Your retirement plan should work for you

Employer-sponsored plans (401k, SIMPLE IRA, SEP IRA) are, by their nature, oversimplified to meet the needs of many. By partnering with the retirement coaches at JBL Financial, you can receive guidance customized to your unique situation. At JBL Financial we can help you create a thoughtful strategy that brings your personal vision of financial independence into focus.

What JBL Financial  can do for you:

• Identify your long term financial goals and the steps needed to pursue them
• Analyze the composition and balance of your existing portfolio
• Build a diversified portfolio balancing risk and return
• Help you align your retirement plan with your goals as you reach significant life-changing milestones

And we have no proprietary products to sell, you will always receive independent retirement plan guidance.

Types of employer-based retirement plans

There are many options employers can offer employees when it comes to retirement plans.

401(k) Plans

• 401(k)s are an employer-sponsored retirement plan that comes with tax benefits you can enjoy right now
• If your employer offers 401(k) matching contributions, you can increase the amount of money you earn at work. For example: Your employer may offer to match a percentage of every dollar you save, up to a certain percentage of your earnings. Let's say your employer matches 50% of your contributions, up to 6% of your salary. If you earn $70,000, your contributions equal to 6% of your salary ($4,200) are eligible for matching. However, your employer only matches 50%, meaning the total matching benefit is capped at $2,100 for the year. 
• Your 401(k) can be a key companion on your retirement savings journey if you start contributing now.
• The contribution limit for employees who participate in 401(k) has been increased in 2022 to $20,500, up from $19,500.

SEP IRA (Simplified Employee Pension Individual Retirement Account)

• A SEP IRA is a popular retirement investment vehicle for very small businesses and self-employed people.
• Unlike 401(k) plans, which are funded by employee contributions that are often matched by employers, SEP IRAs can only be opened and funded by employers. Beyond that, SEP IRAs function much like traditional IRAs.
• Business owners and self-employed people who establish SEP IRAs are making contributions as an employer, even if they are the only employee. An employer who offers a SEP IRA is required to contribute a uniform amount, on a percentage-of-salary basis, to both his or her own SEP IRA and the SEP IRAs of every eligible employee. Because of this rule, employers with many employees are less likely to offer SEP IRAs.
• SEP IRA contribution limits in 2022: 25% of your salary or $61,000

SIMPLE IRA (Savings Incentive Match Plan for Employees)

• A SIMPLE IRA is available to self-employed individuals and small businesses with 100 or fewer employees and no other workplace retirement plan. These plans are often more functional for small businesses than 401(k) plans, but the pre-tax saving principles still apply.
• Employees automatically qualify if they have earned at least $5,000 in compensation from the business in two prior years (which do not have to be consecutive) and expect to earn at least $5,000 in the current calendar year.
• The contribution limits are lower than 401(k) plans. You may contribute up to $14,000 to a SIMPLE IRA in 2022. As with all retirement plans, you cannot contribute more than you earned during the year, so if you didn't earn at least $14,000 from your employer, your maximum contribution is 100% of your income for the year.
• Your contributions reduce your taxable income for the year, so the more you put away in the account, the lower your annual tax bill will be this year. But that means you owe taxes when you make withdrawals.
• SIMPLE IRAs are rare in that they require employers to make contributions to their employees' accounts, although they may choose between elective and nonelective contributions. Elective contributions are a dollar-for-dollar match of up to 3% of an employee's salary. You get this match only if you personally contribute money to your SIMPLE IRA. Otherwise, you forfeit it. If employers aren't able to provide a 3% match for some reason, they may reduce their elective contribution matching percentage. However, they may not drop it below 1%, nor can they drop it below 3% for more than two out of five years.

Identifying Long-Term Goals

Everyone has a different idea of financial freedom – some envision a quiet lakefront home, others plan to travel the world – and the aspirations you have in your 20s may not be the same as those when you near retirement. We can help you evaluate your goals and create a step-by-step strategy to pursue them based on your current financial situation, risk tolerance and timeline.

Balancing Risk

We have access to leading market research and global insights to educate you on the different types of risk inherent in any financial strategy and help you manage risk through asset allocation, diversification and other established methods.

Aligning Your Portfolio

With an in-depth understanding of your employer’s retirement plan, we can evaluate your current investments and provide guidance to help you build a portfolio featuring a diversified combination of asset classes and securities in line with your objectives. We will also make sure the strategy for your employer-sponsored plan aligns with your other financial interests so that you have in place an integrated, comprehensive financial strategy.

Significant life changes can also impact your finances and affect your retirement plan

• Life-transforming events (new job, marriage, new children)
• Risk tolerance changes as you approach retirement
• Major market changes requiring adjustments to your portfolio
• Modifications to your employer-sponsored retirement plan options

We will provide a review of your employer-sponsored retirement plan and can help you identify when and how to change allocations to keep your strategy on track.