Do you have a 401(k) retirement account? Are you vested yet? Before you move on to your next job, it is critical for you to find out if you are fully vested in your retirement account before you make the move. If you are not, you could lose hundreds if not thousands of dollars in employer contributions.

What Is Vesting?

Vesting refers simply to the non-forfeitable percentage of your account’s assets. In other words, whatever you contribute to your 401(k) plan is always yours to keep including any rollover money.

If your employer contributes to your plan, a vesting schedule for the employer’s contribution is part of the plan. This schedule ties in a non-forfeitable percentage to the employer’s contribution for each year of service until you are fully vested – 100% – in the employer contribution.

Your Vesting Schedule

Vesting schedules vary with the employer. A sample schedule could include you being fully vested after three years of service. After year one the schedule may have you one third vested; after year two you could be two thirds invested; finally upon your third anniversary you would have full entitlement to your employer’s contributions, thus you would be 100% vested.

Rollovers And Your Retirement Monies

In all cases, upon leaving a company your contribution and any rollover funds are yours to keep. However, depending on your employer’s vesting schedule only a percentage of the funds contributed by your employer may actually be yours to keep. If you leave before you are fully vested, you stand to lose a significant amount of money. Thus, it behooves you to calculate whether the financial benefits of the new job outweigh any potential loss of employer contributions to your 401(k) account.

Matthew Keegan is the owner of a successful article writing, web design, and marketing business based in North Carolina, USA. Please visit The Article Writer to review selections from his portfolio. Matt also blogs on Word Journey, a Christian devotional site.

The article, Many Baby Boomers Concerned About Retirement Savings…, mentioned that 61% of the people in this group are spending less money today, but the money that they are saving isn’t going toward retirement.

Specifically, the Scottrade/BetterInvesting 2008 American Retirement Study states:

Even if confronted with a small wind-fall of $5,000, only 15 percent would deposit the money in an IRA or other retirement account, and almost half (48 percent) would pay down debt, while 32 percent would put the money in a savings account. Just three percent would go on a shopping spree.

The study revealed that most Americans are very concerned about their retirement, but the number of people who are actively doing what they can to ensure a financially secure future doesn’t match up.

With IRAs, 401(k)s, and other investment vehicles at their disposal, many Americans are expressing concern, but are failing to translate concern into real action.

Personal bankruptcy. Yes, bankruptcy is an option for some consumers, especially if there are absolutely no way you can pay off your debt. The U.S. Constitution empowers Americans with the right to discharge their debt, and it is a choice some must take in order to keep creditors away. With medical expenses climbing, fuel prices passing $3 per gallon, and food prices surging, bankruptcy could be your only alternative to help guard your remaining assets from difficult creditors. The bankruptcy court will determine a debt reduction plan which may include discharging your debt through bankruptcy.

Loan Consolidation. Before declaring bankruptcy, consider lumping all of your outstanding loans into one low monthly payment. Loan consolidators can help you come up with a plan to pay off all of your obligations while maintaining your creditworthiness. A home equity loan is one way to go about doing this, but you are putting your home at risk should you default on payments. In addition, a bankruptcy judgment ruins your credit while a consolidation loan may help you rescue it.

Cash In Your Life Insurance Policy. Your life insurance policy may have cash value, therefore consider taking the cash from the policy and using it to pay off or lower your debt. Remember, whatever you take now will not be available to your heirs later.

Government Loans. Local, state, and federal loan support may be accessible to you and at a rate much lower than what your creditors cost. Examine loan programs, which must be repaid, as well as grants – which are considered as gifts to you – to see what you are entitled to accept.

Borrow From Your 401(k). If your company has a 401(k) or 403(b) plan, you can take out a low rate interest loan and use these funds to pay off your obligations. Just remember you are borrowing from your retirement account so you will need to pay it all back or risk IRS penalties.

Of course, some of these options are much less attractive than others, but when your choices are limited, then examining what you have before you is imperative to helping your regain your peace of mind.

If you are in debt, you have several options available to you in your quest to consolidate your balances and thereby reducing your monthly payments or paying off your loan faster. Let’s look at 7 of the most popular and effective ways for you to consolidate your debt.

