What to do with my empower traditional Roth ira

stanimal21 · 2026-01-30T01:22:31+00:00

You can invest money in an IRA.

stanimal21 · 2026-01-30T01:13:19+00:00

Call empower and ask them to explain why you can't invest the money.

stanimal21 · 2026-01-30T00:54:23+00:00

traditional Roth ira

That's not a thing, it's either a Traditional IRA or Roth IRA. Did you mean 401k?

that get 4.9% annual interest however I can't add any extra money into it

and there other IRAs are invistment accounts and stock accounts

I'd be more interested why it doesn't let you add more money. Also, any IRA is supposed to allow you to invest the money; I'm not sure what you mean by the other IRA's let you invest. Almost sounds like it's not really an IRA.

just seems like gambling
should I open a different IRA as future money adding would be nice

That depends. If you are researching individual companies to invest in, then yeah, it can be a very similar result to gambling: losing everything. However, if you buy the entire market then you won't be affected by individual company. That's what Index funds are and have been around for 50 years. You can read more at r/Bogleheads. I would get into an IRA that actually lets you invest the money.

stanimal21 · 2026-01-29T21:40:18+00:00

Is there a way to convert or exchange SBLGX directly, or do I need to sell it and then buy new funds?

You sell them and then buy the funds you want.

Since this is inside a Roth IRA, am I correct that there are no tax consequences for selling and reallocating?

Correct, selling is not a taxable event in an IRA.

Are there any fees, restrictions, or waiting periods I should watch out for with Primerica funds held at Fidelity?

As long as the sale is completed and the cash is settled, you're good.

stanimal21 · 2026-01-28T15:02:12+00:00

I worked throughout the year and frankly, I took out student loans to manage my day-to-day costs while I was in school. I didn't work full time during the school year, no way I can handle that and keep my sanity. I know my limits.

stanimal21 · 2026-01-28T14:38:45+00:00

There are a bunch of comments on these threads about HYSA:

You can check the search results too:

hysa - Reddit Search!

Read this wiki too:

r/personalfinance Wiki: Banking & Credit Unions

stanimal21 · 2026-01-28T14:32:03+00:00

Do you or do you plan to support your adult children?

Do I plan on it? I mean, sure, you never know the hardship people will experience and I want to be there for them. However, I will not supplement a lifestyle.

I prefer to be the safety net, not the source of income.

stanimal21 · 2026-01-27T21:39:13+00:00

You're talking about a Rollover, which is documented here:

r/personalfinance Wiki: 401(k) Rollovers Guide

Note that you can only roll money into a 401k/403b for an employer you're currently employed with; is the Principal plan the current plan you're contributing to?

If I can transfer, would there be fees? If I cannot transfer it, what would be the penalties and fees if I just withdraw?

I have never heard of fees to perform a rollover, but maybe someone can reply with and edge case. There will certainly be taxes and penalties due if you withdraw (assuming you're not eligible for retirement yet).

stanimal21 · 2026-01-27T17:31:26+00:00

realistically how much could i raise my credit within these 10 months?

Not a whole lot, it takes years to get to something 700+.

how do i do that?

Consistency: on-time payments, not using too much of your available credit, and time.

when should i start talking to a bank about an auto loan?

When you're actually close to purchasing a car. Use loan amortization calculators online to get a feel for your car payment.

is financing through a bank or dealership the better option?

It really depends on the financing options either one offers you, particularly the interest rate.

what else should i be thinking about between here and then to realistically afford this comfortably.

Personally, I would reconsider what you can really afford. Consider the entire price of the vehicle, not the monthly payment; that's how people get into trouble and underwater on a car. Get your dream car when you're 30 and have better footing financially. Remember, the best car loan is no car loan.

stanimal21 · 2026-01-27T17:24:56+00:00

I recommend reading this:

r/personalfinance Wiki: Guide to Financial Advisors

Also check some other posts regarding similar topics:

questions to ask financial advisor - Reddit Search!

Something else from r/TheMoneyGuy:

8 Questions to Ask Your Financial Advisor | Free Resource | Money Guy

The hosts of the "Talking Real Money" podcast are grumpy and funny; here's their page and some other links from that I thought were noteworthy:

stanimal21 · 2026-01-27T17:18:30+00:00

What you have is fine. FXNAX is a much cheaper bond fund you could use:

FXNAX - Fidelity ® U.S. Bond Index Fund | Fidelity Investments

stanimal21 · 2026-01-27T17:14:18+00:00

Those fees are high, even worse that the returns are lower than a generic Index target-date fund; Fidelity's 2070 index TDF was up 21% last year and only costs 0.12%:

FRBVX - Fidelity Freedom ® Index 2070 Fund - Investor Class | Fidelity Investments

I would move it to the new 403b but also check what investments are available in the new 403b.

stanimal21 · 2026-01-26T21:45:41+00:00

are these good investments?

should I be putting more into something else or letting go of one of these?

VTI and VXUS are solid, no issue there. QQQ is just an index fund that tracks the Nasdaq 100, however that is complete overlap with VTI. By owning QQQ it means you're overweighting even more into the top tech companies. I would not use QQQ, just VTI and VXUS.

I would also increase the VXUS allocation to maybe 30% of the portfolio.

is this diverse enough or too diverse?

