisors

David Elder is a Certified Financial Planner, Wealth Manager, Branch Manager, and Partner with Merit Financial Advisors. He’s also Vince’s personal Retirement Advisor. Today on CFO at Home, David and Vince discuss retirement planning; factors to consider when starting or evaluating your plan, factors to consider when looking for a Retirement Planner, HSAs, ETFs, Target Date Funds, and more.

• Key Takeaways
• • Defined Contribution Plan  - A retirement plan in which an employee contributes money and their employer typically makes a matching contribution 

• • • 401(k) - For employees of public corporations 
    • 403(b) - For employees of schools, healthcare entities and non-profits
    • 457 - For public sector employees 
    • Thrift Savings Plan - For federal employees
    • SIMPLE - For employees and employers of businesses with 100 or fewer employees 

• • • Defined Contribution Plans are the most widely-used type of employer-sponsored retirement benefit plan in the US
    • Employees invest in these plans to supplement their Social Security benefits since Social Security alone is typically not enough to pay for the average retirement. 
    • These plans have grown in importance since Defined Benefit Pension Plans, where the employer is responsible for all planning and investment risk, have become less common.

• • Individual Retirement Account (IRA)  A type of tax-deferred or tax free retirement account that individuals can open at many financial institutions.
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  • Questions to consider when starting/evaluating retirement savings:
    • Defined Contribution or IRA?
    • Contribute before or after tax (ROTH)?
    • What’s your investment time horizon and spending goals?
    • What’s your risk tolerance?
    • Is your asset allocation aligned with your goals?
    • If you have multiple accounts, are you optimized across them?
    • Is your retirement account coordinated with your spouse’s plan?

• • Factors to consider when selecting a Financial Planner for Retirement 
    • Professional credentials (CFP?)
    • Experience 
    • Give yourself the proper time to evaluate 
    • What they tell you
    • The questions they ask
    • How well they’re listening to you
    • Have a honest discussion about the pros and cons of working together

• Ways to contact/follow
• • Meritfa.com
  • Delder@meritfa.com

Contact the Host - vince@thecfoathome.com