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No it isn't. PBGC, and it's various analogs. Yes, you get a haircut, but pensions are generally insured for that. 401 plans are administered by companies and ar

No it isn't. PBGC, and it's various analogs. Yes, you get a haircut, but pensions are generally insured for that. 401 plans are administered by companies and are funds of funds, at any rate, and you're still just reliant on 1) a different set of companies 2) market values to line up with your liquidity needs. Also, how are you just ignoring have to rely on the honesty/fiscal stability of the company backing your hypothetical annuity in the space of two paragraphs? Pensions are disappearing anyway so I feel like we're arguing the nutritional value of eating yangtze river dolphins, but that is because 401 plans are cheaper for employers and there is a lucrative fee structure in administering them, not because of an intrinsic flaw of pensions.

lotsofpulp 7y ago
There is no lucrative fee structure if the employer goes with a Vanguard and prob Schwann/Fidelity 401k. In fact, it’s far cheaper than the investment fees charged by pension fund managers and has greater performance. Absolutely no reason to pay all those actuaries and investors when an index funds with zero expenses do a better job over decades long timeframes. And PBGC is woefully underfunded. It’s already needing a bailout with just a few failing multi employer funds. It’s mostly for show I presume, since this isn’t even the first time it’s getting bailed out. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-07-25/house-passes-pension-bailout-as-democrats-eye-industrial-states https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-07-25/house-pas...