Hi ,
I'm going to make a very bold statement that's sure to get me some nasty blowback. But as a financial investigator who's exposed the truth about the conventional financial wisdom, I'm used to that, so here goes...
401(k)s are a scam. Want proof?
Here Are Six Reasons Why 401(k)s Are a Scam...
Reason #1: The Tax-Deferral Scam
In our immediate-gratification society, deferring your taxes by funding your 401(k) sounds so good.
But let me ask you a question: Can you tell me what your tax rate will be 20 or 30 years from now?
I didn't think so, but I'm willing to bet you believe tax rates can only go up over the long term. Given our country's skyrocketing debt, aging demographics and a Congress that can't seem to stop spending like drunken sailors, how could taxes go anywhere but UP?
Oops! That destroys the whole "tax-deferral" argument.
Reason #2: The "Free Money" Scam
Who doesn't love getting "free money" in the form of the 401(k) employer match? Do you really believe your employer is giving you something for nothing? (If you believe that, I've got a Rolex watch I'll sell you for $10.)
The Center for Retirement Research did a study based on tax data
and found that for every dollar an employer contributes to your 401(k) match, they pay 90 to 99 cents less salary on average. Whoa! Doesn't sound like such a good deal now, does it?
Plus, you don't even get all of the employer match during the first 4-6 years you work for the company – you need to be "vested" first.
But according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average time a person stays on the job is only 4.1 years, and less than 3 years for younger people.
And during the pandemic, many companies suspended their 401(k) match altogether. Why? Because they can!
Oops! There goes the employer match "carrot."
Reason #3: Fees that Devour Your Hard-Earned Money
In spite of the rules passed a few years ago requiring better 401(k) fee disclosure, surveys show most participants still have NO clue how much they're actually paying.
But according to Brightscope, participants in small plans pay between 1.5% and 2% in fees annually, and participants in large plans pay nearly 1% per year. If those fees sound like "small change" to you, then
here's a wake-up call: Fees of only 1% per year can slash the value of your savings by 28% over the next 35 years, according to the Department of Labor.
Poof! There goes nearly one-third or more of your hard-earned dollars. I can assure you somebody is getting rich on this, but it's not you!
Reason #4: Funding a 401(k) is Like Putting Your Money in Prison
It's like a trade with the devil: Give me all your savings in return for tax-deferral (a scam as we've seen) and an employer match (another scam), and I'll keep it under lock and key for you until you're 59.5 years old.
You have to beg for permission to use your own money! There are all kinds of restrictions and penalties for accessing your own money.
Reason #5: The Myth of Market Returns
You're told that over the long term, you can do well in the stock market. But over the last 30 years, the typical asset allocation investor had essentially no growth, after taking inflation into account. And fixed income investors actually lost ground even before factoring in inflation. (Source: DALBAR study)
Yet Wall Street has brainwashed us into believing we have to risk our money in order to get any kind of decent returns. And so we continue to blindly fund our 401(k)s like lemmings following each other off a cliff.
My investigation into more than 450 different financial products and strategies revealed you don't have to risk your money to get a decent return. And you can reach your financial goals and
dreams without taking any unnecessary risk.
Request a free Bank On Yourself Analysis here, if you haven't already, to find out how you could benefit from a custom-tailored plan:
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