Gardner White Furniture Company, Inc. 401(k) Review & Grade
Gardner White Furniture Company, Inc. 401(k) Plan
Auburn Hills, MIRetail Trade908 active participantsPlan year 2024✓ Auto-enroll
Estimate from the plan's Form 5500 filing · How we grade
$133Employer $ per active participant
$3,135Employee $ saved per active participant
0.67%Direct admin cost, % of plan assets
$21.5MNet plan assets, end of year
$29,843Average balance per account
Score breakdown
- Employer generosity6.0 / 5012th percentile for employer $ per participant
- Low cost3.5 / 2514th percentile for low admin cost vs. same-size plans
- Employee saving7.9 / 1553th percentile for employee $ per participant
- Plan features10 / 10Auto-enrollment, Default investment
- Red-flag deductions-3 pts1 issue reported on the filing
Total score24 / 100 · Grade F
This plan vs. peers
Peers: Retail Trade plans with 500–2,499 active participants (719 plans).
| Measure | Percentile |
|---|---|
| Employer $ per participant | 12th |
| Lower admin cost | 14th |
| Employee saving | 53th |
| Peers that auto-enroll | 48% |
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Red flags from the filing
Corrective distributions: the plan refunded $73,535 in contributions, which usually means it failed annual nondiscrimination testing.
What to do if you're in this plan
- Gardner White Furniture Company put in about $133 per active participant, below the typical peer ($743). 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.
- Direct plan expenses (0.67% of assets) are well above similar-size plans (0.23%). Check your annual fee disclosure, choose low-cost index funds if you can, and think about whether savings beyond the match belong in an IRA.
- 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 | $120,623 |
| Participant (employee) contributions | $2,847,705 |
| Other contributions (incl. rollovers in) | $52,446 |
| Administrative expenses paid from the plan | $137,204 |
| Contract administrator fees | $93,660 |
| Benefits paid out | $3,572,222 |
| Net assets, start / end of year | $19.5M / $21.5M |
| Active participants, start / end of year | 955 / 862 |
| Participants with account balances | 719 |
| Auto-enrollment (feature code 2S) | Yes |
| Auditor | Uhy LLP |
Largest service providers (Schedule C)
| Stancorp Financial Group | $87,329 reported compensation |
| Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC | $43,544 reported compensation |
| Charles Schwab Bank | $6,047 reported compensation |
Source: DOL EFAST2 Form 5500 filing, acknowledgment ID 20251015130531NAL0009379074001, received 2025-10-15, EIN 38-2754153, plan #001, plan year 2024-01-01 to 2024-12-31. Verify at efast.dol.gov.