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.
Related News
|
 |
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Success Trading: Yet More Basic Terminology for New Traders
In this day and age of online brokers for virtually every market out there, there are some very useful tools that will help protect your account and lock in profits when you have them. It is our recommendation that you use a good online broker and take advantage of not only the low commissions they offer, but also the automated tools that are available. These tools are virtually idiot proof if you use them. The number one reason that people's accounts go belly up in the markets is because they lack the discipline to stick with their trading plans and let emotions drive their trading decisions. This approach is a guaranteed way to lose in the markets. Oh, you might get lucky on occasion, but eventually the market will take your money. Let discuss some of the trading tools we're talking about.
Use this Simple Trick its to Buy $100 Bills Direct from your Bank for only $97
Most People just don't understand the power of using their home as a Wealth Creation Tool. How many people do you know who have lived in the same house for 10, 15 or more years and have virtually no mortgage, You know the Type 'House Rich Cash Poor'. There are strategies these homeowners can use to put that House Rich Part to work Building Wealth.
Trading Tips No 3: Online Trading and Investing: Buy, Hold, and Hope
So you have learned how to trade the markets by mastering a few trading tools like Moving Averages, Channels, Stochastics, MACD, or RSI - that is a great accomplishment achieved by only a few. However, having the tools and rules to trade markets successfully, year in and year out, is only half of the challenge. The other half is far more daunting and achieved by even fewer investors - I am talking about good old-fashioned discipline. That is, discipline to follow your indicators and rules without fail - every trade entry and every trade exit. This is why it is critical that you learn how to trade. This is the ‘moment of truth’ in the life of every trader or investor.
Stock Market Leaders and Laggards
Leaders are stocks that breakout immediately when the market confirms a new rally. In the first several weeks, strong stocks with leadership ability will breakout on volume above their 50-day average. Some of these stocks will breakout on the largest volume ever. Typically, newer stocks that have come public in the past few years will have the most strength for sizable gains.
Sitcom Investing
A fickle stock market encourages good-humored mockery.
Why You Need To Buy and Sell Gold Coins (Part 1)
The Value of Gold in a Era of Paper Assets, Stocks, Bonds and Mutual Funds...
Useful Tips on Investing
Here are some useful tips on investing. When you make an investment, you are giving your money to a company or an enterprise, hoping that it will be successful and pay you back with even more money. Some investments make money, and some don't.
July 2005: Hurricane Forecasts for Weather Traders
Tropical Storm Arlene formed as a tropical depression on June 8, 2005 near 83 West Longitude and 17 North Latitude. Although Dr. Bill Gray's updated hurricane forecast for 2005 calls for 15 named storms, with 8 of the 15 being hurricanes, orthodox meteorology cannot pinpoint the time and place for the origin of any of those future storms. My June forecast published on Ezinearticles.com entitled "June 2005: Weather Forecasts for Weather Traders" called for tropical storm or hurricane formation between June 7 and 11, 2005 around 86 West Longitude and 24 North Latitude. This forecast was prepared in May 2005 long before conventional meteorology had any indication of tropical storm activity for June. As can be seen, Arlene formed near these coordinates. It then passed close to them on June 9th and 10th.
Porters Five Forces Analysis
If you've ever listened to Warren Buffett talk about investing, you've heard him mention the idea of a company's moat. The moat is a simple way of describing a company's competitive advantages. Company's with a strong competitive advantage have large moats, and therefore higher profit margins. And investors should always be concerned with profit margins.
Trading Tips No 7: Developing a Casino Mentality for the Day Trader
I submit that the successful day trader would profit well to adopt a casino mentality. At first glance, this sounds reckless and nothing more than a gambling attitude - but it's not. Why? Because everyone knows that it's the casinos that profit and take in all the money on a consistent basis. And, of course, the patrons end up losing even after brief winning streaks.
Secret Stock Options Trading Strategies the Experts Don`t Want You to Know
To understand stock options, we need to look at Webster’s Dictionary’s definition of the word strategy.
The Conflict of Interest Game
Disgruntled investors are going after Wall Street once again, this time accusing one of investment bank Morgan-Stanley's high-tech mutual funds of making biased stock picks.
How to Buy to Let
Find out everything you need to know about buy to let. Learn what to buy, where to buy and what not to buy. All this information about buy to let won't cost you a penny.
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. In addition, prices are continuing to runaway. So given all this, how is an individual investor supposed to excel in this environment? Read on and find out!
June 2005: Weather Forecasts for Weather Traders
If Johannes Kepler, the renowned 17th century astronomer and discoverer of the planetary laws of motion, could speak from the heavenlies, he might have a few words of wisdom to share with the National Weather Service. Although Kepler's name is not normally associated with meteorology, he was quite the weather forecaster in his day. His first claim to fame, by the way, was not due to his discovery of those planetary laws, but because of his accurate long-range weather forecast of the severe winter that put Styermark, Germany on ice in 1593.
401(k) Plans
I've been in and interested in the stock market so long (one year shy of forty years) I can remember when the mutual fund pages in my home town paper were just one page! Now it looks like there are more mutual funds then there are stocks listed on the New York stock exchange.
Bankers in Denial
Denial is a ubiquitous psychological defense mechanism. It involves the repression of bad news, unpleasant information, and anxiety-inducing experiences. Judging by the German press, the country is in a state of denial regarding the waning health of its economy and the dwindling fortunes of its financial system.
The Basics of Tax-Free UK Financial Spread Betting
Financial Spread Betting (or Trading) offers a tax free method of speculating on financial markets.
Mutual Fund Selection Made Simple By Indexing!
Non-indexed mutual funds try to keep it secret that actively managed mutual very funds rarely do better stock market indexes. The higher fees of the managed funds really make it hard for these funds to out compete indexed funds. Smart financial journalists occasionally rat out fund managers for not educating the public in this regard. When this happens the mutual fund managers make a feeble attempt at self defense by pointing to something called the 5% rule.
How to Choose the Right Share Class
You'll want to opt for the no-load or institutional share class instead. If you're a no-load investor who is determined to buy a fund that's primarily broker-sold, go through a supermarket and opt for the D shares.
|
Comment by Frank O'Donnell