401K Question

[yugugelizer]

I have never enrolled in a 401K plan. The company I am interning for offers a plan where they offer a matching contribution equal to 50% of the first 4% of compensation.

Does this mean that if I made $50,000, they would contribute $1,000? (50,000*.04*.5)


Also, I wanted to get an idea of what common 401K plans offer.

Thanks

[Mr Nice Guy]

Yep you got it.

Do you know what bank does your 401k? Some are better than others. I have Merrill Lynch, and it sucks. It sucks because of limited fund options. But there are others out there who are quite good.

You typically find a variety of funds to choose from. My plan has an S&P 500 index, S&P 400 idx, bond market idx, emerging markets and a bunch of target date funds

[Slug]

Yes, you must put in at least 4% of your salary to get the full match. And, you should do that. It's essentially a guaranteed return on your investment.

[disneysteve]

they offer a matching contribution equal to 50% of the first 4% of compensation.

you must put in at least 4% of your salary to get the full match.

There are a couple of different ways it can work.

It could be a match to your contributions so that if you put in 4% of your income, they match that 50 cents to the dollar.

Or it could be a contribution they make on your behalf whether you contribute or not. Some companies do that. So they might put in that $1,000 no matter what you do.

You need to talk to HR and get the details to find out what they are offering and what you need to do to get it. You also need to find out what the vesting rules are.

[Slug]

Good point. I forgot some companies are actually generous with 401k match.

[yugugelizer]

They also offer profit sharing which I assumed was the company investing whether I did or not. Vesting begins in the second years: 20% a year.

As I am currently an intern, I cannot take part in the 401K option. I was also curious as to what benefits are at other companies. I was under the impression that 6% full-match is what was usual.

[moneyclass]

Thats a decent plan your company has. 4% is good. But yes you do have to contribute your money also for them to give you that. if you dont join the plan then you wont get that money. any company willing to give there employees money towards retirement is AWESOME!! its like free money. you dont want to pass that up do you?