Point me in the right direction

[ridgeline73]

44 years old
Have a public employee pension available at 58 that is 66% of average of 5 highest salary years
Have $4500 in a 403 b that employer started contributing to last year.  It is 2% of my salary per year

I just inherited some investments from my grandmother.  We all had to open Edward Jones accounts to access our share.  This is what is in the account right now.

$38k in cash (some investment couldn't be divided apparently so it was cashed out and split)
$13k in stocks
$31 in mutual funds
$10k in ETF's
$10k in bonds

I don't really know what to do with it. I have spoken several times with Vanguard about moving the money there. They have recommended an 80/20 stock/bond split.

I also inherited part of a farm when my grandma passed. It is currently rented and my income would be $6k / year from that farm. I would like to sell, but not sure that is an option with the other parties involved.


1) What do I do with the Edward Jones Portfolio? Do I move it to Vanguard and invest it? If so, what should it be put into?
2) What can I do with the yearly farm income to invest?
3) What do I do with the required minimum distribution every year?
4) It is imperative that all of the inherited property remain my property and do not become community property. What do I need to do to keep these assets protected?


Thanks in advance for any help or suggestions. I am pretty lost on what to do.

[Mighty-Dollar]

Yes, get out of Edward Jones. They are nothing more than salesmen who sell expensive products. It's no surprise that they favored actively managed mutual funds, which are expensive. Stick with bond and stock index funds. Move to Vanguard (if you need someone to hold your hand), or E Trade or AmeriTrade. It's really about deciding on a bond/stock allocation ratio. There's lots of free RoboAdvisors out there. You don't have to pay Vanguard .3% per year to decide on a bond/stock allocation ratio. Also learn about the 4% rule of retirement. Are you going to be drawing money out of that savings or letting it grow and compound for another 15  or 20 years?

[ridgeline73]

Honestly not sure at this time what I'm going to do.

I do know I am committed to giving it 15 years to grow, after that.......not sure.

[Rob_bob]

I agree to get out of Ed Jones.

Do you have an emergency fund?  You didn't mention having an IRA.  You could start to fund a traditional IRA if you want a tax deduction but future withdrawals will count as ordinary income and be taxed as such.  Or you could open a Roth IRA if you don't need a tax deduction and all future withdrawals will be tax free and it doesn't count as income towards ACA subsidies or medicare premiums.

As far as the rental income goes are you funding a maintenance account for repairs etc?  If so then it's more money to invest.

An 80/20 allocation is fine but it really depends on your long term goals and your personal risk tolerance for short term market volatility.

On the last point you need a real estate lawyer.