Nearly half of U.S. workers who left their jobs last year took cash distributions from their 401(k) plans, according to a Hewitt Associates study. Hewitt's analysis of 170,000 401(k) plan participants who left jobs during 2008 found 46% cashed out their 401(k) accounts, while 25% rolled their 401(k) balances over to a qualified IRA or other retirement account, and 29% kept their savings in their prior employer's DC plan. In 2005, 45% of workers who left their jobs cashed out their 401(k) plans, 23% rolled over their 401(k) accounts into a qualified IRA or other retirement plan, and 32% left their money in the 401(k) plan, Hewitt said. "Particularly during the economic downturn, employers and financial advisers have been increasingly vocal about the negative impact that cashing out of a 401(k) plan has on retirement savings," asserted Pamela Hess, Hewitt's director of retirement research. For example, an employee who cashes out $5,000 from a retirement plan at 25 may potentially be sacrificing $75,000 at retirement, yet he or she only receives a small amount-perhaps only $3,500-from the cash-out, Hewitt said.
US President Barack Obama's historic health care legislation, set to face a make-or-break vote on Sunday, would also reshape the way Americans pay for famously pricey college educations. Along with buying a home and setting aside cash for retirement, paying for higher ...
Congressional Democrats on Thursday trimmed their original student loan plans, reduced spending for community colleges, and eliminated early childhood money from a broad rewrite of a college aid bill piggybacked on to fast-track health care legislation. The student loan measure would be ...
Pelosi says it won't be long before health care bill passes; Dems add student loans to package Under White House pressure to act swiftly, House and Senate Democratic leaders reached for agreement Friday on President Barack Obama's health care bill, sweetened suddenly ...
Individual investors can make an impact on its price Once upon a time, the Chinese government forbade ownership of all precious metals. But now, the ban has been lifted. In fact, China just introduced silver bars for investment. And now, state-run China ...
Health care plan could also help resurrect college aid plan Congressional Democrats want a stalled overhaul of college aid programs to get strapped onto a fast-track health care bill, giving both Obama administration priorities a better chance of passage. The student loan ...
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama's stalled bid to overhaul the federal student loan program by cutting subsidies to private lenders and increasing aid to students received a boost on Friday. Democratic congressional leaders agreed to fold Obama's student-loan proposal into a ...
Workers struggle to save for retirement, more report they have nothing set aside Tom Taormina is 65 and has no retirement savings. The Virginia City, Nev., business consultant said it's not for lack of trying. He and his wife, Midge, have tried ...
Chart compares personal savings and corporate cash flow since Copyright 2010 AP News
Spending grows 0.5 pct in January while incomes lag, raising worries about economic recovery Personal spending jumped by a larger amount than expected in January but Americans' incomes barely budged as millions of Social Security recipients did not get their usual cost ...
Biden announced new protections for retirement savings accounts The Obama administration on Friday proposed new regulations aimed at protecting workers' retirement savings from unethical financial advisers. The safeguards would protect workers from conflicts of interest on the part of advisers who manage ...
