Fees
Betcha don’t know all the fees you’re paying – and we mean ALL the fees. Sometimes fees matter, sometimes they don’t. Here we reveal the latest on when fees count and where to find hard-to-find fees.
By Christopher Carosa, CTFA | December 6, 2011
Are the purported lower fees of bundling real, or are they a figment of some marketing department’s imagination? Worse, are bundled services really a fiduciary trap?
Read the full story...
Posted in Fees | Tagged 401k, BrightScope, bundled providers, Chuck Miller, Cogent Study, conflict of interest, Craig Freedman, fiduciary, Fiduciary Solutions, liability, Michael Spraul, Mike Alfred, one-stop-shopping, Sarah Simoneaux
By Christopher Carosa, CTFA | October 11, 2011
The ICI comes out with a study that makes it look easy, but what’s the catch?
Read the full story...
Posted in Fees | Tagged 401k, Fee Disclosure, Fiduciary Solutions, ICI, Investment Company Institute
By Christopher Carosa, CTFA | August 9, 2011
Both sides of the fiduciary debate suggest their view reduces retirement investor costs. They can’t both be right. Luckily, the marketplace offers a real testing ground, leaving only one question: Who does the DOL protect – the industry or the investor?
Read the full story...
Posted in Fees | Tagged 401k, DOL, fiduciary, Fiduciary Rule, FSI, Goldberg, Investor, IRA, McEwan, NBER, Phyllis Borzi, retirement, Wohlner
By Christopher Carosa, CTFA | June 28, 2011
Unfortunately, 401k plan sponsors cannot serve two masters – the existing employees and the former employees. Here’s why.
Read the full story...
Posted in Fees | Tagged IRA, liability, Rollover
By Christopher Carosa, CTFA | April 26, 2011
Fee disclosures will become the trending topic among 401k plan sponsors and fiduciaries. It will be tempting to overweight this parameter. But if your plan has an index fund or you’ve ever contemplated using index funds, this book contains one piece of data you absolutely must have.
Read the full story...
Posted in Fees | Tagged 401k, 401k Averages Book, Book Review, fee, fiduciary, ICI, index fund, liability, mutual fund, PSCA, recordkeeping
By Christopher Carosa, CTFA | June 1, 2010
If the DOL requires the 401k plan fiduciary to ignore a fund’s investment performance, but the SEC still requires funds to disclose that performance, which will 401k investors choose? More importantly, who’s left holding the liability bag?
Read the full story...
Posted in Fees | Tagged 401k, DOL, Fees, fiduciary, Index Funds, Investment Advice Rule, SEC
By Christopher Carosa, CTFA | May 3, 2010
Should indirect fees matter? Academics may argue, but regulators will have the final say. Unfortunately, different definitions of fees only confound the ERISA fiduciary.
Read the full story...
Posted in Fees | Tagged 12b-1, DOL, Fees, fiduciary, mutual fund
By Christopher Carosa, CTFA | April 27, 2010
Too many accept the definition of “fees” without deliberation. Yet, even by looking solely at the fees associated with investment choice, the fiduciary can land in a state of confusion. This only increases liability. How can we fix this?
Read the full story...
Posted in Fees | Tagged 12b-1, Conflicts of Interest, expense ratio, Fees, fiduciary
By Christopher Carosa, CTFA | March 30, 2010
Most interesting, though, may loom the warning of Justice Alito: When is comes to fiduciary duty, disclosure isn’t enough. One wonders if the DOL is listening.
Read the full story...
Posted in Fees | Tagged fee, Gartenberg, Jones v. Harris, mutual fund, Wade Eaton
By Christopher Carosa, CTFA | March 3, 2010
$16.5 million is a large price to pay for disclosure and due diligence a plan fiduciary can simply and consistently address. This may be the easiest action a 401k plan fiduciary to take to prevent the camel from sticking his nose under the tent.
Read the full story...
Posted in Fees | Tagged 401k, Catepillar, disclosure, Due Diligence, Fees
