I have a 401K - could I add a lump sum contribution to it right before 4-15?
200807
401(k) have a maximum amount of contribution so you would have to check what is that amount. And Im not sure if you can contribute a lump sum. I know that if you have a traditional IRA, you have until April to put in any last minute contributions for 2005, so probably the same can be done.\n\nAs for legal ways to reduce your tax, I mean if you itemized and have your own property, you can deduct the real estate taxes and mortgage interest paid in the property. Also you can deduct medical expenses, charitable contributions, union dues, tax preparation fees, unreimbursed employee expenses. If you live in state where there is a sales tax, you can deduct such amount either by entering the exact value of sales tax you paid or using the IRS tables to calculate an amount. Also if you recently bought any vehicle or boat in 2005, you can also deduct the sales tax on that purchase. \n\nWhat else, oh yeah, if you live in area that was affected by the hurricanes, an area that has been designated by the IRS as a disaster area, you can take other several deductions that can help you out. \n\nIf you have any student loans, you can deduct the interest on those loans. Or if you still go to school, you can deduct the tuition expense.\n\nIf I knew a bit more info on you I could probably help you out more.\n\nHope this helps!
84164
That is normal. Commission is taxed like a bonus. I once had a commission month of 15,000 but received around 7500 after taxes. If you are eligible, put money into a 401K. This money is not taxed and is savings for your retirement.
14171
There's many advantages to your money when you put it into a 401k plan.  First, money placed into the 401k plan is deducted from your paycheck _before_ taxes are applied.  So if you make $40,000 a year and you put $5,000 into your 401k, the government taxes you as if you made $35,000.  So the first benefit is overall reduction of taxes in the current year.\n\nThe second benefit is, your money grows within the account tax free.  So, assuming you held onto the account for years and years, let's say it grew from $5,000 to $50,000 10 years later.  That means a $45,000 increase that's never taxed.  Not too shabby, right?\n\nThird, you are only taxed when you withdrawl money from the account after the age of 59.5.  Assuming this is your only source of income at that time, you'll be in a lower tax bracket when you start to use the money.  So, overall, that money is taxed less than it would have been if you used it while you were working.\n\nOf course, this was meant to be a retirement plan (as opposed to a savings account) and provisions were made to assure that any withdrawals prior to the age of 59.5 is penalized an extra 10% on top of your usual tax rate.  This is to discourage misuse of the retirement plan unless you absolutely needed the money.
258738
1800Merrill\nBut before you borrow from your 401k be sure to read attached article.
238762
the contribution varies based on your salary.
37854
You work and earn $50k, and owe, according to your estimate, $15k in taxes. \n\nIf I asked you today if you would do a job for me that would take you several months to complete, for $50k and you could then get paid in one of two ways:\n1)$35k right when you are done, or \n2)$30k four years from now, plus 80% of what interest is earned between now and then (20% are the taxes on that portion)\n\nWhich would you choose?\n\nYou would be foolish to choose option 2. Obviously the circumstances that got you there are not the same, but indeed you would be choosing the equivalent. Think long and hard before you take a 10% penalty without flinching.
204187
I'm not a financial advisor, so you should check on this, but I believe that you will pay early withdrawal penalties plus income taxes at your current base rate on whatever you take out for whatever reason before you are 59 1/2.\n\nYou can take a loan against it, but you'll  have to pay that back.  I think you can also divide the entire value by how many years you likely have left to live (from actuarial tables) and take annual "substantially equal payments" without penalty.  All in all, very, very bad idea to use 401(k) money before you are at least 59 1/2.  \n\nCheck the Motley Fool for sound advice on paying off your loans.
466716
Federal law prohibits anyone from using a 401(k) account as collateral for a loan, except for a loan from the plan itself. Most plans allow for a loan of up 50% of your vested balance. However, unless you are being paid while on leave of absence, you may not be allowed to take a loan from the plan, because repayment must be done through payroll withholding.  If this is the case for you, then a hardship withdrawal may be your only other option. Others have noted that a hardship withdrawal is taxable and subject to to additional 10% early withdrawal penalty if you are under 59 1/2.
