About Me

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John Nicholson is the founder of www.The 401K Man.com, an independent insurance & financial services agency dedicated to helping others find their solutions through the myriad of choices when seeking insurance, retirement and financial advice. John's career path began with helping others in the late 1980's and early 1990's. The 401K Man is an independent agency servicing the Midwest which provides a wide variety of choices as opposed to one size fits all plan available at many of the larger financial or "brand" insurance companies & firms. We offer many solutions from basic insurance policies to comprehensive estate planning.

Friday, June 28, 2019

Planning/ taking charge

FINANCIAL PLANNING

Planning is a very important step towards financial freedom and to many people put it off until it is too late. If you are a younger person starting out with a 401(K) plan at work it is a great way to begin your retirement. Company matching is a free gift which needs to be utilized. Unfortunately many will not put enough away to make up for the inflation or market losses late in life and other issues such as low growth over the course of their lifetime. We recommend trying a few different alternative plans in addition to putting away in your work sponsored 401(K) if you are not getting a match at your workplace to stay ahead.

Insurance and alternative investments along with other options are featured on our site along with some other important things to take advantage of. Investing in the markets is always very heavily promoted by the advisers whom make their living selling investments such as stocks and bonds. This should be a portion of your retirement but not your entire strategy. Most brokers will not have had a consistent track record of gains over the decades.
As your needs change from young to middle age you will attempt to keep more for your retirement than you did from your younger investing gains. There are a myriad of things to watch for. You will discover as you age such as taxes, interest rates, long term planning and more.
A corny analogy would be if you were a farmer, Would you want to pay a tax on one bag of seeds or plant the field to reap the harvest and pay the taxes on the entire crop?
Sadly many will not reap a harvest for they never began planning or thought it important enough to plan. Don't be one of those call now toll free 877-775-0812 to plant your seed and reap your harvest in retirement.
One other option is to use our contact tab below to submit your question or schedule a free initial consultation at your convenience with our calendar option. 


TAKING CHARGE
I say failure with the respect that when the 401K or IRA plan legislation was created its purpose was to supplement a true pension benefit plan (X amount of dollars during your retirement lifetime paid by your employer) and also supplement your Social Security. Fewer than half of America's businesses have a retirement plan today and approximately 25% of the American population will reach retirement age with no savings. It is a sad reality today that few organizations even have a pension nowadays in addition to the fact that most 401K plans will not even reasonably keep up with inflation in the future. I am not even going to get into Social Security for today's contributors since no one is even sure of what it could potentially look like in the next five to ten years.
If you would like more information on how to invest your 401(K) safely with low or no risk call the experts toll free at 877-775-0812 You may also send your questions or schedule a free initial consultation at your convenience via our contact tab below.

We are thinking like most the tax must be less for a bag of seed so we would all much rather pay the little amount of tax up front to reap the tax free rewards afterwards. Retirement planning and financial planning are much the same, will it worth it to pay a little now if we can reap a greater benefit after the growth tax free?

Only sitting with a professional, licensed planning expert will tell as everyone's case will be different.

We are going to use a little example of how 401K plans are really not useful towards providing a retirement benefit without extra help. If you have $1000.00 dollars in a 401K plan that is in the stock market which then drops 30% most people would agree it now would be $700.00 dollars. Now if the market regains 30% based on that $700.00 dollar amount would you have $1000.00? NO you are now back to $910.00. Your 401K plan does this daily, with the assets you have chosen, it does not matter what amount of risk or growth or color that you have chosen in your plan. Most people reading this will have a determination, realization or a notion that a 401K plan can be fixed. On the other hand if left to only looking at your statements and nothing else it is essentially a failure.

When I say taking charge I cannot stress enough the importance of the fact that you will be completely responsible for your outcome of your retirement plan. If you are truly diligent enough to keep tabs on its progress quarterly and invest in other assets outside of a 401K or open an Annuity you will be miles ahead of most. Next analyze the charges in fees that you are paying that can add up to a pretty sizable chunk over a lifetime. The other risks include years of languishing gains on Wall Street or the potential of inflation wiping out low rates of return. If you have had enough and now want to learn how to improve your retirement chances. I encourage you to read through out the site and feel free to call 877-775-0812 or schedule a free 15 minute phone consultation via email here at The401kman,com

Most retirement plans have been based with assets that the providers feel are safe such as stocks, bonds, mutual funds and a whopping 96% of Americans have their futures riding on the ups and downs of Wall Street. We are here to provide you a clear reality that you can take charge of your retirement and we wont necessarily turn you into the the wealthiest 1% of the population, but at least you will be a part of the 4% who take charge of their retirement to live it in the American Dream.

