The survey finds that nearly 20 percent of companies have seen increased hardship withdrawals from 401(k) accounts, often to cover mortgage payments or to avoid personal bankruptcy.
"In the last four or five months we have seen an absolute onslaught of people trying to do hardship withdrawals and loans out of 401(k)s," Mark Anderson, CFO of Granite City Electric, told CFO magazine in October. "What has happened with housing and the economy has really blown up for people at the lower end of the spectrum."
Considering that 401(k) accounts are almost always exempt in bankruptcy proceedings, my first thought is that people are eating their seed corn. There are rare situations where this is to the debtor's benefit. But something tells me most of these cases don't fall into those rare exceptions.
Lately, I have been thinking of the song Santa Monica by Everclear. In my own way I can identify with some of the lyrics of the song. The song is actually about a bad relationship breakup; but for me the selected lyrics sound somewhat like my new life by the Gulf Coast.
With my big black boots and an old suitcase
I do believe I'll find myself a new place
I don't want to be the bad guy
I don't want to do your sleepwalk dance anymore
I just want to see some palm trees
(I will) Go and try to shake away this disease
We can live beside the ocean
Leave the fire behind
Swim out past the breakers
Watch the world die
...
I'll walk right out into a brand new day
Insane and rising in my own weird way
I don't want to be the bad guy
I don't want to do your sleepwalk dance anymore
I just want to feel some sunshine
I just want to find some place to be alone
We can live beside the ocean
Leave the fire behind
Swim out past the breakers
Watch the world die
No comments:
Post a Comment