Long-Term Care Insurance | Forgotten 401(k)s

YOU MAY NOT NEED LONG-TERM CARE INSURANCE: We recently worked with a family within five years of retirement*, and one of the most important questions in their plan was long-term care insurance—should they get it, how much, and when?

After working through the analysis, we were able to show them something unexpected. They didn’t need it.

The conversation shifted from being product-focused to planning-focused. When you start with a product, we often see people looking for a single solution, but when you start with planning, you open up multiple paths forward.

In this case, between the assets they had already accumulated, the equity in their home, and their expectations for care, they were already fully funded.

Our encouragement is this: don’t start planning conversations with a product. Start with the plan and make an informed decision about what’s actually needed versus what’s being sold.

*Illustrative case study for educational purposes only; not a guarantee of future results and not intended as individualized advice or a recommendation to purchase or forgo long-term care insurance. Client circumstances differ, and outcomes will vary. This example was selected based on planning themes, not performance, and is not representative of all client experiences.

FORGOTTEN 401(k)s? You may have moved on to a new job, but nearly 32 million 401(k) accounts were abandoned or forgotten by their owners as of 2025, according to research from fintech firm Capitalize. This totals roughly $2.1 trillion. Doing nothing is an expensive decision. Consider options and let us help you:

• Check if 401(k) rules allow you to leave the funds invested and untouched, even if you’ve left the company
• Roll the money into an IRA
• Roll the money into your new employer plan
• Cash it out (significant penalties incur if you are younger than 59)

If you can’t recall the status of retirement funds from prior employment, consider the Department of Labor Lost and Found Database.

CONSIDER TIMING:

WHEN TO CONTRIBUTE: We recommend a mix of investment accounts:

• Tax Free: Roth, HSA, 529, etc.
• Tax Deferred: Traditional retirement accounts
• Taxable: Brokerage account

You don’t, however, need to contribute to each one each year. Consider these ideas:

• Pretax 401(k): use in your highest income-earning years—think 32-37% tax brackets
• Roth 401(k): use in your lower-income-earning years—think 12-24% brackets
• Mega backdoor Roth 401(k): use whenever you have the funds, if you have maxed out the above
• Roth IRA/backdoor Roth: use after maxing out the above every year that you can (sometimes it makes sense to do this before maxing out the above)
• HSA: use and max out when you have an HSA-eligible plan. HSA plans provide the best of both worlds with pre-tax deferral, tax-free growth, and tax-free use
• Taxable: use in all seasons to build liquidity and to have another place to pull from in the future
• Cash balance plan: use in very high-earning years
• Deferred comp: use in peak earning years

TOO OLD OR TOO OLD NOT TO?: Your weekly dose of inspiration. Watch here.

*The views expressed represent the opinions of Compass Ion Advisors, LLC, as of the date noted and are subject to change. These views are not intended as a forecast, a guarantee of future results, an investment recommendation, or an offer to buy or sell any securities. The information provided is of a general nature and should not be construed as investment advice or to provide any investment, tax, financial, or legal advice or service to any person. The information contained has been compiled from sources deemed reliable, yet accuracy is not guaranteed.

Additional information, including management fees and expenses, is provided on our Form ADV Part 2 available upon request or at the SEC’s Investment Adviser Public Disclosure website here. Past performance is not a guarantee of future results.