Self directed IRA /rules

SELF DIRECTED I.R.A.
Self directed I.R.A.s give you the ability to invest in many different asset classes. These types of programs are  excellent for the type of person who wants to exercise better control of their retirement future. Our services include referrals to well planned groups as well solutions for investors looking to have good returns on investments who are interested in obtaining self directed management with capital in excess of 50,000. Once properly opened and administered a self directed I.R.A. is a fantastic way to build retirement income. We have access to many well recognized third party administrators and fiduciaries as well  for a list of recommended people in our network please call us toll free at 877-775-0812
  • SEP-I.R.A. is a program which allows a self employed person to combine retirement contributions with another I.R.A. preventing a far more complicated plan to be administered.
  • Keogh plans are for self employed people to make a pre-taxed contribution towards their retirement plan. There are two programs distinctly different within this plan so please call to be aware of the circumstances that vary based on on some employment factors.

  • SIMPLE I.R.A. is a type of tax advantaged employer provided retirement plan that allows employees to set aside thier money and invest it to grow for later use.Employers will make a salary deduction along with the normal social security and medicare deductions.
  • SELF DIRECTED I.R.A. A self directed indvidual retirement account is an account that you can directly control and that allows you to choose the investments of your choice if they pass the Internal Revenue Service prohibited transactions requirements then you have the ability to direct or control asset management within your 401K.There are many restrictions on what can and cannot be done so please call to speak to one of our experts.
 With the choices available and needed compliance information regarding a self directed I.R.A. we recommend you call one of our retirement advisors to fully understand the regulations and restrictions for this. We have access to fiduciaries, third party administrators, custodians and relevant related professionals.  If you would like more information on how to invest your 401(K) safely with low or no risk call the experts toll free at 877-775-0812 You also may send your questions or schedule a free initial consultation via our contact tab below.

SELF DIRECTED IRA RULES

The Internal Revenue Service has set forth rules in their publication IRS Publication #590 regarding what are allowable and acceptable forms of investment to be held in a Self Directed Investment Retirement Account the publication is lengthy and should be ordered from the IRS publication clearing house for full understanding of its contents along with speaking to one of our qualified consultants. We have listed some of the most common No No's below but highly recommend contacting us  to discuss your plans.
Prohibited transactions penalties are very severe and the following is a list of the most commonly fined and requested investments that DO NOT belong in a Individual Retirement Account;
  •  An I.R.A. cannot invest in a Life Insurance Contract ( on the owner of the I.R.A.) Pools of Life insurance contracts or private placements are permitted in a self directed I.R.A. plan. 
  • An IRA cannot invest in collectibles such as Artwork, Rugs, Antiques, Metals, Gems, Stamps, Coins,Alcohol beverages, Certain other tangible personal property,
**EXCEPTION, The most notable exception to the above referenced items concerns; An IRA can invest in one, one half, one quarter or one Tenth ounce US Gold Coins or one ounce Silver coins minted by the U.S.Treasury Department. It can also invest in certain Platinum coins, certain Gold, Silver,Palladium and Platinum Bullion
DISQUALIFIED PARTIES
Disqualified parties cannot personally benefit from your Self Directed Investment Retirement Account this includes you, your spouse, any lineal descendants or ascendants, any entity with combined ownership greater than 50% by a disqualified person(s)                     Here are some examples of disqualified investments;
  • Investing in a home that you or any lineal descendants/ascendants plan to live in right now
  • Personally guaranteeing a mortgage for your IRA
  • Paying yourself from proceeds generated from the IRA's investment
Disqualified parties cannot personally benefit from your IRA's investment nor can they provide benefits directly to the IRA (making capital improvements on a rental property) If you are not sure of what to do or you are unsure if violating the self directed rules and are potentially violating the law. Call a qualified plan custodian before making the investment.
If you would like more information on how to invest your 401(K) safely with low or no risk call the experts toll free at 877-775-0812 You also may send your questions or schedule a free initial consultation at your own convenience via our website The401Kman.com

