403b newbie

[Major0909]

So let me see if I got this right (speaking on general features)-

I should invest up to the max that will be matched into my account

I will have already chosen from a list of vendors to control my investments (Fidelity, vanguard, etc) and have chosen an investment strategy- conservative to aggressive and then these investments will be controlled automatically by my chosen vendor

If possible, if there's anything left over I can bear with- start to put that into a Roth b/c I'm in the lowest tax bracket I'll ever be in

After my 3-6 years I can move my funds from the 403b over to another 401 or into the Roth fund which I had opened without any crazy costs?

Is that the general idea?

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[johnstoner]

do you get a matching contribution from your program? Sad to say that my program does not offer such benefits except the option of opening a 403b

 

[etf]

i didn't know that 403(b)s offered matching, as this is usually a benefit of private sector employers who usually match with company stock.

to answer your other questions - there isn't a set amount to save - save as much as you can. hoard it away while you're young and not used to living the high life, and let the power of compounding work for you.

you can roll over the money in your 401k/403b the next day into a roth if you wanted to, but you can only do a rollover once a year.

 

[UserNameNeeded]

you can roll over the money in your 401k/403b the next day into a roth if you wanted to, but you can only do a rollover once a year.

Hmm...are you sure? I was talking to Merryl Lynch (that's the company that handles my mom's 401K plan from work) and they made it seem like she could only roll it over if she left her job (which she's not planning to do).

And does converting it to a Roth affect her if she's already contributed the max to her Roth for this year?

 

[etf]

Hmm...are you sure? I was talking to Merryl Lynch (that's the company that handles my mom's 401K plan from work) and they made it seem like she could only roll it over if she left her job (which she's not planning to do).

And does converting it to a Roth affect her if she's already contributed the max to her Roth for this year?

Ah, I forgot to mention that little quirk - if your 401(k) is made up of mostly employer contributions, or it's a 401(a) account, then you can only rollover after you "seperate from service" which is leaving your job or retiring.

 

[etf]

and I don't think roth conversions count towards the $4000 yearly limit, since you're not really adding new money - but i would check some other sources to make sure.

 

[johnstoner]

if other people aren't getting contributions, then i don't feel so bad...but i know of a few colleagues that are in programs that actually provide contributions to 403b...some of them after 1 year on the job and usually this is not as much as private company 401k contributions for obvious reasons.