Important Action Items for Your Employee Benefit Plan

by Leslie Flinn

The current financial crisis has caused some older workers to postpone retirement due to a drop in the value of their retirement accounts. It has also led to renewed compliance scrutiny. Additionally, a recent Supreme Court case (LaRue vs. DeWolff Boberg and Associates, February 21, 2008) ruled that companies can be held liable if employees lose money in their 401(k) due to negligence. Because of the explosion of 401(k) plans throughout the United States, the consequences of this legal action are potentially far-reaching.

Beware delays.

1. If implementing investment instructions is delegated to a third-party service provider, you need to understand the provider's system for implementing the participant's investment selections accurately and timely. With the increase in paperless transactions, this becomes extremely important. The service provider should notify the participant immediately of all changes in investment selections.
2. The Department of Labor is stepping up enforcement of timely remittance of employee contributions. The law requires employers to separate employee 401(k) contributions from their general assets as soon as practicable, but in no event more than 15 business days after the end of the month in which amounts are contributed or withheld from wages. For small plans, generally plans with less than 100 participants, employee withholding for retirement plans are due within 7 business days.
3. Employers might be tempted, either because of administrative convenience or cash flow needs, to delay contributions. But, in addition to the legal requirement, there is also the risk of harm to the participant's investments. If the contributions are delinquent, these contributions are not being invested timely. With the potential of significant market changes every day, this could cause investment gains or losses. If a loss occurs as a result of delay, it may give rise to lawsuits or, at a minimum, the need to make the participant whole.

Other Items to Consider.
1. For plans which participants have to Opt-In (participants choose to be in or not) update participants' selection annually including those participants which choose not to contribute.
2. For plans which participants have to Opt-Out (participants are automatically in and pay is withheld for 401(k) deferrals unless participant Opts-Out,) make sure you retain completed Opt-Out forms to retain evidence of participants' choice.
3. For Opt-In plans, consider an Opt-Out plan. The government is encouraging plans to become Opt-Out plans by reducing some administrative tests.
4. Given current market conditions consider having a financial planner give a seminar to update participants on their portfolios.
5. Not-for-Profit organizations with 403(b) plans will be subject to filing Form 5500 and are required to have an audit if their plan has 100 or more participants effective for 2009.
6. Check for unused forfeitures and discuss with your tax professional how these can be used such as offsetting matching contribution, profit sharing contribution, pay for administrative fees, etc.
7. Avoid having to make time consuming corrections due to errors in accumulating participant criteria for Benefit Plans.
8. Avoid penalties on plans which are subject to corrective distributions based on excess contributions. Plans need to complete their HC testing and compute and pay the corrective distributions within 2 months of the plan's year end to avoid a 10% penalty.
9. For terminated employees that have less than $5,000 in your plan, consider distributing their funds to them to lower the plan's administrative costs.
10. Prepare census and compliance testing timely.
11. Update files with signed designation of beneficiary annually.
12. For plans with multiple ending dates, review for proper inclusion of new participants.
13. Review computations with matching contributions for correctness.
14. Prepare timely all required Forms 1099R/1096 and Form 945 and remittance of taxes withheld.

Determine Your Audit Need
An audit can provide the documentation that you need to prove compliance with applicable rules and regulations.

1. Companies with 100 or more eligible participants at the beginning of a plan year must have an audit to form an opinion that the financial statements of the plan are presented fairly (ERISA Section 103.) The audit is included with Form 5500 filings. Note the word "eligible" is the key, not participants in the Plan.

Plans with fewer than 100 eligible participants at the beginning of the plan year are considered a small plan for filing purposes. Audited financial statements are generally not required for a small plan filing if specific requirements are met under the small pension plan security regulation.

Types of plans that may require an audit include:
Multi-employer
401(k)
Profit sharing
Health and welfare/VEBA

2. Make sure that your auditor has experience with 401(k) plans. This is a specialized field. Knowledge of the Department of Labor's requirements is a must. Prohibited transactions, supplemental schedules, and certain footnote disclosures are unique to 401(k) plans. The more an auditor understands the 401(k) field, the more effective that audit will be.

3. Provide the auditor copies of all agreements with third-party service providers. If the plan has reviewed the internal control structure of a service provider, that review should also be provided. In any event, the auditor will need to satisfy himself of the internal control structure of the 401(k) plan and the provider's portions of the plan. This work should be performed before the audit.

4. Finally, before the audit, you should either provide or make sure your auditor has obtained all information and documentation requested. Contracts, investment statements, and participants' files are some of the more common requests. If your auditor does not prepare your 5500 form, they must review it.

