Incredible tax advantages.
Delay the day of reckoning, legally.
Let's face it, taxes may be necessary but they're certainly not enjoyable. They also take a bite out of your hard-saved investment dollars. 401(k) plans allow you to delay paying taxes on your contributions, allowing compounding to work in your favor for years.
You can't avoid the tax code, but with a 401(k) plan you can at least make the tax code work for you (not the other way around).
Pay now and forever hold your peace.
With a Roth 401(k) design feature, the tax band-aid is ripped off immediately and taxes are due now on contributions. Once contributed, however, those dollars -- and any gains and earnings they generate -- never again have to be touched by taxes.
The proper structure doesn't guarantee success, but it makes it far more likely.
401(k) plans must follow extensive rules and regulations that provide safeguards on how plans are constucted and operated. This structure provides solid support for plan participants to save and invest. For instance, with 401(k) plans employees have access to high-quality, diversified and fully-vetted investment options. That's a huge head start to successfully preparing for retirement.
2018 contribution limit
Age 50+ catch-up limit
Potential for matching
Income limits on participating
401(k)
$18,500
$6,000
Yes
No
IRA
$5,500
$1,000
No
Yes
Sock it away. No other retirement product lets you save more.
The surest way to end up with a healthy nest egg is to save as much as possible. 401(k) plans allow you to stash more of your cash on a tax-advantaged basis than any other retirement product. The sky may not be the limit, but the annual limit for
401(k) plans is sky-high compared to Individual Retirement Accounts.
Behold the astonishing
power of long-term compounding.
Compounding is truly extraordinary. This simple mathematical feat should be nominated as the 8th Wonder of the World. 401(k) plans are one of the very best ways to harness its amazing power by investing a constant stream of money over a long period of time. It may be simple mathematics, but it works like magic.
Assumes an individual making $40,000 annually and contributing 6% of wages to a 401(k) plan that offers a 50% match. Portfolio return is expected to be 7% per annum, net of fees. Assumes an annual wage inflation of 2%.
By contributing steadily to a 401(k) plan a 30-year investment of $100,000 could lead to a nest egg of more than $430,000. That's the power of compounding!
Employer approved. Employee adored.
In 2013 the Employee Benefit Research Institute released a study* on the relative value employees place on various workplace benefits. The results were clear. After health insurance, employees rated retirement savings plans as the second highest valued benefit offered by employers. A 401(k) plan is a great way to attract a high-performance team and increase the likelihood that the team will remain intact for years to come. It's a wonderful investment in your business, and a valued investment by your people. Now that's a wonderful match!
* Employee Benefit Research Institute and Matthew Greenwald & Associates, Inc., 2004-2012 Health Confidence Survey.