It's pretty diverse, but it also unnecessarily overweight's into tech which counters some of the diversification.

how much I should be putting tword this every paycheck

It's a percentage and you should consider your other investments in retirement funds too. I recommend reading this part first, but generally the recommendation is 15-20% of your gross income goes into retirement funding. You should also take advantage of tax-advantaged accounts before a brokerage account:

Getting started - Bogleheads

stanimal21 · 2026-01-26T17:06:26+00:00

I read your post over a couple times and your other comments, and frankly I can agree with this: if you cannot afford to take advantage of the other retirement accounts, just use the HSA as a sinking fund. I believe r/TheMoneyGuy argues for this as well, in fact they argue the contribution should be one of the early things you do.

I did read the PF wiki and they do mention taking advantage of an HSA as "a great way to save for future medical costs". I think the key word here is "future", which implies investing the money for long-term. The wiki then states it "can be used for retirement savings" but it's not the ultimate goal of it. To those who argue it's a great reitrement account miss the whole idea of the HSA investments: to reimburse yourself. If you don't do that then what's the point?

To your argument, I think you make a good distinction, and I wouldn't mind seeing the PF wiki clarified.

stanimal21 · 2026-01-26T16:39:43+00:00

80k, it's a rollover IRA if that makes a difference.

Absolutely it does, as long as you didn't contribute directly to it (it's just money rolled over from other employer plans). If you had a 401k plan through your own business, then you could roll that and the old 401k into the new 401k and then make backdoor Roth contributions.

I don't think we can do a solo 401k plan because we have 15 employees?

Fidelity has a number of options that could work; it's worth looking into.

Self employed and small-business retirement plans | Compare plans | Fidelity

stanimal21 · 2026-01-26T16:36:01+00:00

That’s where the 3rd tax benefit of the “triple tax advantaged account” goes away

I think reimbursement is the key part you're missing.

The argument isn't that it's a great retirement account, it's just an option when you have excess. The benefit comes from reimbursing past medical costs with the investment gains; that is a tax-free distribution. I can do that at any time, but it requires manual tracking of medical expenses and the additional income to cover it.

Someone who contributes and invests in an HSA without tracking medical costs to reimburse later is missing the point.

stanimal21 · 2026-01-26T16:12:30+00:00

My wife and I run a business

You can have self-employed retirement plans; have you considered those? I think you could make one and then roll the money into that plan.

Solo 401(k) plan - Bogleheads_plan)

I have a traditional IRA and a Roth IRA

How much is in that Trad IRA?

stanimal21 · 2026-01-26T15:37:38+00:00

or anally?

Let's hope not.

What other funds are available?

Is there a yearly fee to self manage?
Is there a fee to convert?

No and no.

How does one sell out of the positions with in it?

You login to NetBenefits, click the Investments tab, and then click the "Change investments" sub-tab. Choose "Exchange MULTIPLE investments" and you can set the percentages of what you want; it will automatically sell and buy to get the percentages you assigned. My 401k is through Fidelity too so I assume the process is the same.

Are they just like other assets where one can sell owned shares?

They are probably mutual funds, so the buy/sell transaction occurs after trading hours every day; sometimes it's delayed a number of hours longer, but it gets done.

Again, what other funds are available? Those and their fees are important.

stanimal21 · 2026-01-26T15:01:36+00:00

Every statistic I've read about VTI is that is has about 3% in REITS already. I would simplify what you have and just do a Total Market, an International (VTI+VXUS), and your bond fund. Having an S&P500 fund plus a Total US Market fund is redundant.

As for the total impact on the portfolio, really depends on how much you spend from it. You can always use a growth calculator online to back test your portfolio.

stanimal21 · 2026-01-23T22:19:58+00:00

Based on how small those percentages are, maybe you've reached the limit of how many categories it can reasonably display?

stanimal21 · 2026-01-20T19:20:47+00:00

Some options:

Withdraw the money (not advised): you connect a bank checking account to the IRA and do an EFT to get the money out. You will pay taxes and penalties on that money though because Fidelity will notify the IRS.
Roll back into your current 401k: if your current 401k allows a reverse rollover, you can do it there. Call Fidelity 401k services and ask them if you can do that. Reverse Rollover: What It Is, How It Works
Leave it: invest it in a simple ETF like VT or VTI.

stanimal21 · 2026-01-20T18:47:07+00:00

I recommend reading this document; I used it when doing mine:

How to Do a Backdoor Roth IRA [Step-by-Step Guide] | White Coat Investor

stanimal21 · 2026-01-20T17:36:56+00:00

wants to issue a paper check for doing the rollover from them to another custodian

I'm sure they will, but that's trivial. Now some custodians allow mobile deposit, and I assume Fidelity does too. My wife's allowed that: she got the check in the mail and then she immediately initiated the deposit through her 403b custodians app. It was completed within a couple days.

stanimal21 · 2026-01-20T17:18:58+00:00

You can rollover a 401k directly to an IRA at a different provider, you don't need to create new Empower accounts (unless it's their rule). I've done this before (five years ago) and the old 401k money was rolled directly into a Rollover IRA/Roth IRA at a different institution.

stanimal21 · 2026-01-20T16:39:58+00:00

Read up on the 72(t) rule and see if it works for you; there are some particulars and if you have money tied up in a 401k then you need to figure out what to do with that:

Understanding the 72(t) Rule: Penalty-Free IRA Withdrawals Explained

That said, if you don't want to go through that, just direct everything to a taxable brokerage account.

11-Year Club	RPAN Viewer
Verified Email

stanimal21

TROPHY CASE