At TrinityPoint Wealth, our team has been providing retirement plan consulting services to businesses and institutions for over 20 years. We understand that designing and managing the optimum retirement plan benefit is important to your organization’s success and paramount to your participants’ ability to properly prepare for retirement.
As true consultants, we work to gain a full understanding of your objectives and present detailed solutions to meet those goals. We also serve as a co-fiduciary, assuming the same responsibilities as the Plan Sponsor. Our documented fiduciary process serves to mitigate the risk associated with offering this type of benefit.
In addition, we provide participant guidance, helping them understanding how the plan works, what deferral and investment options are appropriate based upon their individual circumstance, and most importantly, how their actions will translate to a meaningful retirement. By giving participants the tools and knowledge to take ownership of their retirement, we help put them in a position to achieve a successful outcome.
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This information was developed as a general guide to educate plan sponsors, but is not intended as authoritative guidance or tax or legal advice. Each plan has unique requirements, and you should consult your attorney or tax advisor for guidance on a specific situation. In no way does TrinityPoint assure that, by using this information provided, plan sponsor will be in compliance with ERISA regulations.
TrinityPoint Wealth is not affiliated with Thrive.
401(k) PLANS
Is your 401(k) plan meeting ERISA’s (Employee Retirement Income Security Act) standards in terms of your documented process, the performance of investments and the reasonableness of your fees? Would you benefit from some additional perspective on your plan?
The most typical option for corporate retirement plans, 401(k) plans involve very specific rules and responsibilities under ERISA. At TrinityPoint Wealth, we help mitigate the risk by partnering with you as a co-fiduciary. We also help you realize the importance and value of an effective retirement plan in the recruitment and retention of your employees. And we assist in making sure that your plan meets the needs of your workforce.
These plans offer a variety of design features to accommodate your specific requirements and goals. Our team will help you understand your plan options for participant eligibility, vesting, employer contribution or match (Safe Harbor), pre-tax versus Roth deferrals and profit sharing. An appropriate plan design based upon your goals and company demographics is key to an effective plan.
Despite the best intentions of plan sponsors, many employees do not fully understand or properly utilize their 401(k) plan. We assist employers in driving participation and deferral rates through innovative plan design (auto-enrollment, auto deferral increases, etc.) and regularly scheduled participant education. Our ultimate goal is to ensure that employees understand the implications of their participation and take ownership of their retirement.
Profit Sharing
A profit sharing plan feature is typically included with 401k plans. This allows the employer to decide on a discretionary basis (within limits and subject to ERISA rules) whether to contribute to participants. Employer contributions to the plan can be subject to a vesting schedule. Annual testing is typically required to ensure that contributions for rank-and-file employees are proportional to contributions for owners and highly compensated employees.
Safe Harbor
A Safe Harbor 401(k) plan allows a plan sponsor to automatically pass certain annual compliance with IRS regulations as long as specific contributions and participant notifications are met. This plan permits a high level of salary deferrals with an Employer matching contribution.
Roth
The Roth 401(k) is another option that can be added to a traditional 401(k) plan. Whereas the traditional 401(k) provides salary deferral on a pre-tax basis, the Roth feature allows participants to defer compensation on an after-tax basis. So although these deferrals do not reduce your taxable income, the contributions and earnings on those contributions will be tax-free when withdrawn in retirement.
Owner-Only
The Owner-Only 401(k), sometimes referred to as a Solo 401(k) or Uni-k, is available to business owners with no other employees, other than a spouse or 5% (or greater) owner. This plan allows the owner to maximize his or her contributions by allowing both employer contributions and employee salary deferrals. Other benefits include contribution flexibility, lower costs than traditional 401(k)s and less administrative duties, as well as a wide range of investment options.
SEP IRA PLANS
Are you a small business owner that would like to defer your taxable income and maximize your retirement savings potential?
A SEP (Simplified Employee Pension) IRA is a type of retirement savings plan available to self-employed individuals or small business owners. This plan allows business owners to contribute up to 25% of employee compensation (subject to certain caps and limitations) for themselves and their employees. Contributions are tax deductible for the business and are fully vested when made. In addition, contributions do not need to be made each plan year and amounts can vary from year to year.
SIMPLE IRA PLANS
Are you a business owner who would like to offer a retirement benefit to your employees without the cost and administration that the typical 401(k) requires?
The SIMPLE IRA plan (Savings Incentive Match Plan for Employees) is another type of tax-deferred employer-provided retirement plan available to businesses with 100 or fewer employees. Unlike the SEP, this plan allows for employee salary deferrals in addition to a mandatory employer matching contribution (not to exceed 3% of compensation). With minimal administration and associated costs, this type of plan provides a nice benefit for both the employer and the employees.
CASH BALANCE PLANS
Does a cash balance plan make sense for your business?
A hybrid between a defined benefit plan and a defined contribution plan, a cash balance plan targets key employees, allowing them to contribute larger sums of money into the plan. If you’re a business owner, a cash balance plan gives you an opportunity to maximize your retirement savings because of the generous contribution limits that increase with age. It also reduces your taxable income.
We can help you explore the pros and cons of offering this type of benefit, determine the most advantageous plan and execute it for your organization.
457 and 401 PLANS
How effective is your 457 plan?
457 plans are a type of qualified, tax advantaged deferred compensation plan, typically used by governmental employers. Many municipalities offer 457 plans, as well as a pension, in order to offer participants an additional means of saving for retirement. Often, however, Plan Sponsors don’t fully understand or scrutinize their plan offerings.
As 457 plan consultants, we work with a number of municipalities and can help you deliver an optimum plan design and plan offering to your employees.
403(b) PLANS
Are you aware that your plan may now fall under ERISA (Employment Retirement Income Security Act)? Is a 403(b) plan still the best option for your organization?
While 403(b) plans have been the traditional vehicle for non-profit entities, you may not realize that many of these plans are now subject to ERISA regulations. You also may not be aware that you can elect to offer a 401(k) plan instead — which could provide features that better serve your organization.
As consultants, we can help you sort through your options, determine the best solution and optimize a retirement plan for your organization. We’ll also partner with you as a co-fiduciary, instituting a documented fiduciary process to mitigate risk.
