Categories: Retirement Accounts

For Baby Boomers - The Hour It Is Getting Late

Posted by: Howard Silverblatt on May 26

For over seventy years, the relationship between employee and employer not only encompassed the exchange of services for compensation, but extended to obligations in the form of pensions and Other...

What's a More Typical 401(k) Balance: $12K or $86K?

Posted by: Lauren Young on October 08

Several readers asked how is it possible that the typical U.S. worker had an average balance of $86,513 in their 401(k) account at the end of 2008, based on data...

Typical U.S. Worker Saw 401(k) Lose 24.3% in 2008

Posted by: Lauren Young on October 06

Maybe it wasn't so bad after all. U.S. workers suffered a 24.3% average loss in their 401(k) accounts in 2008, according to a new study from the Employee Benefits Research...

Employers to Reinstate 401(k) Matches, Unfreeze Salaries

Posted by: Lauren Young on August 13

Finally! Some good news for employees on the benefits front: 24% of employers plan to reverse 401(k) match reductions in the next 6 months, a new Watson Wyatt survey says....

Retire later? New study says many actually leave sooner

Posted by: Amy Feldman on July 15

Especially since the financial crisis began, people have been saying they'll solve their retirement woes by working longer. The reality, according to a new study from the Employee Benefit Research...

Growing Old: Is Retirement at Age 62 Still Possible?

Posted by: Lauren Young on June 29

Does anyone ever really retire? Not necessarily, according to a new study Growing Old in America: Expectations vs. Reality by the Pew Research Center. Of the 2,969 adults surveyed, 83%...

Target-Date Fund Hearings on Thursday

Posted by: Amy Feldman on June 17

Whither the target-date fund? Washington will be looking at target-date funds tomorrow in a hearing sponsored by the Department of Labor and Securities and Exchange Commission. These funds, which were...

Retirement Plan Investors Still Saving: Fidelity

Posted by: Lauren Young on January 28

Fidelity Investments came out with its 2008 retirement trends data today, and the news isn't as bad as it could have been. Sure, average retirement account balances fell a whopping...

Mercer Sees "Worrying Increase" in Retirement Plan Withdrawals

Posted by: Lauren Young on January 15

There's even more evidence that investors are curbing retirement plan contributions. Consulting Mercer giant says more retirement plan participants are requesting withdrawals compared to last year--requests rose 59% in November...

Congress Suspends Mandatory IRA Withdrawals for 2009

Posted by: Tara Kalwarski on December 16

A bit of good news for Americans age 70 1/2 and older: Last week the U.S. House of Representatives unanimously passed the Worker, Retiree, and Employer Recovery Act of 2008—effectively...

PENSIONS AND MEDICAL BENEFITS – Don’t Bet You Retirement On It and Don’t Get Sick

Posted by: Howard Silverblatt on May 25

Bottom Line: In the end, individuals, either as taxpayers or consumers, will pay the bill. The reality is just as our children may not ‘have it as good’ as we...

More momentum for 401(k)s on Autopilot

Posted by: Lauren Young on October 23

While the I's have yet to be dotted, the Department of Labor is about to issue final 401(k) default investment regulations, as well as the broader 401(k) provisions included in...

Lovin' It

Posted by: Lauren Young on October 11

I'm one of the very few geeks who gets excited about retirement accounts. In fact, I avidly follow the retirement trends of automatic enrollment options and target-date funds the way...

The 401(k) of the future?

Posted by: Lauren Young on January 26

If you haven't checked out the new issue yet, make sure you look at our retirement coverage. Yours truly wrote a story about self-directed brokerage accounts within 401(k) plans. I...

Ever Used A Brokerage Window in Your 401(k)?

Posted by: Lauren Young on January 08

I’m doing some research on retirement plans. Do you know anyone who has unlimited investment options available in their company’s 401(k) plan? This option, known as a "brokerage window" or...

Why can’t the Cylons run my 401K?

Posted by: Aaron Pressman on February 14

There’s a bevy of news headlines enticing me to blog today – another homebuilder stumbles, retail sales in January got a big boost from gift cards as some had predicted,...

Anatomy of My Friend's 401(K)

Posted by: Adrienne Carter on February 06

I was recently hanging out with friends one Sunday, chilling on the couch waiting for Grey’s Anatomy to come on. Really, no weekend is complete without a little Patrick Dempsey...