Issue link: http://educator.cta.org/i/1316347
" I appreciated the clear and easy presentation. It seemed like a better deal, so I switched." — Kellyn Griffin, Porterville Educators Association C T A M E M B E R S W H O have made the switch to CTA's Retirement Savings Plan say they like what it offers them — especially lower fees and transparency. A few examples: 1. Kellyn Griffin, a member of Porter- ville Educators Association, is now in her ninth year of teaching. Soon after starting her first teaching job in Madera, co-workers told her, " You need to sign up for a 403(b), and you need to do it soon." The high school earth and space sci- ence teacher knows she's lucky she got the advice. "I'm a science person — it's not in my brain to know about 403(b)s," she laughs. "I would have to do a lot of my own research, so I rely on other people." Griffin has managed to save a substantial amount in the past years. But she was invested in a variable annuity product and realized she would be charged steep fees for withdrawing down the line. Last year she attended a districtwide presentation on CTA's RSP. "I appreciated the clear and easy presentation. It seemed like a better deal, so I switched." Fortunately, she had been with the other plan long enough that there was no surrender fee to roll over her funds to the CTA RSP. She's now invested in a target date fund that aligns with her year of birth. It's estimated that she'll save 68 per- cent annually in ongoing administrative and investment fees compared to her former funding option, using the CTA RSP's largely flat administrative and custodial fees. 2. Larry Johnson, now in his 37th year as an educator, has enjoyed teaching subjects as varied as math, technology and alternative PE, but is looking forward to retirement in spring 2021. The Visalia Unified Teach- ers Association member has served on CTA State Council's retirement commit- tee for the past six years, where he got an early peek at CTA's RSP. "I've been hearing about the RSP program being set up to bridge the gap between high-fee annuities and the Member Stories The information contained in these case studies is based on information provided by the participant and the 403bCompare website, and in many cases directly from vendor websites. CTA , CTA VRPE, LLC, and Prudent Investor Advisors (Prudent), collectively the CTA Parties, are not responsible for the accuracy of information provided from these third-party sources. The CTA Parties believe these sources are reliable; however, no warrant or guarantee is provided related to the timeliness or accuracy of this information. The information contained in these case studies is offered for information and education purposes only. It is not a recommendation to buy or sell any securities of any kind. These case studies are not intended to be tax or legal advice of any kind. The educator should consult a tax adviser for tax help or a competent legal adviser for legal advice. The CTA Parties and their representatives do not provide tax or legal advice of any kind. Surrender fees and back-end loads/fees may apply to the early liquidation of some investment funding sources through a rollover 58 cta.org CTA & You A 30-year-old educator with an account balance of $50,000 would pay $175 annually in fees to invest in the 2050 target date fund offered by CTA. This is 64% lower than the $480 average annual fee to invest in a 2050 TDF listed on 403bCompare.com. Fee references include management and administrative/custodial fees as of January 2019, and are subject to change. Pay Attention to Fees