One of the frustrations that many 401k participants have is the lack of support from their employer when they have questions regarding the investment choices in their retirement accounts. Sometimes, participants can call the firm that offers the 401k plan, but even then, there seems to be no guarantee that you’ll be able to reach the same person you may have talked to previously.
Charles Schwab, like many large financial firms, offers retirement plans for small, medium, and large businesses. And, one of the choices that exists within those Schwab retirement plans is a Personal Choice Retirement Account or “PCRA”. If your company happens to offer a PCRA, we’d encourage you to take advantage of it.
The Personal Choice Retirement Plan is a self directed brokerage account and a whole lot more. Not only do you get to choose from an enormous selection of ETFs and mutual funds for your 401k, but for a very small fee (around 8/10ths of 1%, commonly referred to as “80 basis points”), you can get access to professional money management such as Blue Haven Capital.
What does a professional money manager offer? Well, often, the returns from a professional are 2% to 4% higher, after expenses, than for those who don’t use a professional. Also, if you have questions on household cash flow, taxes, social security, capital gains and losses, inheritance, divorce, or trust accounts, you have a person to call and discuss that with.
We have a number of clients who are PCRA clients, and they are across the country. If your company offers the Charles Schwab Personal Choice Retirement Account, and you are interested in low-cost access to professional investment management, give us a call. We’d welcome the opportunity to talk to you.
