Retirement benefits

MMA 401(k)

Many employers, like you, have found the 401(k) savings plan to be an ideal way to help employees save for retirement. Available for businesses and some nonprofit organizations, the 401(k) allows your employees to save their own tax-deferred earnings. And, you can also contribute to the plan in a variety of ways.

Your MMA advisor can help you customize your 401(k) plan to fit your needs, thanks to a partnership between MMA and The Standard, a nationwide retirement financial services specialist. The plan offers several major benefits, including:

• Flexibility. You can select investment options from thousands of mutual funds.
• Transparent costs. The fee structure is simple, competitive, and openly disclosed. You won’t need to decipher a complicated code to understand your actual costs.
• Leading-edge technology. Your 401(k) participants can monitor their plans and get expert guidance through a full-service Web site. Account access is also available through a telephone interactive voice response system.
• Simplified administration. The last thing you need is a plan that requires major administrative time commitments. Our 401(k) plan can be designed to keep your time to a minimum – freeing you to concentrate on running your business.
• Streamlined implementation. We can have your new plan up and running in as few as 30 days. If you’re moving an existing plan, the conversion will be completed within 45 business days of receiving final information from your previous record-keeper.
  

Mennonite Retirement Trust

If your organization is Mennonite church or church-related agency, you can offer your employees a retirement plan from Mennonite Retirement Trust.

MRT offers two plan options – a 401(a) Money Purchase Pension Plan and a 403(b) Defined Contribution Pension Plan. Because both are considered church plans, they offer greater flexibility and fewer reporting requirements than many similar retirement savings plans. These plans have been designed to help you make your employees’ retirement options as easy and effective as possible. Your MMA advisor can help you determine which plan option best fits your needs.

In addition, MRT offers several other major benefits:

• Low costs. Unlike many other retirement plans, there are no set-up costs, annual participation fees, or plan document fees.
• Choice of plans. The 401(a) and 403(b) each have their own unique characteristics and can be customized. They also offer a wide range of investment choices.
• Strategic portfolios. We’ve made your employees’ investment decisions easy, with three different strategic investment portfolios that allow for a broader range of investment allocations. All portfolios offer a diversified mix of stocks and bonds, as well as special assets employees would not normally be able to select on their own.
• Individual fund options. For employees wanting to take a more active role in choosing their investments, MRT participants also have the option to design their own portfolio.
• Lifetime income. Participants can receive lump sum distributions or select from several income distribution options upon retirement.
• Investing standards. Your employees can incorporate their faith values with their retirement savings, since all of MRT’s investments follow MMA’s set of stewardship investing guidelines.
  

SEP and SIMPLE for small employers

If you’re a small business or organization employer – or if you’re self-employed – your professional community may seem more like a family. And because of those close relationships, perhaps it’s even more important for you to help your employees save for retirement.

But offering a retirement savings program can sometimes be challenging and expensive for small employers. The good news is that two special programs have been established just for you:

• The Simplified Employee Pension (SEP)
• The Savings Incentive Match Plan for Employees (SIMPLE)

Your MMA advisor can help you decide which plan is right for you. The plans are fairly similar. They both rely on traditional individual retirement accounts, provide tax deductions for employer contributions, and require far less paperwork than other retirement savings plans. And MMA’s SEP and SIMPLE offer a wide range of stocks and bonds.

The major difference is that the SEP relies solely on employer contributions, while the SIMPLE provides a way for employees to contribute a portion of their salaries to the plan on a tax-deferred basis (which is matched by you).

These plans are subject to specific rules and requirements. 

403(b) for nonprofit organizations

If your organization is tax-exempt, you can offer a 403(b) retirement plan to your employees. MMA has two options available:

• Employee-only contributions. If you wish to offer a salary reduction plan for employees with no employer contributions, we can establish a relatively simple plan with employee contributions going directly to mutual funds.
• Employee and employer contributions. If you wish to contribute to your employees’ retirement plan, MMA partners with The Standard to offer a retirement savings plan that is similar to the 401(k).

Your MMA advisor can help you determine which plan option best fits your needs.