Author Topic: Can I transfer from 403b to other account?  (Read 1736 times)

MarioMario

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Can I transfer from 403b to other account?
« on: September 29, 2016, 12:12:45 PM »
So my wife has a 403b through her employer and that is our main source of retirement savings. 

It is through principal and I am concerned by the expense ratio.

Is it possible to keep that account open and a couple times a year transfer it to a better account?

What kind of account would that have to be?  Presumably Vanguard has a low expense ratio alternative. 

robartsd

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Re: Can I transfer from 403b to other account?
« Reply #1 on: September 29, 2016, 12:28:07 PM »
You could possibly roll over the funds to a Traditional IRA; however, many plans disallow in service rollovers, so moving the money might not be possible until she changes employment or retires. If you're not getting a match with 403(b) contributions, then I'd recommend maxing your IRA contributions (in IRA's at Vanguard) before contributing to the 403(b) so that as much money as possible can be invested in low expense alternatives. The tax advantages of sheltering additional money usually make using the 403(b) after maxing your IRAs worthwhile in spite of the higher expense ratios of the available investments.

seattlecyclone

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Re: Can I transfer from 403b to other account?
« Reply #2 on: September 29, 2016, 12:32:48 PM »
Your wife will be able to roll this money over to an IRA when she leaves her job; she likely will not be allowed to take the money out sooner.

Some 403(b) plans offer a selection of different custodians you can choose from. When I had one with a university, Fidelity was one of the options and they had low fees. Does your wife's employer offer any better option than Principal?

NoStacheOhio

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Re: Can I transfer from 403b to other account?
« Reply #3 on: September 29, 2016, 12:40:56 PM »
Could you post some more details about the plan costs and fund choices?

DrF

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Re: Can I transfer from 403b to other account?
« Reply #4 on: September 29, 2016, 12:57:41 PM »
Check to see if her company offers multiple service providers for the 403b (Fidelity, TIAA, etc). If not, see if Prudential has a "self-directed" option. If so, you should be able to "manage" the account on your own with significantly less fees.