CHICAGO (Reuters) – What will your 401(k) look like in five years? Not the account balance – that will be determined mainly by the size of your contributions and market performance – but the plan itself. There’s a good chance your employer will make some important changes over the next few years, as the industry ushers in changes aimed at getting you to save more – and do more planning for retirement.

That’s the key finding of a survey released last week reflecting the views of 55 401(k) experts who were asked to predict the ways workplace plans will evolve over the next five years. The study, sponsored by plan provider Transamerica Retirement Solutions, queried industry insiders at organizations ranging from research, consulting and trade organizations to universities and financial services companies.

CHICAGO (Reuters) – Katy Butler wanted her elderly father’s pacemaker turned off, but she couldn’t get a doctor to do it.

In 2001, Butler’s father, Jeffrey, suffered a debilitating stroke at age 79. Two years later, his doctor recommended installation of a pacemaker that would help him survive hernia surgery – a decision that seemed harmless at the time but one that ultimately “helped his heart outlive his brain,” as Katy puts it in her new book, “Knocking on Heaven’s Door” (Scribner).

CHICAGO (Reuters) – A growing number of employers are making plans to “de-risk” their pension plans. That’s jargon for reducing the financial risk posed to corporate balance sheets by pension plans – but if you have a defined-benefit pension and you start hearing that term tossed around, pay careful attention. Less risk for employers can mean more risk for you.

A survey of 180 pension plan sponsors by Towers Watson, the benefits consulting firm, found that 75 percent have implemented or are planning de-risking maneuvers. Their motive is to reduce risk posed by unfunded pension liabilities, which must be carried on the books as debt and hurt a company’s ratings from debt agencies.

CHICAGO, Nov 14 (Reuters) – Stocks are in record territory,
which probably is great news for your 401(k). Fidelity
Investments reported Thursday that average account balances hit
a new high in the third quarter, propelled mainly by surging
equities markets.

This might be news to you if you don’t track the market
closely and rarely check your account balance. In any case, now
is a good time to take a peek – to pat yourself on the back, but
also, perhaps, to do some rebalancing to keep your plan on
track.

CHICAGO (Reuters) – Vicki Thomas was at an age where many people look forward to retirement. She had enjoyed a successful career in public relations and marketing, including stints at a financial services trade group, a major television network, and running her own Connecticut-based marketing company.

But Thomas flipped on the television one day in 2009 and saw something that launched her on to a new career at age 64.

11 (Reuters) – Vicki Thomas was at an age
where many people look forward to retirement. She had enjoyed a
successful career in public relations and marketing, including
stints at a financial services trade group, a major television
network, and running her own Connecticut-based marketing
company.

But Thomas flipped on the television one day in 2009 and saw
something that launched her on to a new career at age 64.

CHICAGO (Reuters) – Congress probably won’t produce a broad overhaul of the U.S. tax code anytime soon. But if and when it does, lawmakers shouldn’t overlook some of the oddities of the way we tax retirement income. Many Americans are stressed out about their economic security in old age, and tax code writers could ease their pain.

Here are three areas ripe for reform.

BOOST REQUIRED MINIMUM DISTRIBUTION AGE

Under current law, you must start drawing down funds accumulated in tax-deferred retirement accounts in the year you turn 70½. Required minimum distributions (RMDs) must be taken from individual retirement accounts and 401(k)s starting at that point, unless you still work for the employer that sponsors your 401(k).

CHICAGO, Nov 7 (Reuters) – Congress probably won’t produce a
broad overhaul of the U.S. tax code anytime soon. But if and
when it does, lawmakers shouldn’t overlook some of the oddities
of the way we tax retirement income. Many Americans are stressed
out about their economic security in old age, and tax code
writers could ease their pain.

Here are three areas ripe for reform.

BOOST REQUIRED MINIMUM DISTRIBUTION AGE

Under current law, you must start drawing down funds
accumulated in tax-deferred retirement accounts in the year you
turn 70½. Required minimum distributions (RMDs) must be taken
from individual retirement accounts and 401(k)s starting at that
point, unless you still work for the employer that sponsors your
401(k).

CHICAGO (Reuters) – U.S. senior citizens and retirement savers finally got the word last week on three critical inflation adjustments for next year.

And the word is – not bad.

The announcements of cost-of-living adjustments (COLA) for 2014 were delayed by the recent government shutdown. Now the COLA figures for Social Security, Medicare and limits on contributions to retirement savings accounts have been released. It will be a year of moderate Social Security benefit bumps, flat Medicare premiums and status quo for retirement savers.

CHICAGO (Reuters) – I asked a financial services executive recently how our retirement saving system can be considered a success, considering that all but the highest-income households are approaching retirement with next to nothing saved.

His reply: “They don’t have any money while they’re working, so why would they have any money in retirement?”