401kNerd

Resources

Files & videos

Worksheets, reference sheets, illustration walkthroughs, and short videos. The supporting material that comes up over and over in plan design and compliance work.

Downloadable file

Plan Design Worksheet (PDF)

A one-page intake worksheet I use during initial plan design conversations. Capture the demographics and goals before you start running numbers.

Download (PDF)

This is the worksheet I send to a sponsor before our first design call. Filling it out in advance saves about thirty minutes on the call and surfaces the constraints (owner ages, key employee count, current contribution patterns, and stated goals) that drive every downstream design decision.

Replace the file URL with a direct link once the asset is hosted (Netlify Blobs, Dropbox, Google Drive, or any signed URL will work).

worksheet plan design
Video

Walkthrough: Reading a Cash Balance Illustration

A short screen recording walking through a sample cash balance illustration: pay credits, interest credits, projected accumulated benefit, and required contribution.

Cash balance illustrations look intimidating the first time you see one. In this walkthrough I take a sample illustration for a 12-person professional services firm and explain each column: what is required, what is projected, and what the sponsor actually has to fund.

Replace the embed URL with the real video (YouTube, Vimeo, or a Netlify Blobs-hosted MP4) when it is published.

cash balance video walkthrough
Downloadable file

2026 Contribution Limits Reference Sheet

A printable one-pager with the 2026 IRS limits for 401(k), 403(b), 457, IRA, HSA, and DB plans, plus the SECURE 2.0 catch-up thresholds.

Download (PDF)

Every January I put together a reference sheet with the indexed limits for the new plan year. Sponsors and TPAs find it useful as a quick desk reference. No need to dig through Notice 2025-XX every time someone asks whether the deferral limit is $24,500 or $25,000.

The link currently points to plandesign.com as a placeholder. Replace it with the hosted PDF.

reference limits 2026

Have a worksheet, video, or reference doc to share?

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