369635
401(k) plan with company matching contribution 50 cents to your dollar - 3 year vesting. Potential for an additional 25 cents on the dollar dependent upon meeting our company goals. \nPaid holidays (10 per year) \nPaid vacation (equivalency of a minimum of 10 days per year after waiting period) \nUp to 100% tuition assistance. $1,500 annually for undergraduate and $3,000 annually for graduate classes per calendar year \nEmployee Assistance Program (EAP) - Free confidential off-site counseling service \nPaid personal time off - 24 hours/year full-time; 12 hours/year part-time \n\nFull time Employees may take advantage of the following additional benefits: \n\nComprehensive medical insurance options \n\nPre-tax premiums \n\nEconomical dental plan through MetLife - YOU choose your dentist! \n\nVision Plan (full and part-time employees are eligible) \nPaid medical leave \n\nCompany paid life insurance policy at 1½ times your annual salary with inexpensive supplemental options \n\nLong Term disability \n\nOptional long term care insurance through UNUM \n\nOptional supplemental cancer insurance through AFLAC \n\nChild adoption assistance program \n\nPre-tax spending accounts for medical and dependent care expenses \n\nEOE \nEqual Opportunity Employer\n\n:>peace
47815
If your time horizon (retirement date) is more than 20 years out, its best to invest in a 401k plan rather than invest in a taxable plan.  The reason is that the 401k has certain tax advantages which allow you to defer current taxes out into the future which gives you more money to compound earnings against.  Also, if you are an employer, you dont pay employer taxes against the money invested in the 401k plan.
663930
That Depends.  A company can file its 10-Q and its 10-K at the same time, but they don't have to as long as both are received by their required due dates.  Also if a company does not use a calendar fiscal year, say October, then the 10-K would be due well before the 4th quarter 10-Q.
1661
30 years of contributing the max to a Roth IRA each year should create a million.  If you have a 401k at work that offers matching, contribute enough to get the max of the match.
279765
It depends upon the terms of the plan.  Pensions are a special breed.  ERISA protects anything contributed by you and you may be entitled to some or all of what the employer has contributed.  However, pensions do not work like 401(k) plans.  Likewise the vesting rules are part of the Internal Revenue Code and not ERISA.  The rules for vesting can be as long as 10 years in some cases though that type of cliff vesting as it is called has become rare.  More common is a minimum of five years of employment for pension vesting.\n\nLikewise, if the plan is not qualified under the Internal Revenue Code, then the employer receives no tax deduction until paid, but is free to vest anyway they like.\n\nAlso, pensions I believe can restrict access to the funds until retirement.  You could receive it as a monthly check when you retire.  You could also receive now the present value of the future benefits.  It isn't likely to be much.\n\nIf you are 30 and entitled to lifetime benefits at age 65 at a rate of $100 per month, you are likely entitled to only $1075 today.  Involuntary or voluntary does not matter, unless you had died or were disabled.  Pension benefits only become valuable near retirement.\n\nERISA protects money you have paid in, the IRS code probably protects some or all of the employer contribution, but that protection does not necessarily mean you can access the funds before retirement.  Likewise, if you are married, you may be restricted from accessing the funds since pensions protect both spouses income for life.  Congress does permit spouses over 35 to waive their rights to the money.  It isn't binding on spouses under 35.\n\nThe answer is in your pension plan document.  It is the binding contract with participants and the plan trustee.  The Department of Labor people are nice and quite helpful, but they won't be able to help until you are sure they are breaking the rules.  It is unlikely that an employer would do that as the sanctions are high.  Read the document, it is a legal document but it is reasonably straight forward.  Also, HR should have provided you with all of this information at the exit process.
54246
It depends on the investments available in your 401(k). If it's not an investment you would otherwise consider, I would look for something else.
156964
You need to choose a custodian for your IRA, and request the employer to have the lump sum transferred to that custodian.  This will take some planning, filling out forms, etc. Check with HR, and of course with other recent retirees.\n\nIf you plan to retire 2 years or so in the future, just file the info away for future reference.  But a layoff could hit sooner, so it's good to be prepared!
22006
There is no limit to the number of 401(k) plans you can have, other than the number of employers you have/had. Some employers require that you remove your funds within a certain amount of time; others just like having your money.\n\nI usually take my funds out of a 401(k) plan and put it into an IRA so that my old company cannot continue to manage (or mis-manage, think Enron) it. If you transfer it to a qualified IRA, there is no penalty. Talk to your old company and whoever's handling the IRA to make sure you transfer it properly ... there are usually standard forms. DON'T TAKE IT OUT FIRST AND THEN TRY TO RE-DEPOSIT IT ELSEWHERE ... THAT WILL INCUR PENALTIES!!
340210
Rules on pensions just changed on 6 April 2006 and now you can only make a contribution in relation to 2006/07 during 2006/07, so no spreading anymore.  \n\nIf you made a big contribution you could reduce this year's tax to nil which would help to give you extra cash to pay earlier year's tax.\n\nBe aware you may well have incurred penalties by this stage.\n\nWorthwhile finding a tax adviser to help you.