Are you planning to retire in the next five years? Have you been actively contributing to your 401(K) plan? Good for you as the account has grown nicely and your account is the largest asset for you to enjoy  retirement.Where will this account be in five more years? Up or down from the present value? It would be very disheartening if it experienced an unexpected decline just before your official retirement date.

Over the past several years many retirement pIans have started to offer participants who are currently employed, the option of taking distribuitons from their plans. These distributions are know as IN-Service Withdrawals. Many plans permit in-service withdrawals when an employee reaches 591/2. Check with your plans Summary Plan Discritpion to learn to what extent the plan offers in-service withdrawals.

In-Service Distributions are typically rolled to a traditional Individual Retirement Account (IRA) to avoid income tax, as well as for greater flexibility and better control and to remove the account from stock market volatilty. The allocation options in most employer-sponsored plans are designed for the accumulation phase. Rolling funds to an IRA can enable clients to choose funding vehicles that offer protection of principal for income purposes and guaranteed lifetime income.

IRA assets may be used to purchase a fixed indexed annuity which offers guaranteed and optional withdrawal benefits that for an additional cost, provide lifetime retirement income, with potential for credited interest based on available chosen index performance.

Take control over your 401(K) destiny and remove all surprises before your well deserved retirement. Check with your Plan Administrator to learn more about In-Service Withdrawals.