Download or read book The Dynamics of Lifecycle Investing in 401 k Plans written by Olivia S. Mitchell and published by . This book was released on 2011 with total page 38 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In an effort to improve 401(k) portfolio choices, many US plan sponsors are offering target maturity date (TM) lifecycle funds, which place younger workers into higher-equity-share portfolios and then automatically rebalance them into more conservative holdings as they near retirement age. Our study of over a quarter-million participants offered TM funds shows that sponsor-driven menu decisions do influence adoption patterns. Yet many participants also prove to be active decision-makers, particularly new plan entrants and seemingly less financially literate employees. Comparing portfolios before and after TM fund adoption, we observe that such funds meaningfully change the age structure of equity exposure, eliminate zero- or all-equity portfolios, and reduce the share of idiosyncratic portfolio risk. We conclude that recent pension legislation sanctioning TM as default funds will modify 401(k) investment patterns. The speed with which behavior changes will depend both on employer plan menu decisions as well as voluntary choice by new entrants and low-literacy employees.

Download or read book Pay Yourself First written by Timothy W. Cunningham and published by University of Texas Press. This book was released on 1996-09-28 with total page 296 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Written by the founders of the Life Cycle Mutual Funds, a revolutionary age- and solution-based family of mutual funds, this guide demystifies the principles of retirement investing and shows readers how to take charge of their financial future. Using real-life anecdotes and examples, this text focuses on the human element involved in retirement planning. 20 charts.

Download or read book Two Determinants of Lifecycle Investment Success written by Jason C. Hsu and published by . This book was released on 2017 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Both investor contributions and investment returns determine retirement plan outcomes, but they have distinctive effects over the investor's lifecycle. Focusing on target-date funds (TDFs) in 401(k) plans, our research demonstrates that in the early stage, contributions are the primary determinant of portfolio balances, whereas allocations have very little impact. In the later stage, returns -- and therefore asset-allocation decisions -- are the principal driver of ending portfolio values. These findings imply that defined contribution plan sponsors should encourage young workers to start contributing to their 401(k) accounts early, consistently, and at a high level. In addition, we recommend seeking TDFs that do not initially take on excessive equity risk, because a heavy loss might have lasting adverse effects on young workers' attitudes toward investing, and equity-heavy allocations tend to have higher fees. We further suggest that plan sponsors' asset-allocation decisions center on the years near retirement, when returns have the greatest impact.

Download or read book Investment Strategies For Retirement written by Frank Nicolas and published by World Scientific. This book was released on 2019-01-02 with total page 416 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The issue of pension financing is evolving everywhere, becoming more of a corporate or individual matter rather than a state one. Demographic changes are making sharing mechanisms hard to control, and social deficits often lead governments to pull back from their obligations. This raises many questions for the individual:Despite the burden for securing one's retirement increasingly placed on individuals, many are often badly prepared to tackle this very long savings process, which is often complicated by the specific characteristics of a pension plan.This publication, intended for investment professionals, customer advisors, and individuals interested in personal finance and asset management, looks at some of the fundamental elements of investment strategies and techniques for retirement.

Download or read book Lifecycle Asset Allocation Strategies and the Distribution of 401 k Retirement Wealth written by James M. Poterba and published by . This book was released on 2006 with total page 39 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This paper examines how different asset allocation strategies over the course of a worker's career affect the distribution of retirement wealth and the expected utility of wealth at retirement. It considers both rules that allocate a constant portfolio fraction to various assets at all ages, as well as "lifecycle" rules that vary the mix of portfolio assets as the worker ages. The analysis simulates retirement wealth using asset returns that are drawn from the historical return distribution. The results suggest that the distribution of retirement wealth associated with typical lifecycle investment strategies is similar to that from age-invariant asset allocation strategies that set the equity share of the portfolio equal to the average equity share in the lifecycle strategies. There is substantial variation across workers with different characteristics in the expected utility from following different asset allocation strategies. The expected utility associated with different 401(k) asset allocation strategies, and the ranking of these strategies, is very sensitive to three parameters: the expected return on corporate stock, the worker's relative risk aversion, and the amount of non-401(k) wealth that the worker will have available at retirement. At modest levels of risk aversion, or in the presence of substantial non-401(k) wealth at retirement, the historical pattern of stock and bond returns implies that the expected utility of an all-stock investment allocation rule is greater than that from any of the more conservative strategies. Higher risk aversion or lower expected returns on stocks raise the expected utility of following lifecycle strategies or other strategies that reduce equity exposure throughout the lifetime.

