Qualified Retirement Plans

 

 

Maintaining a healthy retirement savings plan  requires some time and effort on your part.  At Foster, Soltoff & Love,we want to make sure that every employer understand their fiduciary responsibilities to help comply under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA).  Many business owners are unaware of the dangers they face under ERISA and the implications of being a plan Fiduciary.  As a plan sponsor, you have a fiduciary responsibility to your participants to help ensure that  you and your actions are in compliance. 

                                                        

Fiduciary responsiblity includes:

  • Act prudently when selecting an investment provider and investment options.
  • Act with loyalty to plan participants in accordance with the plan terms and with ERISA.
  • Communicate to employees.
  • Monitor investment options and plan operations.
  • Annual plan review.

                                     Click the link below to view 2009 Contributions

                                      Employer Sponsored 2009 Contributions

Foster, Soltoff & Love prepares an annual plan review that gives you some important information you can use to help you fulfill your ongoing fiduciary responsibilities.  This tool will provide detailed performance information on the investment options you have selected for the plan, plus similar information on investments you did not choose.  That way you can make an informed decision about whether to make additional investment options available, or to change the ones you have previously selected.

We also work with you to create an Investment Policy Statement.  An Investment Policy Statement is a document that establishes the objectives and criteria for the management of a qualified retirement plan's investments.  It defines how the investment options in a company's qualified plan are selected and monitored and how their performance is evaluated.  Having an Investment Policy Statement shows that you have clearly defined the criteria for selecting investment options based on your employees demographics and the plan's long-term goals, and that you have a strategy and process in place to monitor those selections.

                         Click the link below to view a Sample Investment Policy Statement

                                           Sample Investment Policy Statement

We spend time with fiduciaries to help them comply with ERISA Section 404(c) that allows a plan to permit participants to excercise control over the assets in their retirement plan account.  If the plan allows a participant to direct the investment of his or her account, and the plan satisfies the requirements under the 404(c) regulations, a fiduciary will not be liable for any losses, or for any breach, which results from a participants excercise of control.  To obtain protection under 404(c) and its regulations, the participants must be given sufficient information to make informed investment decisions. 

These would include:

  • Offer a broad range of investment options.
  • Provide participants the opportunity to make independent investment choices.
  • Supply participants with information to make informed investment choices.
  • Allow participants to transfer between core investments at least quarterly.

                                      Click the link to view our Sample Scorecard

                                                   Sample Scorecard

Knowledgeable participants may make better choices, and the company might benefit from higher participation levels.  Foster, Soltoff & Love provides communication and education to help your employees better understand the benefits of a qualified retirement plan.  Our approach to communication and education is built around the premise that personalized education is the most effective way to encourage active participant, regular contributions and sound asset allocation.

We focus on communication every step of the way before enrollment, during enrollment and after enrollment.  We provide education in many ways: group and individual meetings, video, and online programs.

  Example of the educational topics include:

  • Importance of participating the plan
  • Saving for retirement
  • Diversification
  • Asset Allocation
  • Dollar cost averaging
  • Advantages of tax defferal
  • Risk/return concepts
  • Impact of inflation
  • Compounding
  • Market behaviors

Finally, it is important to continually monitor your retirement plan not only in the areas of investments but also in the plan administration.  Compliance testing and reporting are done on an annual bais. Foster, Soltoff & Love will work with you, and your plan administrator to help make sure that these requirements are completed in a proper and timely manner.