Shepherd Plan Advantages

Shepherd Plan Advantages

Advantages for Workers

Tax advantages for Ministers of the Gospel under Internal Revenue Code Section 107:
- Tax-free distributions available in retirement for qualified housing expenses
- Housing Equity Account contributions available prior to age 59 1/2 for down payment on a home
Roth provision permits after-tax contributions to be distributed tax-free in retirement if certain conditions are met
Low-cost investment funds with no front-end or back-end load fees
Ability to diversify investments through pre-built portfolios or individual fund selection
Ability to maintain separate portfolio for each source of funds and to receive distributions from any fund or portfolio
Direct rollover and transfer capabilities from a previous employer retirement plan savings account or IRA
Shepherd Plan account is portable across all WELS sponsoring organizations
Plan advisor, the Hahn Financial Group, provides personalized help in creating portfolios, benefit consultations and retirement readiness calculations

Advantages for Sponsoring Organizations

WELS Retirement Program Commission maintains the Shepherd Plan document and reviews performance of the plan and its investment funds
Fiduciary liability coverage automatically included as part of Shepherd Plan adoption
Simplified paperwork and transmission of funds
Annual education and quarterly newsletters provided for organization treasurer/administrator
Portability of Shepherd Plan accounts between WELS sponsoring organizations simplifies call transition process for workers
Easily-accessible plan advisors provide support on Shepherd Plan adoption process and ongoing administration