Quality audits are very important to the 401(k) plan and your participants' best interests. Take steps now to ensure that you are in compliance!

About the Author

Contact: Leslie Flinn, Director of Marketing, Warady & Davis LLP, Certified Public Accountants & Consultants, one of the top 25

CPA & consulting firms in the Chicago area specializing in employee benefit plan audits. Contact: Leslie Flinn, 847-267-9600, lflinn@waradydavis.com,

http://www.waradydavis.com

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Creating and Starting an Online Business

by rdokoye

Reading this article right now will give you tips on how to create and begin an online business, we will be looking at various ways of starting an online business you can use.

There is loads of varying online businesses that you can get into and a lot of them are usually in three broad categories which are: selling products or services to prospects or customers, selling on eBay, or maybe business-to-business selling. When you are searching for ways to start an internet business, you will need to find out what your specialty is, and then in create a business around one of the three big categories.

If you conclude on what you want to sell to your customers, you will have to find a way to sell your products or services in a different manner than many of the other retail websites out there. If you decide that you want to sell on eBay, you will have to look for a wholesale distributor of things that you may purchase your things at a reduced rate. If you are having you business in a business-to-business forum, this will not be a hard transition for you.

All of the three categories may be broken up but you will have to make up your mind upon which of the three types of business you want to concentrate on. Lots of people will consider starting an internet business but don't know where to start or focus their efforts. By concentrating your energy just on one of the three categories, you will get an understanding of where to start. If you decide to being with eBay first, search for a wholesale distributor that you will be able to purchase your products with good enough discounts.

This is very beneficial for loads of people starting because you will not have to purchase the products so you can just think about selling them on the internet to people that want the product. The people that want what you are offering are going to be those that are bidding so that you will know exactly what it is that they are after.

If your decision is to sell things or services to buying customers, attempt to look for a niche that doesn't have such a high demand in terms of competition you have to face. This is one of the main things to consider when starting an internet retail business because it will benefit you immensely to find a niche that doesn't have a large amount of competition that you can dominate.

Last but not least, if you make the decision that you favour doing business to business selling, you should research your options and find out how you can give a benefit to that specific market that you have decided to target.

Lots of people work on the internet as freelance writers and if you are able to do that and possibly differentiate your business from the competition if you choose a specific niche to write for. Business-to-business selling is likened to the retail selling strategy in that you want to concentrate on a niche with the goal of dominating that niche.

I Hope that this article has helped to clear your mind about how to create and start an internet business. I hope you now have an idea of one of the three areas you might want to concentrate on.

About the Author

Uchenna Ani-Okoye is an internet marketing advisor and co founder of Top Affiliate Programs

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Changing your Mindset to Get Your Children Through the Recession

by jonkelly

These are very difficult times and there are plenty of families who are starting to feel the financial pinch. Many families have noticed that the promised fuel cuts have not reduced their fuel bills to the level prior to the hikes which we have experienced in the last twelve months; the mortgage rates are not reflecting the reduced interest rates and to top it all the weekly shop, despite adverts promising savings seems to be getting more expensive.

So how do you cut your costs further without the kids particularly noticing? This is not about the individual actions; it is about changing your mindset. Children love to have new experiences and they love to do things with their friends, or even better to be the expert and to introduce their friends to a new activities will certainly give them the edge. We are not suggesting that you suddenly get your kids weaving and making their own clothes, simple things, get the kids to make the cakes which they can eat when their friends come round to play. Then you can progress to making bread. Bread is great for kids; they love the idea of watching it grow and then sticking their fingers in or punching it back so that it can grow again. The important thing is to make sure that your children share their new skills with their friends. This is make them want to progress.

Movies are great, but regular trips to the cinema can get costly, apart from the tickets there is getting their, parking, taking their friends, buying the drinks and popcorn. It all adds up and before you know it, the kids are expecting it and it has become a habit hard to break. So don't take this away suddenly and drastically so that the children feel deprived, wait until one is not quite well, or it is horrid weather, the film they want is booked. You need to find a reason acceptable to them not to go and then introduce a new activity.

If you have kids who like to be messy, and a little bit of outside space it is a great idea to get them gardening. The first time I managed to get my eldest son to eat peas was after he had spend the previous hour shelling them. If you haven't got any outside space, something we suffer from, then there are great days out at farms where you can pick your own fruit and vegetables. These are wonderful fun activity and you get to eat loads of strawberries after, what more of a reward can a child ask for?

