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Learning, Sharing, and Teaching => Investor Alley => Topic started by: howling bean on April 07, 2014, 11:38:33 AM

Title: Vanguard
Post by: howling bean on April 07, 2014, 11:38:33 AM

okay, I'm 62 and I have 20,000 to put somewhere.  Should I open a Vanguard account and should it be in a Roth IRA, or something else.  I will be retiring in 3 years.  I don't have a lot of retirement money because I gave my gov't retirement money away twice (when I left the gov't) to my exhusband, wasn't my ex at the time.  I will have the TSP (about 80,000 which will only give me approx. $300/month) and social security (about $1100/mo) and my retirement should be approx. $1300/mo).  Thanks.

Title: Re: Vanguard
Post by: skunkfunk on April 07, 2014, 01:28:05 PM

Wow, this sounds confusing. I think you need to type up an entire case study.

Title: Re: Vanguard
Post by: FIPurpose on April 07, 2014, 03:11:08 PM

Maybe I'm a bit ignorant, but how do you give away your gov't retirement?

Title: Re: Vanguard
Post by: howling bean on April 07, 2014, 03:55:59 PM

I dont know how to do a case study.   

When you leave federal govt for another job, you can take out the money thats been put away toward your retirement or leave it to collect interest.  I took it out and when I returned to a govt job, I did not pay it back.  I did this twice as hard as it is to believe never thinking I would end up divorced.

Ive saved almost sixty thousand but its in the credit union earning next to nothing.   I want to put at least twenty thousand in something beside the credit union.

Thank you.

howlingbean

Title: Re: Vanguard
Post by: FIPurpose on April 07, 2014, 05:57:10 PM

See: https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/ask-a-mustachian/how-to-write-a-'case-study'-topic/ (https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/ask-a-mustachian/how-to-write-a-'case-study'-topic/)

Title: Re: Vanguard
Post by: Argyle on April 07, 2014, 06:30:33 PM

You are only eligible to put it in a Roth IRA up to the limit of $6500 per year.  You could do it over several years, of course.  An IRA would be a good idea in most circumstances.  But whether a Roth or a regular IRA would be better depends on the rest of your numbers.  If you lay it all out in the case study mode we'd be better able to give suggestions.

Title: Re: Vanguard
Post by: howling bean on April 07, 2014, 07:11:46 PM

Thanks flyingcircle and Argyle.

Title: Re: Vanguard
Post by: GoldenStache on April 07, 2014, 07:40:47 PM

@Howling Bean

Was it the US fed?  Have you looked into buying all of your years back?  It will cost you a shiny penny or two (maybe your 20K) but if you had a good length of time in, it could be worth it.  If you post the numbers here some of us get a kick out of running the numbers for you. 

Title: Re: Vanguard
Post by: Joel on April 07, 2014, 08:43:03 PM

An IRA would probably be the best as it would reduce your taxable income now. And it sounds like you won't have as much in one upon retirement.