rollover 401K Retire Age 55

L1: rollover 401K Retire Age 55 Dears Sirs,
Two Questions
I’M 52. If I rollover my current 401K plan into a new employer’s plan and retire after age 55 can I then take payments without penalty?
Also, If I start up a 72t now in an IRA are trading fees permissable to effect the balance?
Thanks,
Bob2005-06-03 01:38, By: Kartows, IP: [70.110.115.221]

L2: rollover 401K Retire Age 55 Good morning Bob:
Q-1 is Yes. But the wording you are looking for is retiring after ‘attained age 55’ which means that you retire during the year you become age 55. For example, you could retire in January of year 200X but not have your 55th birthday until say September of that same year and you’re good to go. Another way to look at ‘attained age’ is to ask youself how old will you be on December 31 of a particular year.
Q-2 is Yes. All fees and commissions within an IRA are considered costs of running the IRA. In the simplest of situations you could have everything in one mutual fund family and pay from $0.00 up. If you have a stock trading IRA then the fees and commissions are part of running the IRA account. If you have a really big IRA and have it in a fee account where quarterly fees are withdrawn, that is a cost of running the IRA and they don’t count against you. If you have a large IRA and another Non-qualified account and both are in the fee account environment, then you can pay the IRA fees from the Non-qualified account and then all fees go to the ‘Miscelaneous Deductions subject to 2% of AGI’ on the bottom of ‘Schedule A, Itemized Deductions’ of your tax return. Generally this is high enough so you can pick up some deductions you might have been missing because of the 2% limit. Talk with you tax advisor for more details on this aspect.
Now I know some are itching to pounce on me when I say these fees ‘don’t count against you.’ Of course all fees and commissions reduce your overall return and in that respect it does ‘count against you,’ but my answer is to your specific question.
Hope this helps.
Jim2005-06-03 09:46, By: Jim, IP: [70.184.1.35]

L2: rollover 401K Retire Age 55 RE Question #1: You will need to verify that the plan will provide for periodic payments. For example, even though you retire during the year you turn age 55 and are not subject to the penalty, if the plan does not provide for periodic payments, you would be required to take the full amount. Based on the account balance, this could generate a sizeable tax bill.
2005-06-04 09:04, By: GRT, IP: [24.145.164.87]

L2: rollover 401K Retire Age 55 GRT is absolutely correct that the plan must allow for periodic distributions.You should check with theHR department at your new employer to determine this before making the transfer to the new K-plan. If you can’t make periodic distributions then look more to the IRA Rolover when you leave the old company and then start 72(t) distributions if you will need the money.
Jim2005-06-07 08:55, By: Jim, IP: [70.184.1.35]