Suppose you leave your job and you are then left wondering what you can do with your current 401(k) retirement plan. You are unsure of your options, so you decide to reach out to a financial advisor because surely they’ll know what’s right for you. After hearing your questions and your plans for the future, she urges you to transfer your money into an individual retirement account (IRA). You may think this is reasonable, but before you agree to this suggestion, you should be aware that the advisor might be receiving a nice commission out of the transaction, and there are actually a few other options available at your disposal.
An advisor with fiduciary responsibilities should offer these four options:
- Leave your 401(k) with your former employer;
- Transfer it to your new employer’s plan;
- Roll it into a traditional or Roth IRA; or
- Take a lump-sum distribution.
There are benefits and disadvantages to each option, but you should know you are always in control.
“If a planner or adviser is telling you that the only way they can provide you with advice is if you roll over your money to their preferred IRA, get a new planner/adviser,” says Wayne Bogosian, president of an advisory firm in Massachusetts.
Check out the full story here to read some of the important questions you should ask your advisor and other factors to consider.
At TCG, we take our fiduciary responsibility serious. If you’d like to learn more about how we can help you plan for your financial success, fill out this form and one of our advisors will get in touch with you.