Download or read book Default Framing and Spillover Effects written by Olivia S. Mitchell and published by . This book was released on 2009 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Important behavioral factors such as default and framing effects are increasingly being employed to optimize decision-making in a variety of settings, including individually-directed retirement plans. Yet such approaches may have unintended "spillover" effects, as we show with regard to the introduction of lifecycle funds in U.S. 401(k) plans. As anticipated, lifecycle funds do reshape individual portfolio choices through large default and framing effects. But unexpectedly, they also create a new class of investors which holds these funds as part of more complex portfolios. Our results are directly relevant to those interested in retirement plan design and retirement security; they also highlight the importance of assessing such spillover effects in other consequential settings where behavioral economics techniques may be employed

Download or read book Default Framing and Spillover Effects written by and published by . This book was released on 2009 with total page 31 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Important behavioral factors such as default and framing effects are increasingly being employed to optimize decision-making in a variety of settings, including individually-directed retirement plans. Yet such approaches may have unintended "spillover" effects, as we show with regard to the introduction of lifecycle funds in U.S. 401(k) plans. As anticipated, lifecycle funds do reshape individual portfolio choices through large default and framing effects. But unexpectedly, they also create a new class of investors which holds these funds as part of more complex portfolios. Our results are directly relevant to those interested in retirement plan design and retirement security; they also highlight the importance of assessing such spillover effects in other consequential settings where behavioral economics techniques may be employed.

Download or read book Lifecycle Investing written by Ian Ayres and published by ReadHowYouWant.com. This book was released on 2010-05 with total page 358 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Diversification provides a well-known way of getting something close to a free lunch: by spreading money across different kinds of investments, investors can earn the same return with lower risk (or a much higher return for the same amount of risk). This strategy, introduced nearly fifty years ago, led to such strategies as index funds. What if we were all missing out on another free lunch that’s right under our noses? InLifecycle Investing, Barry Nalebuff and Ian Ayres-two of the most innovative thinkers in business, law, and economics-have developed tools that will allow nearly any investor to diversify their portfolios over time. By using leveraging when young-a controversial idea that sparked hate mail when the authors first floated it in the pages ofForbes-investors of all stripes, from those just starting to plan to those getting ready to retire, can substantially reduce overall risk while improving their returns. InLifecycle Investing, readers will learn How to figure out the level of exposure and leverage that’s right foryou How the Lifecycle Investing strategy would have performed in the historical market Why it will work even if everyone does it Whennotto adopt the Lifecycle Investing strategy Clearly written and backed by rigorous research,Lifecycle Investingpresents a simple but radical idea that will shake up how we think about retirement investing even as it provides a healthier nest egg in a nicely feathered nest.

Download or read book Common Financial Sense Simple Strategies for Successful 401 k 403 b Retirement Plan Investing written by Harris Nydick Cfp(r) and published by Lioncrest Publishing. This book was released on 2018-04-09 with total page 170 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The decisions you make about your 401(k) or 403(b) plan today will have a huge impact on your life tomorrow. Your future isn't going to pay for itself. Common Financial Sense will give you the knowledge you need to fund the retirement you deserve. Common Financial Sense helps you to better understand your 401(k) or 403(b) plan and how to save smarter for your retirement. Common Financial Sense lays out the basics of 401(k) and 403(b) planning in simple, easy to understand language. With the guidance of nationally recognized investment experts Harris Nydick and Greg Makowski, you'll learn how to: Choose the investments best suited for you Make other important choices that are appropriate to your stage of life Identify common misconceptions about retirement planning Calculate the optimum amount to save each year Be calm in the face of market fluctuations Get to retirement with a large enough nest egg When it comes to investing for your future, many people don't even know where to begin or what questions to ask. Common Financial Sense is your starting point.

Download or read book Dynamic Lifecycle Strategies for Target Date Retirement Funds written by Anup K. Basu and published by . This book was released on 2019 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Lifecycle funds offered to retirement plan participants gradually reduce their exposure to stocks as they approach the target date of retirement. We show that such deterministic switching rules produce inferior wealth outcomes for the investor compared to strategies that dynamically alter the allocation between growth and conservative assets based on cumulative portfolio performance relative to a set target. The dynamic allocation strategies proposed in this paper exhibit almost stochastic dominance (ASD) over strategies that switch assets unidirectionally without consideration of portfolio performance.

Download or read book Standard Poor s 401 k Planning Guide written by Alan Jay Miller and published by McGraw-Hill Companies. This book was released on 1995 with total page 244 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Target Date Funds in 401 K Retirement Plans written by Olivia S. Mitchell and published by . This book was released on 2014 with total page 36 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Individual responsibility for portfolio construction is a central theme for defined contribution pensions, yet the rise of target-date funds is shifting investment decisions from works back to employers. A complex choice architecture including automatic enrollment, reenrollment, and fund mapping, is increasing the number of participants defaulting into employer-selected target-date funds. At the same time, portfolios of non-defaulted participants undergo sizeable changes, with equity share ratios widening by over 40 percent points between younger/older partricipants. Among active decsion-makers, these funds act as a form of implicit employer-provided lifecycle investment advice. More broadly, our findings hightlight malleable preferences among retirement investors and ad emand for default-based guidance or simplified advice for households facing complex choices.

Download or read book Lifecycle Investing written by Ian Ayres and published by Tantor Media Incorporated. This book was released on 2014-05-10 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The coauthors of the bestselling "Why Not?" shake up how we think about retirement investing as they show us how to grow a healthier nest egg in a nicely feathered nest.

