Declare Your 401(k) Independence

When I think of the Fourth of July holiday, I think about the handful of signers of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. These brave men declared to the world that they were no longer going to be governed by Great Britain, and boldly proclaimed how they wanted to pursue better lives for themselves and their families.

I think that company retirement plan participants should declare their “independence” from the poor investment results over the last few years from the menu of mutual fund options in their company retirement plans.

More and more companies are offering the SDBA (self-directed brokerage account) option to their company retirement plan participants. This account allows company retirement plan participants to leave the high-cost and poor investment performance of the majority of the mutual funds in their company retirement plan menu.

The technology and analysis tools are available to improve both the preservation of company retirement plan principal and the growth of company retirement plan principal in the years to come.

There are more and more financial advisors willing to take on the added liability of providing investment advice to individual company retirement plan participants. Many financial advisors are now able to provide unbiased and independent investment advice to company retirement plan participants.

So, this Independence Day, take some time to improve the investment results in your 401(k) plan at work. Ask questions, check out your options, and find an investment professional that is able to help you make better company retirement plan investment decisions.

Declare your own “Independence Day” In your company retirement plan.

Ric Lager
Lager & Company,. Inc.