What retirement plan options make sense for profitable business owners?

Most of the time this question comes up when our clients want to store away more than they already are. This points us towards a 401(k) plus Cash Balance Plan. While you are under 40, a 401(k) is typically the best for saving the most. Once you get closer to 50 or 60, the cash balance plan can be incredible.
These two tools can combine to let business owners save +$200k into retirement accounts every year. This will typically be the most that we see clients want to save into these types of accounts. These are great options if you have delayed saving for retirement but your business has become very successful as you approach retirement.
The most common reason to not use these accounts comes from the loss of access to the money. Tax savings are great but they almost always come with a trade-off. For retirement accounts, the trade-off is usually access to the money until retirement.