Download or read book Essays on Retirement Plans and Fund Commonalities Within Mutual Fund Families written by Youngkyun Park and published by . This book was released on 2008 with total page 160 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This dissertation studies underfunding in defined benefit (DB) pension plans and firms' contribution behavior, 401(k) plan participant investments in lifecycle funds under plan sponsors' initiative, and fund commonalities within mutual fund families. Responding to the recent decline in DB pension funding, firms have increased pension contributions to their underfunded plans. In the first essay I empirically examine firms' contribution behavior to underfunded DB plans and funding choice for pension contributions. I find that firms reveal different sensitivities of pension contributions to underfunding across aggregate funding levels. Furthermore, at a lower funding level firms have the greater sensitivity of pension contributions to underfunding and significantly utilize the tax deductibility of pension contributions. As for a funding choice to fund pension deficits, firms use debt financing at a low funding level, but utilize internal funding by decreasing capital expenditures at a lower funding level. Firms that use the debt financing are likely to have investment-grade credit ratings or high debt leverage, while firms that use the internal funding are likely to be high-levered ones. Recently lifecycle funds have rapidly grown in self-directed retirement plans. Despite the increasing popularity among plan sponsors and participants, there are few empirical studies on lifecycle funds. In the second essay, I examine the recent lifecycle fund adoption behavior of 401(k) plan participants from 2004 to 2006. I find that the likelihood of participants changing an investment strategy to adopt lifecycle funds is not significantly affected by participant demographic characteristics, but by participant account and plan design features. This study extends our understanding of 401(k) plan participants' investment behavior by finding (1) that the substitution of lifecycle funds for balanced funds, as well as the designation of lifecycle funds as a plan default, strongly affect participants' investments in lifecycle funds and (2) that balanced fund holdings of participants are negatively associated with their lifecycle fund investments. Mutual funds account for a significant portion of household financial assets and retirement assets. An understanding of characteristics of mutual funds is crucial to fund investors--especially those whose retirement nest eggs are in mutual funds. In the final essay, I examine the impacts of fund commonalities within mutual fund families on fund characteristics in terms of return residual correlations and fund operating expenses. As fund commonalities within a fund family, I focus on common stock holdings and common management of funds. I find that common stock holdings and an existence of a common manager of funds are positively related to return residual correlations, but negatively related to fund operating expenses. This finding suggests that when investors select low-cost equity funds within a family, they should be aware that there exists an investment risk that the fund commonalities that lower fund operating expenses may additionally increase return correlations of the funds.

Download or read book Assessing Default Investment Strategies in Defined Contribution Pension Plans written by Pablo Antolín and published by . This book was released on 2010 with total page 30 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Smartest 401 k Book You ll Ever Read written by Daniel R. Solin and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2010-07-06 with total page 236 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book will change the way you think about and invest in your retirement savings plan-forever. Internationally bestselling author and consumer advocate Dan Solin challenges some basic and misguided assumptions about traditional retirement plans to reveal that: ? 401(k) and 403(b) plans are laden with Porky Pig fees, poor investment choices, and conflicts of interest. You may be better off just saying "No!" ? There is a simple way to make smart choices in these plans- and this book shows you exactly what to do and which funds to avoid. ? There is one investment that could be the key to a successful retirement plan. You can do it yourself, with pre-tax or after-tax money. Create your own, inflation-proof pension plan that is guaranteed to provide you with monthly income for as long as you live, and beyond! Smart Investing is not complicated. You have the power to make meaningful changes to your retirement savings plan-no matter what your age or financial status. "If you haven't taken a recent look at what your own retirement investments are doing and-perhaps even more important-how they are put together, reading Solin's smart little book might provide the impetus for action." -Miami Herald

Download or read book Lifecycle Investing written by Ian Ayres and published by Basic Books. This book was released on 2010-05-04 with total page 238 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Diversification provides a well-known way of getting something close to a free lunch: by spreading money across different kinds of investments, investors can earn the same return with lower risk (or a much higher return for the same amount of risk). This strategy, introduced nearly fifty years ago, led to such strategies as index funds. What if we were all missing out on another free lunch that's right under our noses? In Lifecycle Investing, Barry Nalebuff and Ian Ayres -- two of the most innovative thinkers in business, law, and economics -- have developed tools that will allow nearly any investor to diversify their portfolios over time. By using leveraging when young -- a controversial idea that sparked hate mail when the authors first floated it in the pages of Forbes& -- investors of all stripes, from those just starting to plan to those getting ready to retire, can substantially reduce overall risk while improving their returns. In Lifecycle Investing, readers will learn: How to figure out the level of exposure and leverage that's right for you How the Lifecycle Investing strategy would have performed in the historical market Why it will work even if everyone does it When not to adopt the Lifecycle Investing strategy Clearly written and backed by rigorous research, Lifecycle Investing presents a simple but radical idea that will shake up how we think about retirement investing even as it provides a healthier nest egg in a nicely feathered nest.