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dotru · 10-31-2007, 08:25 PM

This is a retirement account and I don't have any other investments besides an emergency fund in a money market account, I'm married and make about $60K a year, My wife makes about $35K a year, we don't have any debt.<br />I have read a lot of articles and advice columns that state if your employer doesn't match a percentage of your contributuin then you should fully fund a Roth IRA first then your 401K.<br />I think I wasn't clear as far as my TSP account goes. Since I'm military, the gov. doesn't match any of my contributions.<br />

avitse1341 · 10-31-2007, 08:25 PM

invest in education first....

http://www.sinardy.info/MyMentors.php

invest01 · 10-31-2007, 08:25 PM

TSP account is the Federal government account.
They both are the exact same thing.
The only difference is TSP account, you deposit the money prior tax whereas Roth IRA is deposit the money after tax.

They both lose the money and gain the money the exact same way.
That means whenever we have a crash in the market, such time back when 9/11. You'll lose massive amount, and your financial advisor will keep telling you to keep the money keep the money there. The object of the game is to take the money out prior to massive crashes which occurs approximately every 10 to 15 years.

avitse1341 · 10-31-2007, 08:25 PM

Continue investing the amount in your 401K that maxs out your employers matching contributions. Take the rest of your investment budget and put it into a Roth.

If your employer doesn't provide any matching contributions, max out your Roth, I think it is 2-3 K that you can put in, then put the remaining balance of your investment pool into the 401K.

Remember 401K goes in pretax and comes out taxable.
Roth goes in post tax and comes out tax free.

50cents · 10-31-2007, 08:25 PM

you have some interesting answers out there.

As a financial advisor, I tell people to first contribute enough to get the match in their 401K. Then max out the Roth for you and your spouse. While you don't get a current tax deduction, the tax free growth and taxfree withdrawals of qualified distributions is a great thing. If there is still available funds, try to max out your 401K at that point.

In response to a couple of the other answers you've received:
1.Education is important. However, you can take loans to pay for college. There is no such thing as a retirement loan. Save for education only after you've looked after your own retirement needs.

2. Yes the market does go up and down but in the long term, investing in the market is the only way to outpace inflation. There are many quality funds that have historically done well with good downside protection...American Funds are one of my favorites. Just check out the CAIBX and see how it performed during the tech crash of the late 99's.

Hope that gives you some food for thought. Feel free to email if you have any other questions.

natali · 10-31-2007, 08:25 PM

You and her should both open Roth Iras and put the max (4000) each in each year. The money is AFTER TAX dollars, meaning you don't get a deduction on your taxes, BUT the money grows tax-FREE. This means when you turn 59& 1/2 and can begin taking distribution, you will be able to withdraw the money and pay no taxes on your contributions OR growth.

BOB+ · 10-31-2007, 08:25 PM

If you think you need to devesify your retirement investments, you should look into onpening a self-directed IRA. Through this account, you will be able to invest in real estate and other assets, thereby; deversifying out of the stock market. Check out www.iraaa.org. They have excellent information about this topic.

10-31-2007, 08:25 PM	#1 (permalink)
dotru Greenhorn Join Date: Jul 2006 Posts: 16 Rep Power: 0	I'm 26 yrs old and have invested about 10K in my TSP account (Gov. 401K) Should I invest in a Roth IRA instead This is a retirement account and I don't have any other investments besides an emergency fund in a money market account, I'm married and make about $60K a year, My wife makes about $35K a year, we don't have any debt.<br />I have read a lot of articles and advice columns that state if your employer doesn't match a percentage of your contributuin then you should fully fund a Roth IRA first then your 401K.<br />I think I wasn't clear as far as my TSP account goes. Since I'm military, the gov. doesn't match any of my contributions.<br />

10-31-2007, 08:25 PM	#2 (permalink)
avitse1341 Greenhorn Join Date: Apr 2007 Posts: 17 Rep Power: 0	I'm 26 yrs old and have invested about 10K in my TSP account (Gov. 401K) Should I invest in a Roth IRA instead invest in education first.... http://www.sinardy.info/MyMentors.php

10-31-2007, 08:25 PM	#3 (permalink)
invest01 Greenhorn Join Date: Jul 2006 Posts: 35 Rep Power: 3	I'm 26 yrs old and have invested about 10K in my TSP account (Gov. 401K) Should I invest in a Roth IRA instead TSP account is the Federal government account. They both are the exact same thing. The only difference is TSP account, you deposit the money prior tax whereas Roth IRA is deposit the money after tax. They both lose the money and gain the money the exact same way. That means whenever we have a crash in the market, such time back when 9/11. You'll lose massive amount, and your financial advisor will keep telling you to keep the money keep the money there. The object of the game is to take the money out prior to massive crashes which occurs approximately every 10 to 15 years.

10-31-2007, 08:25 PM	#4 (permalink)
avitse1341 Greenhorn Join Date: Apr 2007 Posts: 17 Rep Power: 0	I'm 26 yrs old and have invested about 10K in my TSP account (Gov. 401K) Should I invest in a Roth IRA instead Continue investing the amount in your 401K that maxs out your employers matching contributions. Take the rest of your investment budget and put it into a Roth. If your employer doesn't provide any matching contributions, max out your Roth, I think it is 2-3 K that you can put in, then put the remaining balance of your investment pool into the 401K. Remember 401K goes in pretax and comes out taxable. Roth goes in post tax and comes out tax free.

10-31-2007, 08:25 PM	#5 (permalink)
50cents Greenhorn Join Date: Jul 2006 Posts: 16 Rep Power: 0	I'm 26 yrs old and have invested about 10K in my TSP account (Gov. 401K) Should I invest in a Roth IRA instead you have some interesting answers out there. As a financial advisor, I tell people to first contribute enough to get the match in their 401K. Then max out the Roth for you and your spouse. While you don't get a current tax deduction, the tax free growth and taxfree withdrawals of qualified distributions is a great thing. If there is still available funds, try to max out your 401K at that point. In response to a couple of the other answers you've received: 1.Education is important. However, you can take loans to pay for college. There is no such thing as a retirement loan. Save for education only after you've looked after your own retirement needs. 2. Yes the market does go up and down but in the long term, investing in the market is the only way to outpace inflation. There are many quality funds that have historically done well with good downside protection...American Funds are one of my favorites. Just check out the CAIBX and see how it performed during the tech crash of the late 99's. Hope that gives you some food for thought. Feel free to email if you have any other questions.

10-31-2007, 08:25 PM	#6 (permalink)
natali Greenhorn Join Date: Jul 2006 Posts: 31 Rep Power: 3	I'm 26 yrs old and have invested about 10K in my TSP account (Gov. 401K) Should I invest in a Roth IRA instead You and her should both open Roth Iras and put the max (4000) each in each year. The money is AFTER TAX dollars, meaning you don't get a deduction on your taxes, BUT the money grows tax-FREE. This means when you turn 59& 1/2 and can begin taking distribution, you will be able to withdraw the money and pay no taxes on your contributions OR growth.

10-31-2007, 08:25 PM	#7 (permalink)
BOB+ Piggy Bank Join Date: Jul 2006 Posts: 96 Rep Power: 3	I'm 26 yrs old and have invested about 10K in my TSP account (Gov. 401K) Should I invest in a Roth IRA instead If you think you need to devesify your retirement investments, you should look into onpening a self-directed IRA. Through this account, you will be able to invest in real estate and other assets, thereby; deversifying out of the stock market. Check out www.iraaa.org. They have excellent information about this topic.

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