For business owners with Schwab, Fidelity, Vanguard or an RIA

Keep your accounts at Schwab, Fidelity or Vanguard. Add a cash balance plan.

MyPensionTree designs and administers your custom cash balance plan while your investments stay at your preferred brokerage or wealth advisor — with zero forced asset transfers and zero AUM fees.

Free estimate by email in about 30 seconds. We'll ask for a phone number too.

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Three short steps. Your owner estimate arrives by email in about 30 seconds. Custodian account setup and staff census review come next.

STEP 1 OF 3 · TEAM

Team
Age & profit
Delivery

Who works in your business?

General information about how these plans work, not tax advice. Figures are illustrative of plan designs we have built, are hypothetical in nature, and are not a guarantee of future results. Your own numbers depend on your age, income, and plan design. Please consult an independent tax or financial advisor.

25+years of combined
experience

Founded by tax and legal pros (MBA, M.S. Taxation; J.D., CPA), with pension actuaries and plan administrators on the team.

$101k+

Saved Annually

1099 orthopedic surgeon: Locum Physician Case Study: $101,850 Saved Annually

See the case studies →

Custodian-neutral architecture

Works directly with your existing brokerage or RIA.

Your qualified plan trust holds its investment-only account at your custodian while MyPensionTree serves as independent plan designer, actuary, and third-party administrator.

Charles Schwab

Schwab Personal Defined Benefit & Schwab Advisor Services

Schwab supports qualified retirement plan trust accounts for both self-directed owners and independent RIAs. Pairing Schwab custody with MyPensionTree replaces rigid solo-only prototype constraints with custom interest-crediting formulas, 401(k) combo cross-testing, and spouse or staff coverage.

Keep self-directed equities, ETFs, and Treasury ladders at Schwab
Compatible with Schwab Advisor Services institutional RIA accounts
Full third-party plan document, Schedule SB, and Form 5500 support

Fidelity Investments

Fidelity Investment-Only Retirement Plan Trust Account

For closely held businesses, Fidelity provides investment-only trust custody rather than bundled small-plan actuarial administration. MyPensionTree supplies the custom Cash Balance plan document, trust resolution, and annual actuarial valuation required to open and fund your Fidelity trust account.

Open a dedicated Fidelity Investment-Only trust account under your plan EIN
Coordinate seamlessly alongside an existing Fidelity Solo 401(k) or 401(k)
Annual minimum, target, and maximum contribution calculations by our actuary

Vanguard

Trustee-Directed Qualified Plan & Institutional Custody

Vanguard Custody

Founders and advisors who prefer Vanguard index mutual funds, Treasury ETFs, and money market funds hold plan assets inside a trustee-directed qualified plan brokerage account while MyPensionTree handles ongoing IRS compliance, nondiscrimination testing, and annual filings.

Pair low-cost Vanguard index and fixed-income funds with custom plan design
Target conservative interest-crediting rates aligned with Treasury yields
Zero asset-based AUM fees added by MyPensionTree

Independent RIA Custodians

Altruist, Pershing, Interactive Brokers, LPL & Institutional Platforms

RIA & Multi-Custodian

Working with a fiduciary wealth advisor? Your advisor keeps managing the pooled retirement trust portfolio on their existing institutional platform while our actuarial desk coordinates annual funding corridors directly with you and your CPA.

No forced asset migration away from your existing wealth advisor
Clean division of duties: custody, investment management, and actuarial TPA
Dedicated CPA and advisor coordination for tax-return deadlines

$203,700

1099 orthopedic surgeon, age 39: $203,700 a year in combined 401(k) and cash balance plan contributions.

92%

Orthodontic practice, eight staff: owners received 92% of total company retirement plan funding.

Our practice is thriving, and now our retirement plan is too. The tax savings helped us invest in new state-of-the-art equipment.

— Dr. Evans, DMD, Orthodontic Practice (anonymized client case study)

Illustrative cases based on real client engagements with identifying details anonymized; results vary by age, compensation, entity, and plan design and are not guaranteed. See the case studies →

Five reasons owners pair MyPensionTree with their custodian.

Keep your brokerage

Hold Treasuries, ETFs, or advisor-managed portfolios right where you already invest — zero forced platform transfers.

Contribute beyond a 401(k)

Stack a custom cash balance plan on top of your Solo 401(k) or Safe Harbor 401(k) based on your age and compensation.

Flat-fee administration

Transparent flat setup and annual actuarial administration fees — never asset-based basis points on your account balance.

Custom staff & entity testing

Cross-test W-2 employees, include a working spouse, or aggregate multi-entity controlled groups beyond rigid brokerage templates.

Schedule SB & Form 5500 prepared

Our enrolled actuary and plan administrators prepare the annual funding range, testing, Schedule SB, and Form 5500 for signature.