Variable Annuities

VARIABLE ANNUITIES

Variable annuities are quite a bit different than their counterparts Fixed and Indexed containing the same word Annuity.
Annuities have become a large part of the retirement and investment plans of many Americans. The biggest difference that separates a Variable type Annuity is the fact that a Variable Annuity will contain Securities that will go up and down with the markets where a Fixed or Indexed will go up and down yet have a floor to stop losses as well as retain your gains as you keep the annuity over time.
Before you buy a variable annuity, you should know some of the basics – and be prepared to ask your insurance agent, broker, financial planner, or other financial professional lots of questions about whether a variable annuity is right for you.
This was a general description of variable annuities all Annuities set out to do a different goal for you. Before buying any variable annuity, however, you should find out about the particular annuity you are considering.Annuities vary from the selections you can make inside for your retirement income to how the insurer may distribute the income in retirement. Request a prospectus from the insurance company or from your financial professional, and read it carefully. The prospectus contains important information about the annuity contract, including fees and charges, investment options, death benefits, and annuity payout options. You should compare the benefits and costs of the annuity to other variable annuities and to other types of investments, such as mutual funds.
If you would like more information on how to invest your 401(K) safely with low or no risk call the experts toll free at 877-775-0812 You may also send your questions or request a free initial consultation at your convenience here at The401Kman.com

Tax Liens

TAX LIENS

Property Tax Liens are the right to own a tax lien note issued from a government authority. These are issued in a procedure that will allow a homeowner a period of time to catch up with the payment of property taxes. It allows the tax lien certificate holder to receive a guaranteed rate of interest plus the note or certificate purchase price back from the homeowner if the homeowner brings it current before the house can be purchased by a tax lien certificate holder at auction. The rates of interest guaranteed back to the person who buys the tax lien certificate are typically  in the double digits offering a very good rate of return and possibly the option to own the property by paying for it at auction time when the owner has not paid the taxes due on the property. Many times these property title notes are auctioned off by a government entity (County,Parish, local municipality). These auctions are to take a tax delinquent property off of the tax rosters and bring it current up to date. These tax property auctions are a very inexpensive way to purchase property. It is used by investors to build assets, income, and can be successfully used in a self directed I.R.A. to grow without a taxable consequence if done properly. If you would like more information on how to invest your 401(K) safely with low or no risk call the experts toll free at 877-775-0812 You may also send your questions or request a free initial consultation at your convenience via our website The401Kman.com

Trusts

TRUSTS

Trusts are used to protect your assets in retirement and used for estate planning. It is very important to start your planning early for your retirement in order to maximize the benefits you may be eligible for in retirement.
What most people do not recognize until it is too late is the importance of setting up trusts and estate planning to benefit your family and loved ones. Many do not know of and are unfamiliar with the term look back and the associated 5 year time frame preceding the need to remove yourself or your names from assets prior to going to the hospital or nursing home for an extended stay which you may not be financially capable to cover.
 A trust when properly instituted will allow for you to leave your estate safe from creditors, taxes and could also protect you and your family potentially from frivolous lawsuits. We at 401(K) fixes have access to attorneys who are specialists in this field of work. Most people do not know of the twenty plus different types of law. To many wrongly assume that any attorney will suffice when it comes to estate planning. Our organization has access to Estate Law, Trust Law and Elder law specialists. If you would like more information on how to invest your 401(K) safely with low or no risk call the experts, find the proper specialist for trusts please call toll free at 877-775-0812 You also may send your questions or request a free initial consultation at your convenience via our  website 
https://www.the401kman.com/advanced-planning-trusts

