| |
| |
|
|
Investing Information |
|
Rules for Simplified Employee Pension Plans better known as a SEP Plans
A SEP is a special type of IRA. Under a SEP plan the employer creates an IRA account for each eligible employee, hence the name SEP-IRA. A SEP is funded solely with employer contributions. Employees do not make contributions to their SEP-IRA retirement account. Any money that goes into a SEP automatically belongs to the employee. Thus, the employee has the right to take his SEP IRA account money with him whenever he stops working for the company. Any size business can establish a SEP, but the SEP retirement plan is utilized mostly by the self-employed and the small business with few employees. The SEP IRA rules dictate that if the business contributes for one employee, (i.e., the owner), then the business must contribute proportionately for all of the employees. With few exceptions, anyone who works for the business must be included in the SEP. However, you can exclude from participating in the SEP plan anyone who: 1. Has not worked for the company during three out of the last five years. 2. Has not reached age 21 during the year for which contributions are made. 3. Received less than $450 in compensation (subject to cost-of-living adjustments) during the year. SEP IRA contributions to each employee for 2004 cannot exceed the lesser of $41,000 or 25% of pay for W2 recipients (20% of income for sole proprietors). The SEP IRA contribution limit goes up to $42,000 for 2005, and is subject to cost-of-living adjustments for later years. SEP-IRA rules do not provide for additional catch-up contributions for those 50 years old or over. A growing number of self-employed individuals with no employees are abandoning the SEP-IRA for a newer type of retirement plan called the Solo 401(k) or Self-Employed 401(k). The two main reasons for the switch are 1) they can generally contribute much more to a Solo 401(k) than they can under a SEP IRA, and 2) Loans are allowed under a Solo 401(k), whereas loans are prohibited under a SEP-IRA. Example: Henry, age 52, a realtor received $60,000 in compensation from self-employment income in 2004. For 2004, he could contribute a maximum of $27,152 in a Solo 401(k) versus a maximum of $11,152 under a SEP IRA. However, the Solo 401(k) does not work for businesses with employees. Thus, if your company plans to hire employees or has a handful of employees, the SEP IRA may be your best choice as a retirement plan that is inexpensive and simple to operate. About The Author Daniel Lamaute, CEO of Lamaute Capital, Inc. (www.InvestSafe.com) specializes in setting up retirement plans. You may visit http://www.investsafe.com to access a free calculator that will help you estimate what your maximum contribution might be under different plans.
MORE RESOURCES:
Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Which IRA Is Best For You? An Ira is one of the greatest ways to save on taxes currently and accumulate money for the future.For individuals three types of IRA's will normally come under consideration. Part II of Day Traders and Swing Traders and Options? Maybe! Before every protective put trade it is possible to calculate your anticipated maximum loss. Use the formula: (stock price minus strike price) plus option price. Success Trading: More Basic Terminology for New Traders One important aspect of trading the markets is to understand how to feel it's overall pulse. In the stock market, this is measured by measuring the movements of selected stocks across various sectors to let us know how the market is doing in general. Rules of Simple IRA Your Business Needs to Know A Savings Incentive Match Plan for Employees plan, better known as a SIMPLE plan, is an IRA-based retirement plan available to employers with fewer than 100 employees.Under a SIMPLE IRA plan, an employee can contribute a portion of his pay to his SIMPLE IRA account. Is a SEP Plan Right For Your Business A SEP is a special type of IRA. Under a SEP plan the employer creates an IRA account for each eligible employee, hence the name SEP-IRA. Stock Market Money Management Skills Let's start by saying: You can't be afraid to take a loss. The investors that are the most successful in the stock market are the people who are willing to lose money. Trading Systems A trading system consists of a set of rules for viewing markets and making trades. The advantages of trading systems can be hidden when they become associated with trading platforms involving trade order submission and processing. Retire Dollar Smart Jim Miller is a registered investment advisor. This means that he is not beholden to a particular brokerage or financial institution. Economic Survival in the 21st Century - the Three Key Questions to Ask In this "special report", I want to pose a few important "philosophical questions" to my readers. Firstly -- our Federal Reserve Chairman, Alan Greenspan, addressed the effects and implications of our aging population on things such as Social Security again in a speech that he made last Friday. Gold and Silver Maple Leafs Get New Packaging Gold Maple Leafs and Silver Maple Leafs are receiving packaging makeovers, changes clearly mandated by investor disfavor with packaging that the Royal Canadian Mint has used since the coins were introduced. Gold Maple Leafs debuted in 1979, Silver Maple Leafs in 1988. The Key Ingredient To Increase Preconstruction Profits By Over $20,000 One of the greatest preconstruction investing issues that I hear from individual investors is that they can't get access to what they believe are good projects. Regardless if the preconstruction project is a beach condo, a townhouse, a single family home, or even land investment, individuals are finding that many restrictions are being placed on them by developers. The Myth of the Earnings Yield AbstractA very slim minority of firms distribute dividends. This truism has revolutionary implications. Why Do You Want to Become a Online Trader? Motivational guru Tony Robbins teaches that the reason for doing something rates much higher than the methods you use to get the job done. In order to make your goal REAL, you need to attach severe, horrifying, intense and profound fear to failure. Reasons For Joining An Investment Club Whether you're a novice investor or an experienced stock picker an investment club may be beneficial to growing your investment portfolio. This article explains what an investment club is, why you should have an investment program and finally why you should join an investment club. The Truth About Real Estate Investing - Is It Right For You? You have probably been hearing, seeing and reading that real estate investing is the best thing since sliced bread. There are many late night cable television infomercials spewing out sales pitches for courses that teach you how to buy residential real estate no money down or for next to nothing. Planning Starts with the Basics When developing a plan for your finances, the toughest question often is: "Where do I begin?" Before investing in stocks and bonds or buying life insurance, before implementing any change or making any decisions, you first need to analyze and understand your entire financial picture. Two documents allow you to do just that. Planning for Retirement Almost without exception, people don't start planning for their retirement early enough in their lives. Young people leaving High School or College and going into their first paid position find it difficult to look or see ahead to age sixty or sixty-five. Annuity Help Many people today are looking for annuity help. The biggest challenge seems to be that most of the help is biased. The Real Cost of a Bad Habit What is the value of a good habit? Think of some daily habits, like brushing your teeth, or buckling a seat belt, or flushing. All of these habits have value important to some part of life. HYIPs Investments or Scams? High Yield Investment Programs (HYIPs) appear at first to be the secret to unlimited wealth and fortune, but as you can guess that quickly changes. However, I have found myself still using them in a very limited fashion as a generator for my digital currency exchange.
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||