Should I cash out my ROTH IRA savings to buy my first home or keep renting and leave the Roth alone?
138462
Lots to consider, what is the appreciation in the community that you are living? What does it look like for the next five years? With home ownership your interest is a deduction from your ordinary income? What is your present rent? Over 5 years.?\n\nWhat are present market value of the sold homes?\n\nGenerally home ownership is the way to go.\n\nGood Luck
339696
Save as much as you can, definitely take advantage of the Thrift Savings Plan, and invest--- maybe in Real Estate.    Buy a home and stay there long enough to build up equity--meanwhile you have tax expemtions and you're not throwing "rent"  money down the drain.
34718
It was explained to me that in the end the Roth is better you won't be taxed when you withdraw at retirement which will be worth a lot more than the benefit you get now for a tradional.  Of course you have to do what works best for you and your financial situation.  I would get started right away with which ever you do, it truly is never too early to start saving for retirement especially with SS up in the air.
286106
House, no.  Stocks, yes (but only if you know which stocks to get :)\n\nReason, stocks are portable and you can take them with you.\n\nHouses, not normally portable.  Plus, you have to get a 30 year mortgage in many states just to have a comfortable monthly payment.  A house automatically implies you intend to stay longer.  Now, if you intend to keep the house when you move and rent it out or use it as a vacation home or retirement home (later), then it might be worth doing.\n\nOf course, it's just my opinion, it's really your decision.
613385
You should first set aside some money in an emergency fund in a savings account...in my region you can earn about 3.3% on a money market savings account.  This money is liquid and you can access it at any time.\n\nOnce you've done that, you should determine what you're saving for.  Is it for a particular purchase, such as a down payment on a house?  Or is it for retirement?  If it will be invested short-term, you might look into Certificate of Deposits offered by banks...interest rates have climbed substantially from where they were 2 years ago.  Or if for retirement, I recommend a Roth IRA.
1009135
You may be able to borrow some from your IRA account but I would not recommend it.  Typically it would be for a home purchase and not home improvements.  Honestly I am not certain so you may want to take a look at publication 590 from the IRA that details out the rules for the IRA in plain english (which helped me quite a bit!)
839409
Dazed and Con has some very valid points. I would like to elaborate on them. Personally, I don't believe in the "rent to own" - it is a load of crap that doesn't give you any tax benefits. If you are able, take out a 5-year interest-only fixed loan. By that time, you will be out of school and can refinance the property. You should have built up enough equity by that time to not have to worry about a negative amortization. You can pay down the principal during this 5 year time if you wish. When you re-fi after you are out of school and working, you can roll some of the student loans intot he re-fi if you fix the house up enough to get a good high appraisal. This way, all of the interest including your student loan money would be tax deductible. This brings me to the last issue. Are you prepared to pay back student loans plus Uncle Sam after you graduate? If not, then having a house that is yours, not some "rent-to-own" nonsense, will give you the type of write-offs you will need to cut down or eliminate those tax checks. If the landlord is not willing to sell the house to you under a true normal sale scenario, then he/she is not serious. You never said whether or not you have a down payment. If not, then the rent-to-own may possibly work if you have an iron-clad conract with regard to your down payment coming from your rental payments of 4 years, an end date to the time when the property will be put into your name, etc. Take any rent&#92;-to-own contract you end up with to the local court house and record it against the property to stop anyone from selling it out from underneath you. Sorry to be so cynical, but I have seen many a rotten landlord on these. Buy it outright if you can.
1057768
PUT IT IN A ROTH IRA. I just took a dave ramsey course in school and if u have any other info ask me.. i have an easy to read book on all money questions
453258
try to deffer the payments as much as possible so that if this ends up being you only source of income then you will end up paying less taxes i don't think that it will be tax free. unless it is a roth IRA where you paid taxes upfront to later have tax free money when you get the money.
