Individual Retirement Accounts (“IRAs”) remain the most popular investment vehicle for many individuals and married couples. 401(k)s are certainly popular, but they’re usually much less flexible than IRAs, and many people don’t like going through the hassle of moving or rolling over their accounts when they change employers. IRAs are generally subject to lower contribution limits than 401(k)s and other investment vehicles. Furthermore, in order to receive the tax advantages of a traditional IRA, your income (or your joint income if you file a joint tax return) must be below a certain level. Here is some information and advice about...

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Many of us have at least one Individual Retirement Account (IRA) as part of our retirement planning portfolio. IRAs are an essential part of retirement planning, because you have much more control over your investment choices than you do for a 401(k) plan or employer-sponsored retirement plan. Even the most flexible and comprehensive 401(k) plan will only have a limited number of investment options, depending on what company is acting as the plan’s sponsor. Even though IRAs are much more flexible, there are still limitations on the types of assets that can be held within the account; for...

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When you retire or leave a job, you should seriously consider moving the money you’ve invested in one or more employer-sponsored retirement plans to an individual retirement account (IRA). An IRA rollover is an excellent way to keep your money accumulating tax deferred. Here is some advice about how to rollover your IRA. When you rollover an IRA, you are transferring your retirement savings to an account at a private institution of your choice (typically a brokerage account), and you choose how you will invest the funds. To preserve the tax-deferred status of retirement savings, the funds must be...

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Roth IRAs and traditional IRAs have some significant differences. Roth IRA distributions are tax-free as long as you begin withdrawing funds after you are 59 1/2 and have had the account for at least five years. However, unlike traditional IRAs, contributions are not tax-deductible when you make them. Traditional IRA contributions are deductible if you meet certain criteria, but distributions are taxable at the rate in effect for ordinary income and must begin by April 1sfollowing the year you turn 70 1/2. Because of the significant economic turmoil in 2009 Congress waived the Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs) for 2009. With a...

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With pensions becoming less and less common, and Social Security’s future in question, it’s never been more important to think about retirement well in advance. For those whose employers offer 401K plans, they are usually the easiest and most convenient way to save for retirement. But will your 401K yield enough money to see you through your golden years? And what if there is no 401K plan available to you? Whether you have yet to set up a retirement plan or need to supplement your 401K, an Individual Retirement Account, or IRA, can help. Available from many financial institutions, IRAs are...

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Given the significant market downturn it may not be a bad time to convert your traditional IRA to a Roth IRA. Right now, anyone with modified adjusted gross income of less than $100,000 a year (individual or joint income) can convert a traditional IRA account to a Roth IRA. Higher-income Americans are scheduled to get the same break in 2010. Remember that when you do a conversion, you must pay income tax on the amount you are converting, which can be all of the funds in the traditional IRA or just a portion of those assets. But, subject to...

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