Attention 401(K) Participants: Consistency May Pay Off, Study Finds

Despite the stock market drops of 2008, the average account balance of 401(k) participants who continued investing during the five-year period ending December 31, 2012, grew by a compounded average annual rate of 6.8%, according to a study released jointly by the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI) and the Investment Company Institute (ICI).

A closer examination of the figures illustrates the potential benefit of consistent participation.  As of December 31, 2012, over 30% of the consistent participants had more than $100,000 in their 401(k) accounts, compared with just 18% of the broader group.

Click here for a summary of the study, for the full July 2014 EBRI brief visit www.ebri.org and additional information is available at www.ici.org.