Hey all, we are planning our trip for next summer and would love any recommendations. I'd like to find some smaller/more unique hotel / bed and breakfast stays along the way. Doesn't have to be hotels, but just places that may not get as much attention but were still gems that you found! Would also love if you could say why you loved them. Thank you!
I tried to post this on the forum but can't find how to actually create a new post!
Questions: are there any other ways to save pre-tax if you're a w2 employee beyond a 401k (pretty sure the answer is no)? Is a non qualified deferred comp plan (NQDC) at my job worth considering or should I just do taxable brokerage? I've been told it's the same as a 457 for terminology.
I'm 42, single (partnered but file single), personal net worth of $1,800,000, $1.2 of that liquid investments in Roth, HSA, Traditional, SEP, simple, taxable brokerage, Roth 401k, and traditional 401k. Partner is at $1.25 liquid in cash and retirement accts. $1.1 million in 2 single family rentals (me) and one primary residence worth $900k (him).
This year (for 2025) I owed $22,000 in taxes over and above what had already been withheld. My accountant told me to have them withhold more. However, I think saving more pretax makes more sense (because why say goodbye to $22k forever via withholding if I can save enough to deduct that from taxes and have that money in retirement)?
Due to discrimination testing I can only contribute $15,000 a year to my traditional 401k. To make up for this they offer a non-qualified deferred compensation plan. This is the first year they've offered it and it's through Empower. Low cost Vanguard options available.
This would be a pre-tax way to save up to 80% of my salary, but I've been told they can be risky as if the company goes under I can lose my money. I work for the second largest veterinary corporation in the US with over 1500 hospitals. The chance of them going under is low but obviously not zero. I hope to work full-time (3-4 days a week) for another 3 to 5 years, then go to part-time (2-3) days a week for another 10 to 15 years. I've read it's best to only contribute to these if you are close to retirement (3-5 years) since the chance of something going wrong with the company goes up the longer your money sits there (and thus losing your money). My hope is to be here at same hospital for the whole time but private equity is making it harder and harder to enjoy my home of 11 years. In theory though I wouldn't access this money for 10-20 years.
So my question is, is it better to lose $22,000 in taxes for sure, or save enough in a pre-tax non-qualified deferred compensation plan to offset that, but potentially lose everything, which could be $70k+ per year in contributions? Alternatively do you have any better recommendations for pretax contributions? Would you just do brokerage and call it a day? When I google, it looks like there are real life examples of people in Enron etc losing their deferred compensation money. Scary.