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.
-
- 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
Contact the Host - vince@thecfoathome.com
