what is 401k??

Answer 1

A retirement plan created by corporations who no longer wanted the risk or responsiblity of funding pension programs.

Funding a pension program is tough - a company would have to invest money wisely, continue to be profitable and hold money in trust to distribute to employees as they retired. The money held in pension accounts made companies attractive to corporate raiders.

To avoid these problems, pension plans were replaced w/ 401 (K) programs. 401 (K) plans allowed employees to w/hold a portion of their pre-tax income and invest it. In other words, employees would bear the responsibility of funding their own retirement.

For more information : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/401%28k%29

Answer 2

Its a savings plan, usually offered through the company you work for, for you to save some of your income for retirement. It was created basically because so many Americans weren't saving any money for retirement--you get a paycheck and you spend it ALL. With a 401k, at least some of the money you make goes into a savings plan to be used when you retire and you don't notice greatly the money not being in your paycheck (it'll say on your pay stub and the reports that are sent to you regularly). If your company offers it, you let the company know what percent of each paycheck you want them to take out, before taxes, and put into your 401k plan. In that way, you save money automatically each paycheck. Some companies will even match (up to a certain limit) what you put into your 401k--which means, if you have 5% of each paycheck go into your 401k, your company will put in that same amount into your 401k each pay period (so you sort of save double the amount you deposit). Which adds up nicely. Usually you can "borrow" from your 401k but you have to pay it back before you quit your job, whatever interest there is on your 401k only accrues on the money that is in your account (so if you borrowed a lot, you won't make much interest); if you possibly can, don't borrow from your 401k. Some companies will allow you to keep your 401k with them after you leave their employment but they will no longer match your input, or you can withdraw the 401k money and put it into an IRA account. If you don't put it in an IRA, the government penalizes you if you aren't retirement age yet. Some companies set up their 401k plans with a management company (like Charles Schwab) and allow you, as the owner of the account, to pick which mutual funds you want your little chunk of money to be invested in.

Answer 3

From my personal experiences, someone who is a sucker for trusting the stock market, especially learning that the stock market crashes every 10 to 15 years.

Answer 4

add too zeroos to the end and it is the amount.

Answer 5

401,000