35984
I would focus on your comfortable monthly payment, and stick with that.  You may be approved for a much higher purchase, but remember, lenders are not your fiduciary; many people get in over their heads, and sure enough a lender was willing to take them there.  A top quality real estate agent will be able to guide you.\n\nAfter you determine your comfortable monthly payment, you might consider purchasing rental or investment property with your leftover financial capability.  A great book to read is The Millionaire Real Estate Investor, by Gary Keller and Dave Jenks.  This is smart as you focus on retirement and college expenses.  Good Luck!
988055
Boy, I would really avoid that if you can. The withholding isn't really up to you. They are going to keep 30 percent if the principal is before-tax money (in a Roth) and 30 percent of the profit if it is after tax money (in a traditional). But the penalty is so severe that you ought to consider doing other things (second job or whatever) to avoid the hit and the loss of your compounding if you possibly can. $1,000 left alone for 40 years will grow to more than $100,000 in a growth stock fund.
498567
Yearly take-home pay ~ $54.4K\nMonthly take-home ~ $4.5 K\nExpenses ~ $2 K <people never get this right so I double it>\nMonthly savings of $2.5 K.\n\nIf you can automatically have $ go from work directly into saving vehicles do so ... this will stop temptations.  You should pocket 40% for expenses & living <getting your date> ... and 60% savings.\n\n1.  Before you do anything else <except pay off all debt> ... Build up to $20K in Emergency Savings first <$2K * 12 = $24>.  I then tell myself I have no money when I deplete the account to $15 K. Then I change allocations, and make sure I always have this highly liquid stash. <T-Bills, CD's, Saving/Checking accounts ... safe & liquid>\n\n2.  Savings - After the safety account is established goals reached, then you need savings that are more risky but still liquid <make sure there are no penalties to get $$$>.  You can invest the money into bonds, mutual funds, or stocks ... what ever you are educated in and feel confident in.  This account is taxable so be mindful of that when you make investment decisions.  \n\n3.  Retirement - 401(k), SEP, ROTH, IRA ... See what you're company has for retirement.  If they match, then contribute what they match.  If no retirement is offered, then go to a broker and get their help.  You should be investing 10-20% of your savings here.\n\n4.  Housing - With only $1K in expenses I'm guessing you don't own a home.  I would look into buying a home <Loft, condo, town home> It's money well spent, and you can get great loans today <tomorrow the good loans will be gone>
350612
The interest that you pay on your mortgage is tax deductible.  I would pay the mortgage off last.  If you have any credit card debt pay that off first.  Then if you are not maxing out retirement savings, put the $50 a month into a Roth IRA for yourself.  If you still have some extra money than dump it into a 529 ( http://www.529s.com )
4950
It depends. Now is always a good time to buy a house if it's going to be your primary residence. Not only is owning going to take you out of paying rent and probably someone else's mortgage...there are tax benefits as well. There is no better feeling than ownership. It is also a way to force savings (when you pay principle)\n\nIf you are planning on buying a house for speculation or investment/rental...I'd probably hold off. People who are buying and flipping properties are creating this "bubble".\n\nI just heard on NewsTalk radio that there were 8000 homes for sale in the Phoenix area about 6-12 months ago...and right now there's over 20,000.
1186755
Automatic savings.  Open an IRA for retirement and automatically have $200 per month taken out of your pay and put in that account until you max out on the yearly limit.  You could even more than $200 in now, since the year is half over.\n\nPay yourself first.  You can't spend it if you never see it.  Your old self will thank the smart young self that started saving.
837662
I am assuming you mean renting it out to other people.  (Your question makes it sound like you want to rent a home yourself.)  If you own a second home, and you need the extra income to pay for the mortgage as opposed to losing it to the bank, I would say, yes.  Renting it out is a good idea.  I have two other homes, both rentals.  I purchased them for that exact reason.  The income I receive for rent each month, is about $750.00 over the mortgage on them.  So I make a profit of $750.00 each month, above and beyond the mortgage payment, for rent generated.  Hope this helps.
139122
There isn't specifically a "tax break" for a first time homeowner.  You do get to deduct your mortgage interest.  As far as moving, if you pass the checklist of questions, you should be able to deduct the specific items that the IRS will allow, i.e. mileage, and moving expenses if it was for your job.