Leave money in 457b or rollover to vanguard Ira ?

[Silrossi46]

This is a government 457b so I can withdraw it at any age anytime when I leave employment.  I won’t need the money between 55 (Time when I leave) and 59.5 so that is a moot point since I have a pension at 55 and Also a taxable account to fall back on. 

My question is since the options and fees in the 457b have never really been so great it may seemingly be a better option to roll it over to a vanguard Ira where my options are better and fees are lighter. Furthermore, would it then be better to just start converting it to Roth?  My reasoning and thinking is if it’s Roth it will never be subject to rmd and can continue to grow without that concern.

In retirement my tax bracket will be 22% or 24% (single now but may change) more than likely (if things do not change with brackets) just from my pension alone.  It may make sense to start converting chunks of the money after retirement  to Roth and using it down the line as needed if needed.  My pension will more than cover my expenses for years to come so my investment accounts are for anything else desired.  They are also to cover cola since my pension is not cola adjusted. 

Pension = 108,000 = 2025
Taxable = 400,000 (currently) contributing 5k/ month till 2025 vtsax
Roth IRA = 30,000 vanguard.  Will contribute max for 23,24,25. ( contributing to the 457 keeps me under the threshold)
457b = 610,000 (currently) contributing double catch-up through 2024. Will do 50 and over contribution for 2025
I have a sfh rental that I don’t even count as income but use some deductions for.
Expenses in retirement = right now 40k = planning for double that if single status changes. 

I am again looking for insight on whether to rollover the 457b to vanguard and convert it to Roth or do one or both. Or just leave it alone? 

[dandarc]

Since you don't want the 457b's main feature and you prefer Vanguard's investments then rolling that to an IRA makes sense, albeit are you sure you can do those rollovers while still contributing? Something to check with your plan.

Given relative certainty of your tax bracket going up, then starting Roth conversions while you know your tax bracket is lower also makes sense. Almost certainly if you decided to convert, that conversion to Roth should be a relatively small portion in any one year - converting $600K in one shot is going to be very expensive tax-wise.

Best way to figure out how various tax maneuvers are likely to work out is to do some draft tax returns. A very close second if you don't want to find the tax software or do hand drafts to do that is to play around with the Case Study Spreadsheet - it is pretty fantastic for exercising various tax situations that @MDM has been maintaining and improving for years and giving away for free. https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/forum-information-faqs/case-study-spreadsheet-updates/

[Silrossi46]

Thank you.  I cannot do any rollovers till I leave.  So this wouldn’t start till 2025 that is of course if I do not leave sooner which I can but that would also cut that pension number down.  I will check out the mdm post and info thank you for this information.