If the recession is going to be half as bad a some of the experts are predicting then we need to start thinking about bringing up a generation who are less materialistic and have a greater understanding of what is important. We need to have healthy children who know how to use their imagination and how to apply their knowledge. We do not know what sort of a work environment they will enter, but you can guarantee that it will be drastically different from the current one. Parenting has always been hard and now it is even more important that we do our best to prepare our kids, you cannot completely shield them from a global economic meltdown.

About the Author

Jon Kelly is a published author who writes articles and reviews on money and finance. If you would like to find out more on how to cope in these difficult times about foreclosure and learn more about new developments.please visit: http://www.helpinforeclosures.com

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Could Buddhism Teach You Something About Trading And Investing?

by mercedes

At first glance there seem to be few parallels between Buddhism and your trading and investing strategies, but is that really so? If you look beneath the surface a very different picture starts to evolve.

Traditionally we go through life viewing events, like market action as something that happens outside of ourselves and as something on which we have little or no influence.

We have neat little boxes for all those events with their clear beginnings and endings. This thinking, which is part of the old paradigm is essentially incorrect and has lead to a flawed view of reality. When your view of reality is skewed everything in your life will be affected, including your trading and investment strategies.

We know that things have a habit to work until they stop working. This principle, which is an integral facet of evolution has plaid out with frightening ferocity in recent months in the financial markets. A roller coaster of transition and change has taken over while the entire financial system is cleansing itself of old outdated habits and is trying to establish a new consensus. The old forces from the old paradigm vie with new forces of a new paradigm which is based on the latest findings in science, which are confirming what the old wisdom traditions have taught for thousands of years.

We have evidence now that indeed nothing is separate and when we traditionally talk about crowd psychology reflected in the markets we are merely seeing the Buddhist concept of oneness playing out in front of our very eyes in the markets.

The basic building block of everything in the universe is energy. Energy in order needs constant motion. We see this constant motion expressed in duality, the constant market moves of up and down or sideways. This picture unfolds all the time, even when we catch a trend there is movement within the movement, since, as any technical analyst will tell you nothing ever goes up or down in a straight line.

Just as your life has fluctuations, even if you are not always consciously aware of them, you are always changing to a lesser or larger degree. Markets reflect the collective consciousness of the masses.

I don't care if you believe that the fed manipulates market action, sooner or later the market will exert its right to return to its natural cycle, which is a reflection of the cycle of the mood of the general public. Presently a mood of deep dissatisfaction and resentment with the system that has caused a lot of hardship for many.

It is a huge misconception to think that blame is going to get you anywhere when dealing with market action. In fact, as you will always get what you focus on, because your mind is a very obliging tool and will get you what you are looking for, every time, you might want to consider the effect your pervasive negativity has on the collective consciousness and last but not least market action.

There simply is no getting away from the fact that you make reality and you create the market action through your thoughts and feelings. Every time you panic, feel desperate and you believe that the financial system may collapse you are creating a little more of that negative momentum which fuels the markets and you will find proof in your portfolio as it seems to be less and less every time you look.

There are many traders who find it difficult to go short. I will not go into the many reasons for this in today's article, suffice it to say, that conflicts with their belief system does not permit many traders to take advantage of the flexibility of the trading system. Markets move up and down.
Going short is no better then going long and both are just like the tow sides of a coin. Head or tail are of no value, unless you are betting on the wrong side and resent that fact.

If you are a savvy trade or investor you will have learned to take advantage of the many instruments available and position yourself in line with market action, but free from judgement about whether the market action is agreeable to you or not. Staying out of judgement is an art which Buddhism teaches us. It is a very useful habit to develop because it saves you wasting a lot of precious time as well as precious energy and will improve your trading and investing many times.

If more of us were doing this the present financial crisis may not be as dire as it appears at present. People with energy normally feel more positive and see opportunity. Once you can see how your many misguided thoughts and feelings make up your actions you are freeing yourself from pointless emotion and trance behaviour which is typical of crowds.

Believe me, the above is not new age mumbo jumbo but my view based on many years of experience and learning a lot about myself in years of trading and observing market action. If you want to be in control of your investment and trading strategies do yourself a favour and learn how you can expand your awareness. The man on top of the mountain sees more of the world and can appreciate more of it.

About the Author

Mercedes Oestermann van Essen is a human development coach and author.Her brand new book

THE BUDDHIST TRADER is available for immediate download on her site.

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Start Up Business Financing - Are You In Search Of Finance For Your Business?

