lynnerself
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Joined: Jan 3, 2011 11:42:29 GMT -5
Posts: 4,166
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Post by lynnerself on Oct 20, 2014 10:09:04 GMT -5
My company matched up to 4%. Because I am a supervisor, I see who is contributing. Most people not contributing are the ones living paycheck to paycheck. They feel they cannot give up 4% now, for more money 30 years down the road.
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ohmomto2boys
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Joined: Dec 20, 2010 9:25:38 GMT -5
Posts: 1,008
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Post by ohmomto2boys on Oct 20, 2014 10:16:45 GMT -5
We currently get a 2% match if you put in 4%. However, in January, the plan is switching and EVERYONE gets 3% match whether you participate or not. No profit sharing.
DH's plan is pretty weak up front - if he puts in $2k (year) he will get $500 match. However, his profit sharing has typically been 5 - 10% of his salary. That is pretty sweet!
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Deleted
Joined: Jun 26, 2024 5:08:03 GMT -5
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Post by Deleted on Oct 28, 2014 16:14:13 GMT -5
My company gives 100% match up to 5% and then contributes 4% into a portable pension at year end based on that years gross earnings.....Not on par with the traditional pension program but not shabby by any means!
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muttleynfelix
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Post by muttleynfelix on Oct 28, 2014 16:20:26 GMT -5
I work for a small, generous company. I don't know exactly how much of my total retirement was contributed by them, but it's >50% (quick calculation gives me 55% including growth). Originally, we didn't have a 401k, just SEP IRAs that they contributed to. Which was fine when I was younger and didn't know so much about retirement savings. Now, thank goodness, we have a 401k that we're allowed to contribute to. There is no match, but they aim for 10% of our salary each year, and have met that every year I've been employed. It is all immediately vested. This is very similar to my situation. We originally had a 401k and now all we have is an SEP IRA (economic downturn and fees for the 401k were just too much to swallow). Contributions are based on profits for the year and have been between 5-15% of our salary each year (now on year 8 at this company). 100% is employer contribution and it is 100% vested (there was a vesting schedule when it was a 401k, not an option with an SEP IRA). It accounts for about 60% of my (and DH's) total retirement picture. DH and I have ROTH IRAs which account for about 40% of our retirement.
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shanendoah
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Post by shanendoah on Oct 28, 2014 17:48:35 GMT -5
I just had to send in my retirement account paperwork today (it required C's signature). As a state employee, I MUST participate in a retirement plan. The state also has a required minimum amount that I must invest.
I opted for the 403(b) vs the defined contribution plan. The defined contribution plan takes 10 years to fully vest, and I like to change jobs every 3-5 years. There's no guarantee I'll be with my employer long enough to vest. With the 403(b), based on my age, they automatically take 7.5% of my earnings to contribute and the state matches them. There is no vesting, so that money is all mine from the moment it is deposited into the account.
From my previous employer, I do have a defined benefit fund and a 403(b). I was with them 8.5 years (the longest I've ever been with a single employer, so again, my leeriness about something that takes 10 years to vest), and was fully vested. I have a little over 90k combined in the accounts from them. Their 403(b) matching was (if I remember correctly) 1-1 for the first 3% and then 0.5% for each additional 1% contributed, up to a maximum match of 5%. While there, I did have my plan set to automatically increase my savings 1% every year, the same month that our raises would kick in. I was more than a couple years away from a full 15% of my income being invested, so I'm ahead now. Once I make it a year here, I will likely increase my retirement savings, even if I'm not getting a match.
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myrrh
Established Member
Joined: Apr 12, 2011 22:55:14 GMT -5
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Post by myrrh on Oct 28, 2014 18:02:06 GMT -5
As a state employee I contribute about 10% of my salary to a pension. Only 17 years to go till I can retire, lol. This year I also started contributing to the 457 plan (started full time employment again in January, the prior four years I was half time with half the salary, which made it hard to find funds to contribute to the 457.)
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Deleted
Joined: Jun 26, 2024 5:08:03 GMT -5
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Post by Deleted on Oct 29, 2014 13:02:18 GMT -5
Mine matches 4% if I contribute at least 5% and more if we hit X number profit in a year. Last year it was an extra 2% making the match 6% total.
In my experience most folks don't care they are missing the match, they would rather max their spending to 100% or more of what they make. I made my share of mistakes in the past but never reduced my 401k contributions where I would miss any of the match.
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2girlsdad
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Post by 2girlsdad on Oct 30, 2014 7:16:09 GMT -5
I get dollar for dollar up to 6% plus another 6% of salary/commissions. So, in an average year the company contributes approximately $22-23k to my $17,500. So $40,000 annually although its been as high as $45k. I vested after 4 plus years and the company has put in more than half (captain obvious) of the total.
