Rolling Over those 401(k) Funds into an IRA? Make it a Self-Directed IRA.
Published on April 26, 2016
An article in Investment News in mid-March talked about baby boomers pondering what to do with their retirement savings in their former employer’s 401(k) plan. According to the author, Mary Beth Franklin, “the majority of boomers who work with financial advisers choose … to move their money to an IRA in an attempt to improve their investment performance and consolidate their assets.” This is according to a survey by the Center for Retirement Income at The American College of Financial Services.*
Do you have substantial assets that have been taking a hit with the volatile market this year? Are those assets in a defined contribution plan? If you’re thinking of moving those funds into an IRA, why not make it a self-directed IRA and take control over your investments with what you already know and understand?
The study revealed that more than two-thirds of the respondents kept the money in the employer plan because they liked the investment options; half of this group opted for the path of least resistance because it was just easier.
If you are someone who likes a lot of investment options, you might be selling yourself short by keeping the funds in a traditional 401(k). With a self-directed retirement plan (which could be a Traditional or Roth IRA or, if the employer allows, a defined contribution plan) you have a much wider pool of investment types to pick from—including many alternative assets you might already be investing in outside of your existing plan. Your financial planner can work with you to develop your self-directed portfolio at Next Generation Trust Services; and, if this professional is an independent, fee-based advisor, he/she can also earn fees on any assets we hold, as long as they are still advising you on those funds or assets.
How about including these investment options in your retirement portfolio?
- Commercial or residential real estate – farm land, raw land, warehouses, vacation property, investment property.
- Hedge funds
- Mortgages
- Unsecured loans
- Business investments
- Commercial paper
- Precious metals
- Commodities – fuels, agricultural products, livestock
- And much more.
If you are comfortable making your own investment decisions (or are working with your financial planner to help frame your retirement income strategies), a self-directed retirement plan could be a great way for you to develop a more eclectic portfolio and a more sustainable retirement income stream.
Next Generation Trust Services is a full-service administrator of these plans, and handles all the paperwork and reporting required, executes the transactions, and holds the assets. Your trusted advisor can provide the guidance you seek to build your portfolio to meet your retirement goals, while Next Generation provides the client education and account management.
Have a question about rolling over your 401(k) funds into a self-directed retirement plan? You can watch our informative video about transfers and rollovers here, or contact our helpful professionals at Info@NextGenerationTrust.com or (888) 857-8058. The more you learn, the more you’ll want to start controlling your future, today!
*The study was based on online interviews conducted last October with 1,002 Americans age 60 or older who had retired from full-time employment within the past three years, and who had at least $75,000 invested in their former employer’s 401(k) or 403(b) plan.
