Photo by Josh Appel on Unsplash
Photo by Josh Appel on Unsplash Photo by Josh Appel on Unsplash
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One common misconception about retirement plans like 401(k) programs is that they're only offered by big corporate employers. But small business owners can give their staff an economic savings plan for retirement too by partnering with the top wealth management firms.

Choosing a 401(k) Plan Provider for Employers in Small Business?

If you're an employer who runs a small business, there are several options for 401(k) plan providers. Here are a few factors you'll want to consider.

  • Funding options available
  • Financial stability of the wealth management firm
  • Structure of the company

These plans are usually customized to cater to the business owners' and employees' unique needs. Still, we've researched several companies, evaluating reviews and features, to find the top wealth management firms specializing in 401(k) programs for small businesses that allow for affordable retirement savings investment solutions. We've found plan providers that will cater to your small business, whether its a corporation, sole proprietorship, partnership, or limited liability company.

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Benefits of Offering 401(k) Programs to Your Employees

Small business owners can offer a retirement savings plan like the 401(k) as a benefit for their employees. This program allows eligible employees to contribute a percentage of their salaries or wages, before taxes, through deferral to a retirement savings plan.

Many employers encourage employee saving by matching the employee's contributions, making this benefit a little more attractive. In general, 401(k) programs have many advantages, including the contributions being tax-deductible. This means that you won't pay tax on the money being deferred to your managed employee retirement savings.

Your small business employees' savings 401(k) also accrue automatically, meaning they require little effort from the program holder. The employer should always be the one to set up this retirement savings plan.

4 Top Wealth Management Firms Specializing in 401(k) Programs for Small Businesses

Your small business can attract and hire high-quality talent by offering employees a 401(k) program, an edge in today's competitive environment. The popularity of 401(k) plans has seen many small businesses enrolling employees automatically.

401(k) programs offer employees the best avenue towards retirement with accrued savings. Unfortunately, they are complex to manage and administrate or work out deferrals. And they can prove costly when matching employee contributions.

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Because of this, many small employers shy away from the complex administration. That's why wealth management firms provide 401(k) plans geared at small businesses, acting as investment fiduciaries and program administrators.

The top wealth management firms enable a small business employer to get programs up and run efficiently quickly. Costs have dropped dramatically due to the multiple plan providers being on the playing field, and added services like payroll and administration are pretty commonplace.

Overall Best Wealth Management Firm: Employee Fiduciary

Employee Fiduciary has been voted best plan provider for small companies by CBS Moneywatch. They have set up and administration options for small business 401(k) programs.

This top wealth management firm encourages small business employers to compare their provider's 401(k) plans against theirs. Employee Fiduciary has claimed low fees with similar investment options for small employers sponsored by larger organizations.

It'll cost a minimum of $1,000 to convert an existing plan while starting a new program is $500. Through TD Ameritrade, Employee Fiduciary offers more than 350 Exchange Traded Funds (ETF), access to brokerage, and mutual funds.

Apart from low administration fees for small business 401(k) plans, Employee Fiduciary provides;

  • Tax return forms
  • Benefit statements
  • Annual report summaries
  • Customer support on toll-free number

Your small business employees can leverage low-cost investment options that include index funds, ETFs, and Vanguard funds.

Best Low-cost Funding: Vanguard

Vanguard, one of the most significant mutual funds worldwide, also offers several small business-oriented 401(k) plan options. These include ETFs and professionally managed mutual funds.

This wealth management firm doesn't administrate the small business 401(k) programs but acts as the plan's money manager. So business owners can handle the HR, payroll, banking, or any other administrative service for their employee's programs.

Most participants pick Vanguard investment funds, seeing as this firm has the most inexpensive options in the market. There are over 100 mutual funds, target-date funds, and diversified, low-cost ETFs.

Target date funds, for instance, will adjust the underlying investments automatically as your employee's retirement date approaches. Designed to maximize retirement earnings, target funds are a cost-effective investment for bolstering a small business 401(k) plan.

Vanguard's services are easy to integrate into your existing plan administration if you have one. This makes their small business specialization the most inexpensive yet.

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Best Combined Services: ADP

Small employers can access combined services like insurance, payroll, tax filing, and HR for their 401(k) programs with ADP. This wealth management firm specializes in 401(k) plans for small organizations with anywhere between one and 49 employees.

They offer several types of retirement 401(k) plans for small businesses and advisory services to assist in selecting the best productivity suite for your company.

Small employers can switch over their employees' plans to ADP, where flexible investment options are offered through 130 plus managers. Participants can leverage from these three investment tiers:

  • The basic line up for investors without little or no prior investment experience
  • The standard line up for investors who have average investment experience
  • The advanced line-up, designed for above-average experienced investors

Employers who need help selecting the best plan or tier for their business can get assistance from ADP. Enrolled employers can also access their retirement accounts from a mobile app as well.

Best Payroll Services: Paychex

Small business employers looking for their employees' 401(k) programs also need seamless payroll services, for which Paychex specializes. This is an all-in-one wealth management firm with a solid reputation and offers affordable alternatives that equal the pricier plan providers.

Paychex also offers business loans, benefits administration, and much more in addition to HR and payroll administrative services.

Paychex will coordinate with plan providers for your small business, taking care of administrative duties for 401(k) programs. Small employers that need a combination of multiple services will benefit from the affordability of partnering with this payroll and HR services firm.

With over 100 offices around the nation, Paychex can be contacted for plan selection assistance and related queries. You'll be billed according to the number of pay periods and employees in your small business with some additional tax forms processing fees.

Caring for Your Employees

It's never too late for small business owners with employees to tap into the benefits of retirement savings with 401(k) programs. Nowadays, a small business that can attract and retain top-notch staff gets an edge in the competitive market landscape.

401(k) programs come with tax advantages, and administrating them is now made more manageable and affordable by the top wealth management firms specializing in small business plans. With small startup fees and low-cost advice from plan providers, you can help your employees invest in their 401(k) today.