What is an IRA? Should I have one?
463645
IRA-Irish Republican Army  I dont recommend one\nTry Guiness instead\n"SLAINTE"
183155
I am not sure exactly what your question is asking.  If you retire at 55, but need to access your IRA money right away, you should look into IRS rule 72t.  There are a few different methods of doing this and you need to sit down with a tax advisor to make sure that you do it right.  Click this link for an article that has more info\nhttp://ktla.trb.com/business/yourmoney/sns-yourmoney-0403moneytalk,0,7524444.story\n\nGood Luck!!!
779084
There is a pension, 401k and an IRA.
626560
It a retirement plan. Instead of paying the government right away, you get to keep it for interest, you give it back later when you take your money out. E-mail me if you want to know more. I can elaborate if needed.
466296
Do you have earned income?  Are you filing your tax return in the states?  If so, you might still qualify to open and contribute to traditional IRA or ROTH IRA.  If you're self-employed, you might be qualified to open a SEP IRA where the maximum contribution limit is 42,000 or 100% of income.\n\nDefinitely do save/invest in addition to IRA limit for a secure retirement.
456953
You should consult a financial advisor to see if a roth IRA or a regular IRA is better suited to your situation.  With a roth, you don't get the tax write off now, but you won't pay taxes on it when you use it at retirement.  A regular IRA you can deduct it on your taxes now, but then you pay taxes on it when you retire.\n\n\nAlso, with a Roth, you can take it out after 5 years without a penalty so it's a good nestegg if you'll need it for a downpayment or something.
31570
Yes you can. Check with a financial planner and or an accountant though. Depending on your income you may not qualify for a deductible ira or a roth ira.
248690
You can contribute $4,000 to an IRA as long as it is incone you have earned. Consider the new Roth IRAs.\n\nGo here: http://www.irs.gov/publications/p590/ch01.html#d0e1464\n\nYou'll get more detailed info there.\n\nGood Luck!
878382
Wow Im a little worried about some of the advice you received.  An annuity is a policy with an insurance company that allows you to protect your money from probate, and yes it passes directly to your beneficiary within 7 days after the insurance co is notified.  Unfortunately too many people give their opinions about annuities when they have no idea what they are and why they are great retirement/estate planning tools.  Not to mention that Annuities pay higher interest rates than bank CD's and money markets, and Fixed annuities don't lose your money like the stock market and mutual funds.   Good for you for having an annuity, now that I have shed some light on what they are.  The answer to your question is YES.  Just like any investment, you will not avoid paying taxes on your annuity.  If it is Non Qualified Money, the taxable portion will be on the interest you have earned during the course of having the annuity policy.  If it Qualified money like an IRA the entire amount will be taxable.  The insurance company will be happy to take the approximate taxes right off the payout amount to help your beneficiary, or they can elect to pay it at the end of the year.  Estate and inheritance tax only effect a small percentage of Americans, so this probably won't be an issue for you.  Keep in mind that if this is infact in a Fixed Annuity and Not a Variable annuity, your interest has been compounding over the years tax deferred.  That gain is significantly better than you would have gotten in a CD, paying taxes on it every year.  Good for you.  Make sure you keep that money in an annuity, and that you are getting a FIXed interest rate, no in the stock market.  SAFETY
524763
Under IRS rules, you can only roll over a 401k into a Traditional IRA and wait at least one year before moving it into Roth IRA. Remember, 401k sitting in previous employers will not have any growth. It is a frozen account until you roll it over.\n\nIRAs are always a good plan to save for retirement. You can pick any mutual funds that is offered by a financial institution (most mutual funds require a minimum initial deposit of $1000). And can be tax free after age 59 1/2 when you start using it.