The initiative of starting up a business is something very good. But the simple notion of starting up a business is sometimes plagued with certain thoughts of indecision or thoughts of canceling the whole idea of starting up a business. What is known is that a lot of people are afraid to get into business because they are troubled of loosing. This is because they might have previously experienced losses or might have seen others fail in business. It should be kept in mind that most of the failures often experienced in business are failures related to finances.

The fear of loosing should be something inherent in every business owner and particularly to those just getting into business. This fear is also experienced by those already established in business. But in most cases, they are very worried about sources of finance for their businesses.

One of the main ideas at the back of this article is to identify the various sources of financing a business as well as identify the various tools to take the business through to a stage of profit maximization. How can you seek for the finance necessary to run your business?

Loans

Loans are one of the commonest forms of securing finance for the business. Loans are commonly obtained through commercial banks and these will normally be made available to those who can show some convincing form of credit worthiness. However, the conditions over which loans are given will vary from one lending institution to the other.

One of the best ways to approach these lending institutions is to come up with a business plan which can be appreciated by the lending institution and also establish that your proposal has the least form of risk that can be thought of. Keep in mind that banks will prefer to put their money where they realize that risks are minimal or insurable than where risks cannot be insured. You must also make sure that you are a legal entity and that you have the necessary collateral to secure the loan.

Angel Financing

This is a type of scheme in which you will normally come up with a business program and present it to an individual or group of individuals who are willing and able to provide the necessary capital for the running of the business. It is common to find such groups working in a network today. You will also have to know about the various networks and how they function ahead of seeking financing from it.

Angel financing is also sought for and will be provided to businesses with very high risks. This will also warrant these financiers to demand for high returns on their investments. In most cases, what they stand to gain will be twenty or thirty times above the value of what they put in. This is a very expensive form of financing but it is probable that it can be made available to young business owners with businesses that have a high probability to expand. If you cannot get the required financing from a lending institution, you may opt for this form of financing.

Financing From Venture Capitalists

Venture capitalists are investors who gather money with the aim of putting it in businesses that are still at their inceptions or businesses that are experiencing insurmountable financial hurdles. Such business may lack the capital or personnel to direct the business and they may also be involved in businesses that have high prospects of making huge profits. However, those who provide finance under this type of scheme will want to have a considerable measure of influence over the affairs of the business. Business owners should therefore be wise enough on the amount of influence which they will accord to these investors.

There are other sources from which finance can be provided to the business. The business may decide to sell some of it shares to the public. It can also opt to sell what it acquired in the form of assets.

About the Author

Discover more about business real estate financing as well as the insiders secrets towards successful business start up funding when you learn from the experts at http://www.365capital.com, the premier resources on small business startup loans.

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How to Be Sure You Always Have Access To Money

I'm going to tell you how you can always have access to some emergency cash, whenever you need it. Don't be afraid of payday loans. Here's how they can really help you.

Sometimes life throws us a curve and we find ourselves in a tight spot where we need just a little more money to get us through until we get paid. If you've ever been caught short like this, you know how frustrating and embarrassing this can be. Well, you don't have to worry about that anymore if you'll just follow this method of using cash advances to build your credibility.

First of all, you're foolish if you believe that just by walking up to a money loaning business, they'll give you from $100 to $1000 just on your word alone. That's dreaming, my friend. They're in the business of loaning money and getting it back and if they don't know you, chances are slim that they'll lend you any money without some form of collateral. The one exception is if they've done business with you before and you paid them back on time. You've "established" yourself with them and they're more likely to loan you a little more the next time you apply for it. So, here's how you're going to get that money every time you ask. Just follow these steps and you'll have a guaranteed loan whenever you need it. You may never need it but a little insurance here goes a long way when a bad financial situation or crisis occurs.

First, you need to set this up at a time when you actually do NOT need any money. Don't wait until you become desperate and then expect some cash advance loaner to trust you in the spur of the moment. They won't and it will be difficult for you to get a loan.

If you'll apply for a small payday loan at a time when you have money you'll be setting yourself up for a quick loan when you do need it. Just fill out an application for, say, $200 and go ahead and get the loan. It may take a few days or you may have to put up some type of collateral. That's ok, just do it. Now, don't even think for one second of keeping that money. No way!

You wait three days, add your interest and pay the loan off. I repeat...PAY THE LOAN OFF!

Now, a week later, do the same thing for the same amount. Three days later, pay it off again.

Now, my friend, you've established yourself with a loan company. You've got some credence with them.

Next, wait a week and ask for a $400 loan. Again, you may have to show proof that you'll be able to pay the loan off. Give them that collateral if it's needed. Chances are, they may not even require collateral because you have proven that you can pay off your loans.

