The Art of Retirement –
The Necessity of Communication

Commonly Asked Questions
Regarding the Safety and Soundness of your Retirement Plan Assets

With the recent volatility in the financial markets and intense media coverage, it's only natural that you may have questions about your retirement account. Because we want you to feel confident about the safety and soundness of your account at Alerus Retirement Solutions, we have compiled a list of commonly asked questions.

Are my retirement assets safe at Alerus?

•Strength of Alerus Financial, N.A. Alerus Retirement Solutions is a division of Alerus Financial, N.A. a nationally chartered bank with our home office in Grand Forks, North Dakota. We are proud of the fact that we have grown over the last 75 years using a common sense approach to business expansion. We have not participated in sub-prime mortgage lending and remain a strong regional bank. We continue to be "Well Capitalized" as defined by federal regulators. In addition, our institution has most recently received a four star rating (excellent) by Bauer Financial, an independent nationally recognized bank rating system.

•Safety of Retirement Plan Assets It is important to note that your retirement plan assets are not affected by the financial condition of Alerus. We hold your assets pursuant to The Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) and we are required to keep these assets segregated from the general assets of the bank.

Where should I invest my money?
Where you should invest your money will depend on what type of investor you are and your investment timeframe. We have tools available on our participant website to help you determine your risk tolerance and other factors that could affect where you invest your money. Click on Resources. Here you will find a variety of tools to help you with retirement planning.

How can I manage my investment risk?
One of the key ways to handle market volatility, or investment risk, is to diversify your account. Asset classes typically perform differently under various market conditions. Spreading your assets across a variety of investments such as stocks, bonds, and cash equivalents (such as money market funds) can potentially help reduce your overall risk. Ideally, a decline in one type of asset class will be balanced out by a gain in another.

How do I determine the asset class of the funds available in my retirement plan?
Some funds include the asset class in the name of the fund, for example Vanguard Small Cap Growth Fund. For those that do not, the information is available by clicking on Fund Performances, then click on the fund name to launch an online fund sheet for any of the funds listed. A style box in the upper right corner of the fund fact sheet identifies the asset class.

What is the most conservative investment option available to me in my retirement plan?
Most retirement plans offer a money market or stable value fund in their investment fund lineup, which would be the most conservative option. These fund names will typically include the words "money market," "stable value," "capital preservation," "savings trust," "fixed," (or something similar) to identify the type of fund. If you need assistance identifying which fund is the most conservative, we are here to help. Please contact us at 800.433.1685.

How can I access my retirement account?
You can access your account 24 hours a day, 7 days a week via Alerus Retirement Solutions Online or Telephone Access, as follows:

ARS Online Instructions
1. Click on the blue Participant Login button.
2. At the User ID prompt, enter your User ID. If you are registering for the first time, enter your Social Security Number as a numeric string, without dashes.
3. Enter your Password; or enter your 4-digit PIN if you are registering for the first time
4. Click Log In to access your account.

Telephone Access Instructions
1. Call 800.795.2697

• Press 1 for English
• Press 2 for Spanish

2. Enter your social security number and PIN.
3. Navigate by following the prompts as instructed.
You may select a menu option at any time without listening to the complete menu.

For additional FAQs click here.