Cash Balance Plans Part 2: EDU #2606
The Retirement and IRA Show
Jim Saulnier, CFP® & Chris Stein, CFP®
4.3 • 729 Ratings
🗓️ 11 February 2026
⏱️ 87 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Chris’s Summary
Jim and I are joined by Steve Sansone as we revisit Cash Balance Plans and respond to listener follow-up emails.
(8:30) A CPA asks whether cash balance plans could be a fit for farmers with high income near retirement driven by deferred grain and equipment sales.
(18:30) A listener with two controlled-group businesses asks how a cash balance plan works with divergent profit cycles, whether it can support succession planning, and whether it makes sense if ownership works until death.
(36:45) A financial advisor asks for real-world details on costs, duplication/administration, duration, interest crediting rate risk, investment management, participant inclusion decisions, partner exits, lifetime maximums, and terminate/restart mechanics.
Jim’s “Pithy” Summary
Chris and I are joined by Steve Sansone as we dig back into cash balance plans, but this time we’re doing it by letting listener questions drive the conversation. We take three listener emails that each come at this from a different angle: one from a CPA working with farmers facing lumpy income near retirement, one from a family dealing with two controlled-group businesses that don’t behave the same way financially, and one from an advisor who’s basically saying, “Convince me this isn’t just theoretical.”
Chris and I talk with Steve about what makes these plans work and what makes them a headache—cash flow consistency, the “permanence” expectation, why manufacturers with lots of employees can be a tough fit, and how quickly the math changes when you have to fund meaningful benefits for staff. We also get into the stuff people don’t always hear in the sales pitch: what “interest crediting” really means, where the risk lives if returns don’t cooperate, and why newer market-rate designs change the conversation compared to older fixed-rate versions.
And we cover the messy real-life questions: what happens when partners leave, what it looks like to terminate and restart a plan, and why you can’t treat this like an investment strategy with a neat five-to-ten-year horizon. It’s a tax and retirement-acceleration tool with rules, tradeoffs, and guardrails—and Steve does a solid job laying out when it’s worth the complexity and when it’s just not.
The post Cash Balance Plans Part 2: EDU #2606 appeared first on The Retirement and IRA Show.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | The retirement and IRA show represents the words and views of the show hosts exclusively and should not be construed as investment legal or tax advice. All information is believed to be from reliable sources. However, we make no representation as to its completeness or accuracy. All economic and performance information is historical in nature and is not indicative of any future results. Any indices mentioned on the show are unmanaged and cannot be invested indirectly. Diversification and asset allocation strategies do not assure profit or protect against loss. |
| 0:23.7 | Never make any investment or financial decisions based on information offered on this show without first consulting your financial legal or tax advisor. |
| 0:29.6 | Financial planning services offered through Jim Solnier and Associates LLC, a registered investment advisor. |
| 0:47.0 | This is the retirement and IRA show coming to you from beautiful Northern Colorado. |
| 0:52.7 | Join us as certified financial planner Jim Sonier, as well as Colorado State University Finance instructor and certified financial planner Chris Stein teach you about IRAs, |
| 0:58.0 | borrow-in-case, annuities, Social Security, pension plans, and estate planning in a fun and enjoyable show. |
| 1:05.0 | Whether you are listening live in Colorado or streaming from their website or iTunes podcast, Jim and Chris want you to know that they're available to help you plan for your retirement. |
| 1:15.2 | Just visit their website at Jimhelps.com. |
| 1:18.4 | That's Jim H-E-L-P-S dot com and click the Meet the Team button on the homepage. |
| 1:24.6 | Now here's Jim and Chris with today's show. |
| 1:29.6 | Well, hello everybody and welcome to the Retirement and IRA show, EDU edition for this |
| 1:35.1 | week. On this week's show, we are inviting back. A special guest we had back in December. |
| 1:42.9 | Steve Sansone is joining us again back in December on, I think it released actually on Christmas Eve on December 24th. |
| 1:50.5 | It was EDU show number 2552. |
| 1:53.7 | If anyone missed it and wants to go back and listen to it, give you some context for today's conversation. |
| 2:00.9 | But Steve joined us at that point and talked to us about cash balance pension plans, |
| 2:05.9 | which have some unique applications, if you will, |
| 2:11.2 | particularly for self-employed individuals or owners of small businesses |
| 2:17.3 | looking to set up a favorable retirement plan for |
| 2:21.9 | themselves in particular details were described back in that original show. |
| 2:28.4 | Today's show is a follow-up because we got a series of questions from listeners about these |
| 2:33.6 | cash balance pension plans. |
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