This may be the most important decision of your life…

Not so long ago, retirement planning was pretty simple. The average American worked until he or she was 65, retired with a pension and a Social Security check, and probably died around age 70 or 75. Not much planning required.

How quickly things have changed. Today, workers are retiring earlier and living longer than ever before. It is not unusual for workers today to retire in their late 50s, and many will live well into their 90s. Incredible as it may seem, many Americans will actually live longer in their retirement years than they did in their working years!

While few of us would complain about longer life expectancies, this raises some challenging issues for retirement planning, because with today’s 401k plan the investment decisions are up to you, the participant. At the same time, the dependability of the Social Security system is suspect, particularly for younger Americans.

A May 2006 documentary on PBS’ Frontline program entitled “Can You Afford To Retire?” raised some troubling concerns about the fact that American workers are saving far too little for their retirement, and many will be forced to work menial jobs to supplement their income.

The reality is thus very clear: How much you invest in your 401k plan, and how well you manage your money, is going to determine your quality of life for a very long time after retirement. You must save as much as possible as early as possible to be able to afford to retire. There will be no “do-overs” for those who do not save enough!

Now for the good news: Your employer has recognized this situation and has taken some very positive steps to assist you in creating a retirement nestegg that will sustain you throughout your retirement years. 

FOR PARTICIPANT EDUCATION RESOURCES, PLEASE CLICK BELOW:

BY SELECTING THE ADVISORS ACCESS 401k, YOUR EMPLOYER HAS PROVIDED YOU WITH A 401k PROGRAM THAT GIVES YOU ACCESS TO:

• Advisor-Managed Portfolios: With the Advisors Access 401k, professional investment advisors decide how to combine the funds in your plan to create different portfolios for you to choose from, ranging from aggressive to conservative. The only decision you have to make is which portfolio strategy best suits your risk and return needs.
• Institutional Investments: The investment vehicles used to create the Advisors Access portfolio strategies are sophisticated, institutional mutual funds that ordinarily have a $2 million minimum per fund. These funds have much lower fees and are much more efficient than typical retail mutual funds.
• Independent Advisors: Capital Directions Investment Advisors, LLC, is the investment advisor to your 401k plan and creates the portfolio strategies offered in your program. Unlike brokers, agents and fund company reps who receive compensation from the funds they recommend, Capital Directions is a fee-only, independent advisor. We receive no compensation from any third party and have no product to sell. We work only for our clients.
• On-Demand Reporting: The Advisors Access 401k is a web-based platform that provides you the ability to access your account information in a secure environment at any time.