Retirement ? - 401k vs IRA

[divajane]

DH and I are finally at a place where we are contributing more than the amount required to get our full employer match with our 401k, and we don't know if we should just continue to up the amount we are contributing to the 401ks or if we should open up a Roth IRA and put the additional amount there. Relevant info:

• I am 29, DH is 31
  
• Annual income is around 70k
  
• Right now we are both contributing 6% with employer match of 1.5% (fully vested)
  
• My income should continue to increase pretty well as I advance in my career, DH will probably just expect COL or near COL increases.
  
• We are behind on retirement savings, but it is our #1 goal to get caught up, so we will be increasing our contributions whenever we can
  

Bonus Question: I have about 15k in an old 401k from a former employer that I haven't done anything with. Would you recommend putting that into my new 401k, or a Roth IRA (is that even possible)/traditional IRA?

[SJ]

First of all, great job on making sure you are getting the full employer match!

In your shoes, I would turn to Roth IRA's and work on those. I think the Roth is a neat tool and I also like the diversification of having both pre-tax (your 401K) and post-tax (Roth IRA) retirement funds.

Vanguard is a great place to start, but if you are already used to another brokerage house that you are happy with (Fidelity, etc) that works too! You can set up automatic contributions so it pulls each month from your checking and you won't forget.

2012 IRA contribution limits are $5,000 each per year.

As for your old 401K, I might consider converting it into the Roth IRA. However, you will have to pay taxes on the conversion, so if cash flow is an issue and you want to avoid a tax bill, then maybe put it into your current 401K (as long as you are happy with the investment choices). The standard advice that I usually give would be to roll it into a Traditional IRA, but it seems that it might be better for you to focus and consolidate rather than having so many accounts.

[gt7301b]

I agree with everything sj said. Good luck getting the Roth started!!

[ejpint]

sarajoy gives great financial advice.

The only thing I'll add is that traditional advice I've read and been given is to go with 401k to the point that you're getting all available company match. Then direct additional funds to a Roth IRA (or IRA). If you max out the Roth IRA, and still have funds to save toward retirement, at that point go back and increase your 401k contributions.

I've just used the same company that my 401k was through to start my IRA accounts - they were very helpful in identifying which funds would be a good fit for my goals based on my current situation.

Good luck!