How To Pack More Money Into Retirement Accounts

If you’re self-employed, your retirement plan isn’t sitting in an HR portal waiting for you—it’s something you have to intentionally build. And one of the most powerful, underutilized tools available to you is the SEP IRA.

A Simplified Employee Pension (SEP) IRA isn’t flashy. It doesn’t get talked about like backdoor Roth strategies or exotic tax shelters. But for the right person, it’s one of the most efficient, flexible, and impactful retirement vehicles in the entire tax code.

The Big Advantage: Scale

The first thing that separates a SEP IRA from traditional IRAs is contribution size.

With a traditional or Roth IRA, you’re capped at relatively low annual contributions. A SEP IRA allows you to contribute up to 25% of your compensation, with a maximum contribution limit that’s significantly higher ($72,000 for 2026).

For a self-employed individual or business owner having a strong year, that’s a game changer.

You’re not just saving for retirement—you’re actively controlling your taxable income while building long-term wealth.

Tax Efficiency: Pay Less Now, Grow More Later

SEP IRA contributions are tax-deductible. That means every dollar you contribute reduces your taxable income today.

If you’re a high-earning consultant, advisor, contractor, or small business owner, this becomes a strategic lever:

• Strong income year? Increase your SEP contribution to offset taxes

• Lean year? Scale it back—no fixed commitment required

This flexibility is something most employer-sponsored plans don’t offer.

Simplicity Wins

There’s a reason it’s called “simplified.”

No complex administration. No annual IRS filings like some other retirement plans. No expensive plan providers or compliance headaches.

You can open a SEP IRA at most custodians and have it running quickly. For someone focused on running a business, that matters. The last thing you want is a retirement plan that feels like a second job.

The Catch: It’s Employer-Funded Only

Here’s where you need to understand the structure.

Unlike a 401(k), where employees can defer part of their salary, a SEP IRA is funded only by employer contributions.

If you’re self-employed, that essentially means you are the employer. But if you have employees, you must contribute the same percentage of compensation for them as you do for yourself.

That’s where strategy comes into play.

If you’re a solo operator or have minimal staff, a SEP IRA is incredibly efficient. If you’re building a larger team, you may want to compare it to a Solo 401(k) or other qualified plans.

Who Should Seriously Consider a SEP IRA?

A SEP IRA tends to be a strong fit for:

• Independent consultants and freelancers

• Financial professionals and advisors

• Real estate agents and brokers

• Small business owners with inconsistent income

• High-income earners looking to reduce taxes quickly

If your income fluctuates or you want the flexibility to “decide later” how much to contribute based on how the year shakes out, this is one of the best tools available.

Strategic Use: Not Just a Retirement Account

Too many people view retirement accounts as passive savings buckets. That’s the wrong mindset.

A SEP IRA is a strategic planning tool.

It allows you to:

• Smooth taxable income across years

• Reinvest aggressively during peak earning periods

• Build a tax-deferred pool of capital you can later convert, distribute, or manage strategically

When used correctly, it becomes part of a bigger financial architecture—not just a line item on your tax return.

Final Thought

If you’re self-employed, no one is coming to build your retirement for you. No match, no pension, no safety net.

But that’s also the opportunity.

A SEP IRA gives you control—over your taxes, your savings rate, and ultimately your financial future. It rewards discipline and profitability. And when paired with a broader investment strategy, it can become one of the most powerful wealth-building tools you have.

The key isn’t just opening one. It’s using it intentionally.

Click here to schedule a meeting — I’m here to help you take the next step toward financial freedom.

Colin Symons, CIO Lloyd Financial Group

The big tension right now seems to be the worry that stocks can’t possibly go higher after spending the last month going up 10%. No doubt, that’s a reasonable fear. Among other reasons why the fear seems justified, the Iran war hasn’t been resolved, hedging has been greatly reduced, and the rally has been very narrow.

Again, that’s reasonable, but nothing ‘has’ to happen. If anything, it’s often the reverse. For instance, we spent the last month or so getting more constructive in large part because the market was heavily hedged for downside despite reality failing to catch up with initial fears. Now, all the upside revulsion primarily tells you many aren’t positioned for continued gains. That contrarian mindset certainly isn’t easy, but that’s how you can make gains-- taking advantage of uncomfortable pricing discrepancies.

