Is your retirement plan from your dental office meeting your current personal and corporate objectives?

If you have a 401k, Profit Sharing, SIMPLE, or SEP retirement plan, now would be a good time to have your plan design analyzed to be sure it meets your current personal and corporate objectives.

SIMPLE 401k plans are great when first starting out, but oftentimes business owners feel constrained by the low contribution limits when compared to a 401k. Now is the time to see if an alternative retirement plan might be part of your strategy in the future. With a SIMPLE, due to a provision called the Exclusive Plan Rule, you can switch to a 401k plan only in January of the following year.

With SEPs, employees may become eligible during the course of a year for the same employer contribution percentage you might pay yourself. This can become quite cost prohibitive for you. If you have a SEP, be sure to confirm with your provider/advisor/CPA what your contribution obligations are in order to avoid any unpleasant surprises.

If your 401k plan includes a discretionary profit sharing option, consult with your CPA or tax advisor to see if funding the profit sharing plan may be to your benefit.

At a minimum, it might be worth your while to see how other types of plans could fit your personal and corporate objectives. An experienced third party administrator or actuary can gather census information and run a number of illustrations to show you an array of possibilities based on how much you would like to contribute and your office demographics.

ALSO BY TOM ZGAINER:A few things to think about before starting a retirement plan
RELATED ARTICLE:Dental Practice Transitions: 7 important considerations for your retirement goals

Mr. Zgainer has extensive experience in the 401k industry serving as Senior VP of Sales and Business Development at ExpertPlan. He played an integral role of building the Personal Capital 401k. Feel free to reach out to Tom at [email protected] for help with your 401k plan or other retirement advice.