Also, what steps would I have to take to "rollover" the money? Do I lose any of what I put in, or anything the employer matches? I've never done any real savings like this, but I figure with the raise I jsut got it's a good time to start.
If it matters, I've been with the company about 3 years.
2007-03-01 05:12:08 · 6 answers · asked by ShavenLlama 4 in Business & Finance ➔ Investing
If you're leaving in a month or two, don't bother with the 401(k). By the time the paperwork goes through and the first buy is made, you'll have quit. And which time you'll need to go through the pain of either doing a rollover (which you may be unable to do if the amount of money is small) or paying taxes/fines and keeping the money.
Wait until you have more stable employment. And then, definitely, do the 401(k)!
Rollover means opening an IRA and then asking your 401(k) administrator to liquidate the account and send a check to your IRA company. Similar if you want to rollover into a 401(k), if your new employer allows it.
2007-03-01 05:21:37 · answer #1 · answered by Jay 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Most employers require that you be vested to get the money they put in. My last employer, I had to work there 1 year to be 25% vested, 2 years to be 50%, and so on.
I'm not sure why you would even bother with the 401K at this point if you're leaving in a month. There's not really any point. You'd wind up with maybe 1 contribution and then you're sitting there with a 401K that has a few bucks in it. Why bother?
No, you wouldn't lose what you put in. Depending on how your employers vesting is set up, you would probably lose at least some of what they put in.
To roll the money over, you find a qualified IRA someplace and have them roll it over. However, it would be such a small amount of money, you'd probably lose any gain you were making in fees. I know, my IRA doesn't charge me fees but when I rolled it over, I was already over their $10,000 minimum. If my account had been under $10,000, I would have had an annual management fee.
2007-03-01 13:23:04 · answer #2 · answered by Faye H 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes, you will immediately have to roll it over into an IRA or another 401k as a company does not have to maintain accounts for employees that have left the company and are below a certain amount in value.
While I'm not certain on what that value is, I am pretty certain that in a few weeks, you wouldn't come close to that.
Your best bet would be to start an IRA. Go talk to someone at your bank, they can help you decide between a traditional or a Roth IRA and which suits you.
2007-03-01 13:23:13 · answer #3 · answered by oshaberi27 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yeah, it's too late. You wouldn't gain anything by doing it a month before you leave, it would take them longer to do the processing than you have left with your employer.
Get started on one with your next job, or look into opening an IRA account or something like that if you're ready to save for your future.
2007-03-01 13:20:13 · answer #4 · answered by . 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
At this time, you're going to create a lot of paperwork for yourself.
2007-03-01 13:17:28 · answer #5 · answered by TedEx 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes.
2007-03-01 13:19:03 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