While I recognize there are risks, I continue to think more upside is likely for several reasons. To me, the basic worry markets have is that the Iran war is spiking oil prices which in turn is making markets believe inflation risk is rising. This effectively makes markets discount future dollars, meaning future earnings are worth less. Thus, growth companies who get a lot of earnings in distant years should do poorly.

This hasn’t really happened, though. Admittedly, semiconductor companies who have both present and future strong prospects have some of the best performance, but other AI related names who currently have poor present earnings have also done fine. Those strong growth prospects are outdoing inflation fears.

How can you see that strong growth outlook? I’d say largely through the bond market. Corporate bond sales and demand have remained very strong. Both primary and secondary markets are seeing year-over-year growth. A lot of bonds are entering the market, many AI-associated, and the appetite for them has been strong. Specifically, Y/Y issuance has been up 16% Y/Y, as of the end of March. That means credit growth has been strong, to support companies and the economy.

High yield credit spreads did get hit for a bit there, amidst the combo of inflation risk and private credit fears. However, we’ve also recovered from those stressed levels and have returned to a stronger trend. We were somewhat stressed in March but relaxed quite a bit in April. Payment risk fear is getting lower, meaning investors are OK with getting more aggressive.

The economy has also held up surprisingly well. The latest Atlanta Fed GDPNow estimate for Q2 is 3.5%, on the basis of a strong start for the quarter’s data, while the more staid NY Fed GDPNow is at a still respectable 2.52%. You can talk about fears of a slowdown, but it doesn’t seem like one has yet started.

Again, to me the primary fear is that the Iran war creates real trouble. That said, the market seems relatively unperturbed. Oil volatility hasn’t come close to March highs, while oil has been hard-pressed to trend upward for long. As I write this, active talk of more deal negotiations is getting some excited.

If we can put the Iran fear to bed, there’s a lot going for markets. Broad market earnings have been strong, AI growth gives us something to be excited about, and liquidity and positioning have room to get even better. Potentially, we can go up quite a bit in a short period of time, which is probably a big part of why the market has a hard time going down.

Ultimately, the bond market, growth, and liquidity all say everything looks good and can get even better. This can absolutely go wrong but nothing yet has triggered a good cause to worry. I understand it’s uncomfortable to be aggressively long, here, but that’s why the upside potential still looks so good. Being uncomfortably long has been the right call in the last month, and while the environment now is different, I don’t yet see a trigger to change that stance.

On Friday, Trump upped tariffs on European cars by 25%, saying they’re not complying with the trade deal. Not happy with their ‘help’ in the Middle East, I assume.

Atlanta Fed’s GDPNow went from 3.7% to 3.5%.

Trump said the US will help some ships leave the Strait of Hormuz starting Monday. Note that it’s more about logistics coordination than Navy escorts. He also said they’re having very positive talks, and Iran acknowledges the sides are talking.

Reports say Iran fired on a US ship after it ignored Iran warnings. This caused stocks to take a dive and oil to go up 4%.

Gamestop (GME) offered to buy EBAY for $125 a share, sending EBAY up 9% and GME -2%.

Bitcoin crested $80K for the first time in three months but is currently back below that number.

Factory Orders today.

Bottom line: Escalation in Iran is the big story, right now.

Click here to schedule a meeting — I’m here to help you take the next step toward financial freedom.

Disclosures/Regulation:

This content is intended to provide general information about Lloyd Financial. It is not intended to offer or deliver investment advice in any way. Information regarding investment services are provided solely to gain an understanding of our investment philosophy, our strategies and to be able to contact us for further information.

All information has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable, but its accuracy is not guaranteed. There is no representation or warranty as to the current accuracy, reliability or completeness of, nor liability for, decisions based on such information and it should not be relied on as such.

The views expressed in this commentary are subject to change based on market and other conditions. These documents may contain certain statements that may be deemed forward‐looking statements. Please note that any such statements are not guarantees of any future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those projected. Any projections, market outlooks, or estimates are based upon certain assumptions and should not be construed as indicative of actual events that will occur.

Past performance is no guarantee of future returns.

Different types of investments involve varying degrees of risk. Therefore, it should not be assumed that future performance of any specific investment or investment strategy will be profitable

Want a clearer view of where you stand? Schedule a free portfolio analysis.