1148050
Go to Clark Howard.com. for the answer to this and many other questions dealing in the wise use of money!\n\nCiao,\n\nAngelo Fragapane\n\nRoth IRA 101 \nThe Roth IRA in a nutshell \nBy Kaye A. Thomas\nUpdated February 11, 2006\nGet a quick overview of the benefits and basic rules of Roth IRAs.\n\nThe Roth IRA was born on January 1, 1998 as a result of the Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997. It's named after the late Senator William V. Roth, Jr.\n    The Roth IRA provides no deduction for contributions, but instead provides a benefit that isn't available for any other form of retirement savings: if you meet certain requirements, all earnings are tax free when you or your beneficiary withdraw them. Other benefits include avoiding the early distribution penalty on certain withdrawals, and eliminating the need to take minimum distributions after age 70½.\n\nPlus and Minus\nThe chief advantage of the Roth IRA is obvious: the ability to have investment earnings completely escape taxation. The advantage comes at a price, though: you don't get a deduction when you contribute to the Roth IRA.\n    So which is more important? It depends on your personal situation, and also on what assumptions you want to make about the future. How long before you withdraw money from your IRA? What will your tax bracket be then? What earnings can you anticipate in the interim?\n    You can do lots of fancy analysis, but the bottom line is that most people are better off in the Roth IRA. The chief reason is that the Roth IRA is effectively bigger than a regular IRA because it holds after-tax dollars. If you can take advantage of this feature of the Roth IRA by maximizing your contributions you'll add greater tax leverage to your retirement savings.\n    There are two other significant advantages to the Roth IRA. One is that the minimum distribution rules don't apply. If you're able to live on other resources after retirement, you don't have to draw on your Roth IRA at age 70½. That means your earnings continue to grow tax-free. The other big advantage is the ability to take certain early distributions without paying the early distribution penalty. In short, the Roth IRA makes it easier to keep your money in, and also easier to take your money out.\n\nEligibility\nYou can establish a Roth IRA by making a regular contribution to a Roth IRA or by converting a traditional IRA to a Roth IRA.\n    You may be eligible to make a regular contribution to a Roth IRA even if you participate in a retirement plan maintained by your employer. These contributions can be as much as $4,000 for 2006 ($5,000 if you're 50 or older by the end of the year). There are just two requirements. First, you or your spouse must have compensation or alimony income equal to the amount contributed. And second, your modified adjusted gross income can't exceed certain limits. For the maximum contribution, the limits are $95,000 for single individuals and $150,000 for married individuals filing joint returns. The amount you can contribute is reduced gradually and then completely eliminated when your modified adjusted gross income exceeds $110,000 (single) or $160,000 (married filing jointly).\n    You can convert your regular IRA to a Roth IRA if (a) your modified adjusted gross income is $100,000 or less, and (b) you're single or file jointly with your spouse. You'll have to pay tax in the year of the conversion, but for many people the long-term savings outweigh the conversion tax.\n\nDistributions\nDistributions from Roth IRAs are tax-free until you've withdrawn all your regular contributions. After that you'll withdraw your conversion contributions, if any. Special rules apply when you withdraw your conversion contributions. When you've withdrawn all your contributions (regular and conversion), any subsequent withdrawals come from earnings. The withdrawals are tax-free if you're over age 59½ and at least five years have expired sinc
209580
IRAs generally have some advantages over a 401K.\n\nThe biggest one is that you aren't as limited in your investment choices.  The typical 401k may have 9-10 funds to select from.  IRAs are pretty much unlimited.\n\nHowever, without knowing what costs your company covers for you in the 401K, this is a pretty difficult question to answer.
159642
Max Roth IRA contributions!!!! It's a MUST!
559652
Roth IRA eligibility phases out at the following levels:\n\n    * $150,000 to $160,000: Married Filing Jointly\n    * $0 to $10,000: Married Filing Separately (and you lived with your spouse at any time during the year)\n    * $95,000 to $110,000: Single, Head of Household or Married Filing Separately (and you did not live with your spouse)\n\nGenerally speaking, a Roth IRA is the best option for *most* people, since it allows for tax-free withdrawals.  This tends to outweigh the up-front tax benefits of the traditional IRA for most people.\n\nAs for where to open your Roth IRA account, Vanguard, T Rowe Price and Fidelity all have large families of no-load funds that you can use to best fit your risk tolerance.\n\nBefore you do any of this, I'd suggest that you make a small investment in a book which will give you a solid foundation on how to invest your money.  The one I generally give to high school graduates, college graduates and newlyweds is "The Only Investment Guide You'll Ever Need" by Andrew Tobias.  It actually comes close to living up to its billing and it's an easy read.\n\nIf you'd like to learn more or get other recommendations on how to educate yourself more, click on my name and send me a note.
49054
As I understand it, you can recharacterize it as a Roth IRA next year. However, at that time you will owe taxes on the value of the account (which will likely be greater than the initial amount invested).\n\nIt only makes sense if you expect to be taxed next year at a lower rate.
826571
Individual Retirement Account, if your money is before taxes you can contribute to a traditional IRA, this means you earn interest on the untaxed money. You are taxed when you make take the money out at retirement. Roth IRA, you take money that has already been taxed and are able to draw from it at retirement, without taxes. This is rumored to have been named for Ira Cohen, an IRS actuary who was working with them back in 1974. You can go to just about any bank, credit union, or find a financial advisor to explain in detail all aspects, what is allowed, what is not allowes (such as drawing out your money before age 59.5).
820673
Don't buy mutual funds for the long run. They're not good investments. The problem is the fees that are involved. A mutual fund is a pool of money from a number of investors which is then invested and managed by a fund manager and usually his/her employees. This inherently means you get lower returns than if you bought stocks.\n\nThe reason is, the fund manager and employees all have to get paid, which cuts into your earnings. This makes them less attractive, so they often pay advisers to recommend them. This further cuts into your earnings. As a result, stocks are a much smarter option. The IRA isn't a bad idea, and there are different kinds of IRAs you can invest in.