The first Merced County Hispanic Chamber of Commerce (HCC) Spring Business Seminar was held last Thursday at Wired Café in downtown Merced. The keynote speaker was Jeremy Aguilar, a Financial Advisor with Merrill Lynch.
The meeting was opened by HCC President Rene Gutierrez of Amtrak. “This is our first business seminar. We are always looking for ways to add value to our membership,” he said.
The audience was told there would be quarterly seminars in the future and invited to submit their ideas for topics to the chamber.
Aguilar is a new member of HCC. “My goal is to help people who aspire to open businesses in the Central Valley,” he explained. “I am very happy at Merrill Lynch where I am able to help people achieve their goals.”
The presentation gave an overview of the many different kinds of business retirement accounts available. “I’d like to share some information that may help business owners avoid some mistakes in how their retirement accounts are set up initially,” Aguilar said.
The basic plan categories covered included SEP IRA, a variety of 401Ks, Profit Sharing, Safe Harbor 401K, Simple IRA, and Defined Benefit. Aguilar provided information on the benefits, shortfalls and regulations for each type of plan and some of the types of businesses that benefit most from each.
“Retirement accounts move taxable revenue into a retirement account. The funds aren’t taxed until they are drawn, usually in years where they will be at a lower tax rate,” Aguilar explained.
The audience had experiences with retirement plans and questions, which Aguilar was happy to address. The idea of “vesting” to delay full benefit to employees from employer contributions was discussed the most.
According to Aguilar, the main benefit of vesting was to encourage key employees to stay with the company longer by increasing the value of their 401K funds. He suggested increasing employer contribution percentages following the normal vesting period to further encourage key employees to stay.
For more information about the Merced County Hispanic Chamber of Commerce or to submit seminar topic ideas email info@mercedhcc.com.