Schwab Offers Health Care for Independent Advisers

Schwab Institutional on Monday announced a new relationship with national human resources outsourcing company TriNet to provide health care and benefit services for independent investment advisers and their employees.

As part of the relationship with TriNet, advisers who custody assets with Schwab will now be able to receive health and life insurance, payroll services, and company retirement and employee incentive plans from TriNet at preferred rates, according to a press announcement. The human resources outsourcing service is part of Schwab Institutional’s GrowthPoint practice management program.

The new service enables independent advisers to work with a single vendor to establish and administer multiple services, which may include medical, dental, and vision benefits, as well as long-and short-term disability insurance, and 401(k) plans. TriNet assumes responsibility for administering certain human resource functions, such as employee benefits and payroll, worker’s compensation, labor and wage compliance, employment tax filings, and employee files, the announcement said.

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TriNet also has dedicated consultants to work with advisers to select the appropriate benefits package.

There are no minimum employee requirements, providing an offering to small firms that may not otherwise have access to such services. The offering may also be of interest to advisers who are making the transition to becoming independent investment advisers.

For more information on the new offering through Schwab Institutional and TriNet, advisers may call 1-877-687-4085.

AIM Launches Adviser Education Module on Social Security

AIM Investments has rolled out an educational module for financial advisers to help them navigate clients through various scenarios involving Social Security’s role in retirement planning.

According to a press release, as part of the educational materials, AIM will provide financial advisers with:

  • A Social Security Fix-it Book (Published by the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College),
  • Social Security’s Financial Outlook: The 2007 Report in Perspective (Published by the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College),
  • A Social Security Overview presentation, and
  • A Social Security Adviser Guide.

AIM pointed out that, as questions mount regarding how many dollars will be available in the future through the Social Security program, responsibility is shifting more than ever to individual investors to adequately prepare for their retirement years. The AIM materials present the facts about the plight of Social Security and potential resolutions, as well as strategies for financial advisers to use in building retirement plans for their clients.

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“Retirement planning is one of the most important investment topics of our day. It’s critical for investors to realize that Social Security alone is not likely to provide all the financial support they will need,’ said John Cooper, Head of U.S. Sales for AIM Investments, in the release.

For more information, visit www.aiminvestments.com.

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