Receive the full match on 401(k) Contributions

One of our goals for 2009 is to ensure we receive the full match available on our 401(k). If your employer offers a retirement plan with a match this is a“must-do” step in your retirement planning.

Every individual should take advantage of their employers match since it really is free money! With a match on your 401(k) contributions every time you save some of your paycheck by putting it into your 401(k) account, your company puts in a "match" contribution as well. However, if you fail to make a contribution then your company's match contribution also goes away.

Each retirement plan can be different so carefully review the plan information provided by your Human Resources department. Some employers have very generous matching programs while others have minimal matches or no matching program at all. Be sure to understand your matching program and don’t turn down free money.

In our case we plan to maximize or hit the contribution limit in our retirement plan. This means we plan to contribute the full amount allowed by law to the plan throughout the year. One drawback or concern in fully funding contributions is hitting the contribution limit before the end of the year. Once an individual reaches the limit contributions must cease and as a result the individual may loose the match available on "future" contributions.