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steph08
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Post by steph08 on Oct 30, 2014 7:39:34 GMT -5
My company automatically contributes 6%, I don't have to contribute anything. That is completely vested after 6 years (20% after 2 years, 40% after 3 years, etc.)
They also used to do another 3-4% that was 100% vested after 3 years (no incremental steps), but they stopped that last year because of the lack of defense spending right now. Hopefully it eventually comes back.
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TheHaitian
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Joined: Jul 27, 2014 19:39:10 GMT -5
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Post by TheHaitian on Oct 30, 2014 9:29:02 GMT -5
I get dollar for dollar up to 6% plus another 6% of salary/commissions. So, in an average year the company contributes approximately $22-23k to my $17,500. So $40,000 annually although its been as high as $45k. I vested after 4 plus years and the company has put in more than half (captain obvious) of the total. Where are you people getting those jobs? I want one too
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Deleted
Joined: Jun 26, 2024 5:08:03 GMT -5
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Post by Deleted on Oct 30, 2014 9:40:24 GMT -5
Where are you people getting those jobs? I want one too It seems to vary by industry. I was in insurance and they're pretty generous. I'm sure that companies provide whatever they need to be competitive (or, putting it more cynically, they provide the minimum they can get away with and still attract people).
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SVT
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Joined: Dec 20, 2010 15:39:33 GMT -5
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Post by SVT on Oct 30, 2014 12:42:05 GMT -5
I get an automatic 10% contribution immediately vested. Employer portion is currently 43% of the total balance of my current 401k.
Not sure how much the employer portion is for all of retirement. I'd have to try to go back and find out how much my different employers have contributed over the years. I actually do have all that information saved in a spreadsheet from doing XIRR for returns. Maybe I'll add it up and get the percentage some time.
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tskeeter
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Post by tskeeter on Oct 30, 2014 12:42:32 GMT -5
I jumped from employer to employer when I was starting my career, so I never counted on the match until it vested. That became a habit. I just realized that although I have included my vested balance in my planning, as I do my calculations I have only included my future withholdings and have not included any future employer match. It is the most conservative thing to do - because I might have to start a new job tomorrow, and may never vest again. But between my current plan, and my husband's longevity at his job, even if we get just the next three years for each of us it will bring another $75 grand 20 years from now. If we are able to keep a job that vests and brings us about the same percentage as we have now - we could be up in the $300k - $350k range. Not too shabby. Right now about 10% of my balance in my current 401k is employee match - same for my husband. I rolled over my previous 401k, and I know some of that was matched dollars, but have no idea how much. About 60% of our retirement funds are in our current plans. Those pennies add up! How much of your retirement is from your input and growth on that vs. employee match? Took a look at a 401K that has been in place since the mid 80's. Employee contributions + gains = 74%. Employer contributions + gains = 26%. Employer contributions were boosted by a couple of events where the employer made more than the minimum contribution required by the SPD. And by relatively low employee contributions during the early years of employment. I suspect that, all-in-all, these ratios are pretty representative of people who have worked for a single employer for an extended period of time.
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tskeeter
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Post by tskeeter on Oct 30, 2014 12:50:03 GMT -5
I haven't factored in my husband's potential pension. I can't get a straight answer about how it works, and he isn't trying very hard. He told me yesterday that shortly he will be vested in it, which will bring about $12k per year starting in 2037. If he stays at his job, it will increase - I think that is the minimum payout or something. I thought the number was funny because when I look at my very crude calculations, it looks like we are short about $25-$30k per year in future dollars. But, our house will be paid off, plus that $12k, puts us at "found" money of $28k. Thyme, ask the plan custodian for a copy of the Summary Plan Description. That should explain how pensions are calculated.
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midwestlily
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Post by midwestlily on Oct 30, 2014 14:22:08 GMT -5
My employer (state university) matches 10% of my salary into my 403b, whether I contribute or not. When I started here six years ago, we were fully invested from the start. I think they've changed that, now it takes something like three years before you're vested. My old job ended in June, new one just started this month, so I was afraid that I might have to wait to get vested again, but luckily they said I'm still fully vested going forward. This job is funded for four years (twice as long as they've ever promised me before), but I'm not sure I want to stay here that long. I don't know how much of much of what I have is from employer contributions. I contributed about 45% of my gross pay in 2012 and 2013 (up close to the limit), started doing it in 2014, but stopped in June, when I realized that my job was really going to end before I could even apply for the new one. Now that I'm getting a paycheck again, I'm only putting in 5% so I can replenish the cash in my emergency fund. I'll bump it up in a couple months, though I'm not sure if I'll go back up to the limit.
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