Bernhardt Furniture Company 401(k) Review & Grade
Bernhardt Furniture Company Retirement Plan
Lenoir, NCManufacturing1,136 active participantsPlan year 2024✓ Auto-enroll
Estimate from the plan's Form 5500 filing · How we grade
$616Employer $ per active participant
$3,405Employee $ saved per active participant
0.29%Direct admin cost, % of plan assets
$57.7MNet plan assets, end of year
$48,335Average balance per account
Score breakdown
- Employer generosity4.5 / 509th percentile for employer $ per participant
- Low cost10.6 / 2542th percentile for low admin cost vs. same-size plans
- Employee saving4.2 / 1528th percentile for employee $ per participant
- Plan features10 / 10Auto-enrollment, Default investment
- Red-flag deductions-3 pts1 issue reported on the filing
Total score26 / 100 · Grade F
This plan vs. peers
Peers: Manufacturing plans with 500–2,499 active participants (2,376 plans).
| Measure | Percentile |
|---|---|
| Employer $ per participant | 9th |
| Lower admin cost | 42th |
| Employee saving | 28th |
| Peers that auto-enroll | 59% |
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Red flags from the filing
Corrective distributions: the plan refunded $74 in contributions, which usually means it failed annual nondiscrimination testing.
What to do if you're in this plan
- Bernhardt Furniture put in about $616 per active participant, below the typical peer ($2,320). Any match is still an instant return, so contribute enough to get all of it.
- The filing shows total dollars, not the match formula. Ask HR for the Summary Plan Description so you know the exact match and vesting schedule.
- Fund expense ratios aren't in the filing. Look them up in your 404(a)(5) fee disclosure and favor low-cost index or target-date funds.
- The plan auto-enrolls employees. Check your default contribution rate. Defaults are often lower than what it takes to get the full match.
- Changing jobs? You can usually leave the money in the plan, move it to your new employer's plan, or roll it into an IRA. Don't cash out: you'd owe taxes and possibly a 10% penalty.
The raw numbers from the filing
| Employer contributions | $699,680 |
| Participant (employee) contributions | $3,867,563 |
| Other contributions (incl. rollovers in) | $691,920 |
| Administrative expenses paid from the plan | $157,506 |
| Investment advisory & management fees | $56,020 |
| Benefits paid out | $6,581,702 |
| Net assets, start / end of year | $52.6M / $57.7M |
| Active participants, start / end of year | 1,167 / 1,105 |
| Participants with account balances | 1,194 |
| Auto-enrollment (feature code 2S) | Yes |
| Auditor | Davidson,holland,whitesell&co |
Largest service providers (Schedule C)
| Schwab Retirement Plan Services,inc | $101,486 reported compensation |
| Truist Bank | $56,020 reported compensation |
Source: DOL EFAST2 Form 5500 filing, acknowledgment ID 20250908085233NAL0019164529001, received 2025-09-08, EIN 56-0671544, plan #003, plan year 2024-01-01 to 2024-12-31. Verify at efast.dol.gov.