You work hard for your money and want to ensure you're making the most of it—that's where a wealth management team comes in. A wealth management team is a group of financial experts who can help you make intelligent decisions with your money. They can guide you on investing, saving for retirement, filing and planning your taxes, and more. Having a team of experts in your corner can help you reach your financial goals and enjoy peace of mind around your finances.  If you need help figuring out where to start, talk to a financial advisor about assembling a wealth management team that’s righ ..read more

As a business owner, it’s essential to weigh the pros and cons of every decision. And deciding whether to offer your employees a retirement plan is no different. On the one hand, there are many benefits to consider, both tangible and intangible. But on the other hand, a retirement plan comes at a cost, and to make it worthwhile, the benefits must outweigh the costs.  In addition to the various costs and benefits, it’s essential to know your options and choose the best retirement plan for you, your employees, and your business. For example, some owners may find that a safe harbor 401(k) pl ..read more

As year-end approaches, it’s essential to identify critical retirement planning deadlines and make contributions or distributions accordingly.  And while it may seem complicated to keep track of the different deadlines, it is worthwhile to understand them and take action. Fortunately, for many strategies like contributing to an HSA, Traditional or Roth IRA, or a SEP IRA, investors have until the tax filing deadline (typically April 15th) to complete these transactions. But, some strategies and actions must be completed by the end of the year.  In this article, we’ll focus on the reti ..read more

Many business owners choose to offer their employees a 401(k) or other retirement plans. And it makes sense, as there are many benefits to consider when offering a retirement plan, like attracting and retaining top talent and saving for your own work-free years. But, owners often overlook the additional tax benefits of providing a retirement plan, from saving for your own retirement plan pre-tax to deducting plan expenses from business income. Here Are 3 Key Tax Benefits for Small Business Owners When Offering a 401(k) 1. You Can Save for Your Retirement Pre-Tax First and foremost, by offering ..read more

Planning for retirement is one of the most important financial goals that exist. And not only does it involve the ability to defer gratification, opting to save and invest today to reap the benefits down the road, but it also involves complexity. When it comes to your business, there’s no one-size-fits-all approach to retirement planning. A standard 401(k) with safe harbor provisions is perfect for some. But for others, it needs a profit-sharing component, and for others, a defined benefit plan like a cash balance retirement plan could be best. Navigating these options can challenge many small ..read more

Early this year, the Hughes vs. Northwestern University Supreme Court case disputed Northwestern's defined-contribution system, emphasizing the importance of 401(K) plans providing suitable investment options for its participants and fulfilling fiduciary responsibility. Northwestern's plan included 242 investment options. Some of these funds were not good options, and therefore, the plaintiff sued on these grounds. The defendant responded that participants did not need to own the poor investment options and could instead choose better funds.  In retail investing, broke ..read more

If you offer your employees a 401k plan, then, as the employer (i.e., the plan sponsor), you are ultimately responsible for keeping the plan in compliance at all times. This is true whether you set up and run the 401k yourself, or if somebody else does it for you – at the end of the day, the plan sponsor is the responsible party. Thus, we’d like to post a few tips for Plan Sponsors straight from the IRS (note: if you have questions, there’s a link to the IRS website at the end. Also, TrueNorth Retirement Services can help clients navigate this as well.) Know Your Plan Adoption Agreement This ..read more

When you start setting up a 401(k) for your company, you will begin to see that there are a lot of parties involved. You have a Financial Advisor, a Recordkeeper, and a Third Party Administrator. Each one of these parties plays an important role in running a successful 401(k). It is uncommon, but occasionally we run across a company that is doing the 401(k) work manually, without a recordkeeper. One of the questions we get asked frequently is, “why do we need to hire a recordkeeper?” Although it is doable to go without, we do not advise setting up your 401(k) this way, and in this post, we are ..read more

Let’s get this out of the way – we, at True North Retirement Services, really like Safe Harbor 401(k) plans. The reasons should resonate with anyone looking to offer a 401(k) plan. We like them because they are very desirable from both an employer and an employee standpoint. Classic win-win. For employees, they are seen as one of the better types of 401(k) plans, so a Safe Harbor 401(k) is more likely to better contribute to employee attraction and retention (which is part of the reason you have a 401(k) plan in the first place, right?). Employees tend to save more for retirement, and there’s ..read more

As a business owner, you know that offering a retirement plan is a key factor in attracting and retaining quality people. In fact, in today’s business environment, it’s a must if you want to stay competitive. It’s also a must if you have just a few, or even no employees besides yourself and perhaps a spouse. That’s because small business owners need retirement savings as well, and a company retirement plan is one of the best ways to accomplish this. Retirement plans also can have significant tax advantages, so even if your retirement savings are handled elsewhere, a company retirement plan sti ..read more