VTSMX vs standard 401k & Roth

[Annie44]

We currently have $40,000 in 401K and Roth accounts

Together, we are currently contributing $10992 a year into a Roth after tax account. This leaves us $3000 a month to either put in a 401k or invest in Vanguard.

Husband and I are not sure if we should invest more in 401k & Roth accounts OR investing on our own through Vanguard. We want to start retirement in 20 years at age 50, and are worried if we put our money in a 401k we won’t be able to get to it at age 50. I would love any advice from more experienced mustachians.

[Cheddar Stacker]

There are many ways to access the money before normal retirement age. Read this.

We would need a lot more information to advise you properly, but here are a few guidelines:

1) If you get an employer match in your 401k plan, the first thing you should do is put in enough to get 100% of the match.
2) If you pay anything above 15% federal taxes, you should not be using a Roth as your main investment vehicle.

If you do a taxable account VTSMX is a good fund to pick, but you might want to diversify into large cap or mid cap as well.