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MyPensionTree + your custodian vs brokerage prototype kits.

Keep low-cost brokerage execution without settling for a rigid off-the-shelf solo template.

Capability MyPensionTree

Brokerage prototype kit

Plan document & formula flexibilityHow the retirement benefit formula and interest-crediting rate are tailored to your business.✓ Custom cash balance + 401(k) combo designRigid one-size-fits-all prototype kit

Businesses with W-2 staff or partnersAbility to cross-test owner and staff groups so owner funding stays efficient.✓ Full IRC § 401(a)(4) cross-testing & tieringOften restricted to owner-only accounts

Fee structure on your investmentsHow administration is billed as your plan balance grows year over year.✓ Flat administration fee (0% AUM)Bundled AUM wrap or rigid third-party referral

Who runs your annual testing & filingsDirect access to the actuarial team preparing Schedule SB, nondiscrimination tests, and Form 5500.✓ Named in-house specialists, year after yearSelf-service forms or disconnected TPA queue

Charles Schwab, Fidelity Investments, Vanguard, Altruist, Pershing, Interactive Brokers, and LPL are registered trademarks of their respective owners. MyPensionTree, LLC is an independent retirement plan consulting and actuarial administration firm and is not affiliated with or endorsed by any named brokerage custodian.

Skip the actuarial email chain.

Opening an investment-only pension trust account at Schwab, Fidelity, or Vanguard is straightforward once you have the signed plan document, trust resolution, and actuarial funding schedule in hand.

Step-by-step guidance from estimate to funded account.

Our team prepares the adoption agreement and trust paperwork your custodian asks for, calculates your annual minimum, target, and maximum contribution corridor, and coordinates directly with your CPA and wealth advisor.

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The people who run your plan.

Alexander Tecle, President, My Pension Tree, LLC. MBA, MS Taxation.

Pension actuaries and plan administrators on the team. 25+ years of combined experience. Coral Gables, Florida.

Meet the team →

Who handles what.

Services and flat administration fees are agreed before you start.

Design and paperwork

MPT

Plan design, annual actuarial calculations, nondiscrimination testing, and the IRS filings you sign.

Decisions and funding

You

Share business details, approve the plan design, and fund the annual contributions.

Custody, investments & tax

Your custodian & CPA

Schwab, Fidelity, Vanguard, or your RIA holds the investments; your CPA confirms the tax deduction on your return.

Common questions

Custodian & third-party administration FAQs.

Can I keep my cash balance plan investments at Charles Schwab, Fidelity, or Vanguard?

Yes. MyPensionTree is an independent plan design and actuarial administration firm, not a brokerage holding your assets. Your qualified retirement plan trust opens or keeps its investment-only brokerage account directly at Charles Schwab, Fidelity, Vanguard, or your preferred RIA custodian while our team handles the plan document, annual actuarial valuation, nondiscrimination testing, and Form 5500.

Why pair MyPensionTree with Schwab, Fidelity, or Vanguard instead of using a brokerage prototype template?

Standard brokerage defined benefit kits are typically built around rigid owner-only prototype templates. Pairing your brokerage custody account with MyPensionTree unlocks Safe Harbor 401(k) profit-sharing cross-testing, W-2 employee tiering, multi-entity controlled-group aggregation, flexible minimum-to-maximum funding corridors, and optional 401(h) or 412(e)(3) structures.

Does MyPensionTree charge asset-based AUM fees on my Schwab, Fidelity, or Vanguard account?

No. MyPensionTree charges flat, transparent plan design and annual administration fees rather than asset-based basis points. Whether you self-direct Treasury bills and index ETFs or work with an independent wealth advisor, your investment expenses stay strictly between you and your custodian or advisor.

Can my existing financial advisor manage the cash balance portfolio on their institutional platform?

Yes. Advisors custodying on Schwab Advisor Services, Fidelity Institutional, Vanguard Institutional, Altruist, Pershing, LPL, or Interactive Brokers manage the pooled pension trust account directly while our actuarial desk coordinates annual contribution corridors and tax-deadline reporting with the client's CPA.

Go deeper.

Cash balance plans guide →

How cash balance plans work, who they fit, and how annual limits scale with age.

Add a cash balance plan to a 401(k) →

How an existing Solo 401(k) or Safe Harbor 401(k) pairs with a new defined benefit trust.

Transparent pricing & plan design →

Flat-fee plan design and ongoing annual actuarial administration details.

See your number in about 30 seconds.

Answer three short steps and we'll email your free estimate. If it fits, our actuary designs the plan. A call is optional.

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General information about how these plans work, not tax advice. Estimates are not guaranteed contributions, tax savings, or a recommendation. Final design and funding require professional review.