1. Life Insurance. Yes, many life insurance policies have a cash pay out [loan] provision. If you have held the policy for quite some time, the amount of equity built up in it can be quite large. What if you can’t pay the insurer back? Good question! In many cases the amount you owe will be deducted from what your beneficiaries would receive upon your death.

2. Your Retirement Plan. If you have a 401(k) plan at work, you can usually borrow from the account and use these funds to pay off debt. Caution: if you do not pay back the loan within a certain specified time or you leave your job, you could be faced with penalties and tax charges from the Internal Revenue Service.

3. Credit Card Transfers. Chances are some of your outstanding loans are for double digit rates. Shop around and see if a credit card company will allow for you to transfer your outstanding balance over to them and at a significantly lower interest rate. Make sure that the cash transfer fees are low [better yet, see if you can have this fee waived] and that your interest rate remains fixed.

4. Home Equity Loans/Lines of Credit. If you own your own home, it is likely that you have built up equity in your home especially if you have lived there for several years and you live in an area of rapidly appreciating home values. If this is the case, lenders will be glad to offer to you a loan or line of credit based on your home’s value. You can use the loan/line of credit to pay off debt; in many cases the interest rate for the loan/line of credit is tax deductible too, whereas for a credit card debt it is not.

5. Renegotiate Your Loan. Some lenders will be all too happy to lower your outstanding interest rate, especially if in doing so they get to keep you as a customer. Sure, your 19.8% rate may only drop to 14 or 15%, but that may be all you need to get a handle on your debt.

6. Your Savings Institution. Banks, savings and loan associations, and credit unions may be able to help you consolidate debt by offering to you one loan that will pay off all your debt and allow for you to have a low, fixed-rate payment instead. Shop around, the rates vary!

7. Go to Mama! Family loans are a popular way to get rid of debt. Still, if you can’t pay them back, what effect will that “non-payment” have on your relationship with your family member? Sure, it may not effect your credit standing, but it certainly could have a negative effect on your family standing!

Naturally, you will want to explore each of these options and see which ones are the most feasible for you. Read the fine print and make sure you understand the terms of any debt consolidation loans. You want to reduce your debt, not create an avenue for further trouble.

Copyright 2006-2008 — Matt Keegan is The Article Writer who writes on subjects from Aviation to Zoos. Please check out his CabinManagers and TravelDuties blogs for job career information.

Decreasing your debt is paramount to having a good credit rating as well as giving you peace of mind. You want to get out of debt, but not all debt reduction options may be beneficial. Let’s take a look at five debt reduction options which may help you in your quest to get out of debt.

1. Consolidate Loans. Before declaring bankruptcy, consider pulling together all of your outstanding loans into one low monthly payment. Loan consolidators can help you come up with a plan to pay off all of your debt while maintaining your credit standing. Bankruptcy, unfortunately, ruins your credit rating while a consolidation loan may help you save it.

2. Your Life Insurance Policy. Your life insurance policy may have a cash value to it. Consider taking the cash from the policy and using it to pay off or lower your debt. Of course, your payout will be much lower upon your death; make sure your loved ones are adequately provided for when you have released this mortal coil.

3. Federal Loans. Government loan programs — local, state, and federal — may be available to you and at a rate much lower than what you currently pay your creditors. Check out loan programs, which you must pay back; as well as grants, which are gifts to you to see what your eligibility is.

4. Borrow From Your 401(k). If your company has contributory retirement plans such as a 401(k) or 403(b), you can take out a low interest rate loan and use the proceeds to pay off what you owe. You are borrowing from your retirement account so your loan must be paid back; if you do not pay it back you will incur IRS taxes and penalties. Still, the borrowing rates are quite reasonable.

5. Bankruptcy. The U.S. constitution gives Americans the right to discharge debt, and it is one option some must take in order to get creditors off of their backs. With medical expenses surging, gas prices hitting record high levels, and many other expenses increasing, bankruptcy may be your only choice to help protect your assets from overreaching creditors..

Obviously, some of these options have different consequences than others — like a ruined credit standing — still, when your back is to the wall your choices are extremely limited. Find your comfort level and choose an option that is right for you.