You have established yourself. Wait three or four days and pay back the loan. Every red cent of it.

Now, you've really established your credibility with the loan company. Don't blow it, whatever you do.

The next day, apply for another $200 loan from a different payday loan company and start the process over.

You don't even have to apply to just one payday loan company at a time. You can apply to several at the same time. Just make sure that you don't spend one single dime of the loan money. You pay it all back in three to five days.

Do this with five payday loan companies and you will have established enough credit with them that when desperate times come around, you have enough credibility to get five five-hundred dollar loans. That's $2500 that you will have access to when and if you need it (and you will, sooner or later).

This just gives you a means to get a fast and easy payday loan (which you WILL pay back, right?) when you need it. Rather than waiting until fortune spits on you and having to go through the frustration of finding and applying for all those loans and then having to wait to know if you're going to get the loan or not, you'll already know that you've got access to $2500 for emergencies.

Just don't abuse the trust that you've gained. Don't blow it. If you do, you'll find it very difficult to get emergency money next time you need it. Pay back the loan on time and keep your credibility maxed out.

If you don't have an emergency for say, three or four months and you don't need any quick payday loans, just start the process over again. It's not difficult and it doesn't take that long especially if you've had a job for a good while.

Use this method and be assured that there are always funds available when you get in a bind.

About the Author

For more interesting and informative information by the author, Gary Vaughn, please click here

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Dealing With Redundancy and The Worldwide Economic Downturn

Do you feel depressed when you switch on the news? Are you one of those unfortunate people who have lost their job? Do you feel insecure about the future? The financial outlook may not look good, but is there a way of dealing with redundancy and global recession without falling into a feeling of gloom and despondency?

The truth is that there is always more than one way of looking at a situation. In his classic self-help book, Think and Grow Rich, Napoleon Hill said that the 1930's "depression" was a blessing in disguise. "It reduced the whole world to a new starting point that gives everyone a new opportunity."

The reason Hill placed "depression" in inverted commas was because he was not prepared to buy into other people's definitions of the word. Instead, he looked for the hidden benefit and announced that "every failure brings with it the seed of an equivalent advantage."

In making these statements Hill was doing several things. Firstly, he was thinking independently. Secondly, he was "responding" to the situation instead of "reacting" to it, and thirdly, he was "choosing" to respond in a positive way to what most people would see as a reason for negative response.

Napoleon Hill understood that we choose how we respond to any given situation. Unfortunately, most people do not understand this, and believe that there is only one way to see a situation such as a recession or redundancy, and that is a negative one.

In a more recent book (Goal Mapping), Brian Mayne discusses the same idea. He says that the word "responsibility" does not have much to do with being at fault, but with our ability to respond; in other words, our "response-ability". Being responsible is about being able to choose how we respond to situations in our lives so that we are not victims of circumstance.

Napoleon Hill saw the 1930s depression as an opportunity for the world to make a new start.

If we apply this philosophy to our own lives, and to the current worldwide economic downturn, we can begin to turn a negative into a positive.

Globally, I believe that the current financial crisis will see a change in our ways of thinking; not only about the way individuals, banks and corporate companies handle finances, but also about the way we do business. This will be a refreshing and exciting new beginning if we are prepared to change our outmoded mindsets.

This may seem like a much harder pill to swallow if you are dealing with redundancy or are personally affected by financial hardship. The reality of losing your job, and possibly your home, or being in debt, is not one that anyone wishes to experience. However, out of the worse situations, people have risen to succeed because they choose to believe in opportunity and learning from the current situation.

If you are losing your job, perhaps now is the time to start doing something that you have always wanted to do. Perhaps it is the opportunity to get out of the rat race and start your own business (and yes, there are businesses that thrive in a recession). It could be the opportunity you've needed for a long time to stop and take stock of your life and review your values and what is important to you.

You do not have to be a victim. Getting angry or bitter with your boss, or the bank, or the Government, only keeps you stuck and offers no progress. Taking responsibility means that you just respond to what is, and act accordingly. Do not follow what everyone else is saying or thinking. Think for yourself and choose your future.

After all, there are always those who succeed during a recession, and there are always those who fail during a boom. The main thing to remember is that it is always up to you and you can succeed and have what you want, no matter what the rest of the world is doing or thinking. Whether you are dealing with redundancy or facing the worldwide economic downturn, you are free to respond in any way that you choose.

About the Author

Ros is a career life coach and writer, and also runs her own online business.

Ros's coaching site is at Career and Home Business Coaching

Find opportunities at her website at Financial Freedom Online

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