Sunday, May 25, 2014

Structured settlements


STRUCTURED SETTLEMENTS

Structured Settlements involve the sales and purchase of various different types of settlements from court orders of cases involving a monetary settlement to lottery winnings. Structured settlements in your self directed 401k are a great way to provide for a higher and safer rate of return than may be available through regular investment channels such as stock market or bond investing.
Purchasing structured settlements is very much in the news nowadays with many offers and companies singing and barraging you with the news that they will buy your annuity or structured settlement if you need money now. 
It is not hard to understand and see that the profits generated in this industry supports many people who are in the market for the higher profit margin and guaranteed stream of income that these types of settlements can provide. 
These types of settlements will typically have a much better rate of return than simply buying and holding or trying to beat the markets. They may also be better than the purchase of an annuity at today's weaker rates.  
Annuities that are semi matured or a structured type settlement are a guaranteed stream of income which you can purchase. A structured settlement is simply buying the annuity or right to the annuity stream from someone who wants to receive cash immediately. The seller will settle for less than the contracted value in order to receive their early cash out.
There are many different forms of safe income investments and structured settlements besides the court ordered settlement which is one of the more common available.
Whole and Universal Life insurance cash value settlements are another form of structured settlement investment pool which also involves settlements. Different than a structured settlement a life settlement involves buying a unwanted cash value whole life policy from the policyholder named on the policy. The policy holder sells the policy for the cash value locked in. Sellers then no longer pay the premium while the contract or policy awaits the death of the named policyholder who has utilized his cash value through the sale to the buyer.

There are many people and organizations seeking to purchase these for there income potential. These are usually purchased by a investment organization who will pay the monthly premiums until the policy named holder passes then cash in the policy to recieve there profits.There are also investment organizations that may allow you to join for a fee and participate in their investment pool which will typically have a guaranteed form of return.
Fixing your 401K and setting up a successful retirement plan can take many directions, paths and tools to accomplish. If you would like to learn more about the many benefits a self directed IRA can provide you please subscribe to our YouTube Channel at YouTube 401K FIxes  This will allow you to receive more information through our posts.  
If you would like more information on how to invest your 401(K) safely with low or no risk through self direction or if you have further questions, call the experts toll free at 877-775-0812  Remember all investments contain some level of risk, all information provided here is educational in nature and not a substitute for speaking with a registered investment adviser. 

Monday, February 17, 2014

Tax Free

TAX FREE

Retirement Income

If you were told that a tax free retirement was possible and approved by the I.R.S. we are sure like many others you would shrug it off and say, Oh sure! We are here to tell you though that it is true actually and also been in existence for quite some time (decades) just not that well publicized.
Insurers have had the ability to provide an tax free income stream for quite some time if the policy was properly structured. In most instances it has distinctively better benefits than a Roth account due to no income limitations. These policies are not available through an average insurance company or agent. You must call a professional well versed in the product that is offered so as not to cause major problems later with the policy structure and funding. 
It is quite often done for well off business leaders and high level sales people and not really noticed by the masses. Many of whom were led to believe they always would do better in the stock market with investments than through a multi tiered retirement planning program. 
401K Fixs are difficult to summarize in a few easily digestible paragraphs with each individuals goals and incomes sometimes drastically different from one persons to another. If you considering a rollover it is important to look at all options.
A tax free retirement plan is a great way to gain more than a typical rollover offered through bank or brokerage house. Most people do though want the same thing when it comes to the end result, the LARGEST amount saved in the end for their retirement income stream. Few realize the true cost of fees from funds yearly and the worst cause of all losses occur when the markets drop unexpectedly late in the retirement cycle. 
Taxes are also a big concern as well in the overall picture that you must weigh in on when evaluating your retirement and 401K plan. If you choose to self direct or look into maintaining assets you will establish a way to avoid yearly fees from funds expenses and potentially realize the true advantage of compounding tax free.  
Taxes can easily be divided into two categories, "Do you want tax deductions?" or a tax free income for life? most would opt for a stream of income without a yearly taxable base. If you would like more information on how to structure your 401K plan to supply you a tax free income through one of the many options available.
A Health Savings Account is just one option that has the benefit of being funded with 401K funds and if properly done will have no tax consequence, even better funds can earn interest and not be taxed
If you would like more information on how to invest your 401(K) safely with low or no risk call the experts toll free at 877-775-0812 You also may send your questions or request a free initial consultation at our website www.The401Kman.com.