Stop the Retirement Rip-Off: How to Avoid Hidden Fees and Keep More of Your Money

Unfortunately, I am at the age where retirement is looming in the future (okay, its still 12 years away - but still it feels pretty close). I have been reading up on retirement and more specifically on how to make every penny of my retirement money work for ME instead of for my broker, government or bank. This has proven to be quite the challenge as it seems as though every where you turn, someone is sticking their hand out wanting a chunk of your savings. I was thrilled to discover Stop the Retirement Rip-Off. This is one of the best books I have read on this subject to date, especially since it takes a very step by step look at one of my huge pet peeves - hidden and not so hidden extra fees in the banking systems, governement or elsewhere. In fact, using 5 specific steps (which are all clearly explained in this book) author Loeper encourages us by telling us that WE ARE responsible for our money and that it is up to us to stay informed and on top of our money - and that by following his 5 steps and keeping our eyes open and keeping informed - we can avoir being ripped-off when it comes to our retirement. This book is written for the lay person, there are no fancy financial terms here and the steps, suggestions and recommendations are all very logical and easily done. I highly recommend this book - it is very well worth the investment.

Loeper's updated book contains a "how to" guide written for retirment plan participants - expanded beyond just 401(k) participants in this edition. But the guide is equally important for plan sponsors, where if they haven't done proper due diligence on the full, often hidden, costs of plans they offer their employees they could end up in a minefield of litigation risks. Besides showing the reader the right questions to ask to determine what, usually undisclosed, or obsurely disclosed, costs are being deducted from their plan balances every year, Loeper shows what even a fraction of 1% in excess costs means in real terms to a plan participant. Be it working longer, having less to spend in retirment, subjecting themself to more investment risk, or having to save a lot more - these are all the types of actions effectly imposed on a participant to offset the long-term impact of excessive costs that can be eliminated by a knowledgeable employer. Reading this book can make that employer knowledgeable enough to easily reduce plan costs. Loeper walks a participant step-by-step in how to approach and alert their employers to industry abuses in this area - to raise the alarm bell and help prevent unnecessary systematic reduction of hard-earned participant plan balances.

This book is an updated version of Stop the 401(k)rip-off that includes other types of retirement plans like 457 and 403b plans. Other than that and some updated portfolio allocation information, it is basically the same. It is an easy read and actually, the author's writing style is very entertaining considering the topic. Getting participants informed about excessive fees and conflicts of interest and providing them with easy to execute steps to get their employer to fix their "costly clunker" retirement plan is the only way to help investors make the most out of their retirement plan since the DOL has tabled new disclosure regulations about fees and conflicts of interest. The steps are easy to follow and allow you to approach your employer in a positive, non-confrontational way to fix your retirement plan. With what the author discloses about conflicts of interest and hidden fee skimming about retirement plans, I'm anxious to get his next book, Stop the Investing Rip-off that supposedly will show the inner workings of rip-off artists from Wall Street brokers, financial planners and advisors, newsletters, discount brokers and even the media. Stop the Investing Rip-off: How to Avoid Being a Victim and Make More Money I might also consider getting his book about retirement plans designed for employers, advisors and attorneys as a gift for our benefits manager. The Four Pillars of Retirement Plans: The Fiduciary Guide to Participant Directed Retirement Plans