Hi Mark, The forced savings (or disciplined savings) element is, I agree, really relevant.

Also, the asset protection element definitely is something to consider. Those stipulations made, however, I think one does need to be careful to not overpay for these features.

Finally the example in the blog post only “costs” the taxpayer $20K a year of income. And that $20K is pretty immaterial to the total income. In many more typical cases, the relative cost to going big with the pension contributions is much more significant.

1. The asset protection that the money put away in a pension plan enjoys, compared to putting it into a taxable account.
2. When savings are “forced” i.e., I/we must put away X dollars into this space or else we loose the opportunity for the year, one is more likely to do it… you are faced with a deadline and a solid target. In taxable accounts – unless you are very disciplined, there is less urgency and no set target.
In my opinion the above 2 factors are significant enough that am considering putting my spouse on payroll to add to our retirement savings.