Ask Paula - Where Should I Keep My Money if I Want to Retire Early?

#146: My friend and former financial advisor, Joe Saul-Sehy, joins me to answer a multitude of questions on retirement savings and investing, so let's dive in.

Elyse has two questions:


#1: Through her job, Elyse has a 401(a) hybrid. Right now, she contributes 0.5% as her employer will contribute 2.5% only when she contributes 4%.

Should she contribute the full 4%, or keep her contribution as low as possible, save it, and invest it on her own (which is what she's been doing)?

#2: Elyse also has $18,600 invested in a mutual fund through her bank. Everything that she has read says to invest in index funds. So, should she pull her money out of the mutual fund and into Vanguard to avoid high fees?

Anonymous also has a few questions:


She has a 9-year job history with the state and local government, during which she has been enrolled in the Florida pension plan.

Her new job offers a 457 Plan and/or a 403(b) Plan to supplement the pension earning.

Her first question is: is a 403(b) better than a 457 Plan? Or should she enroll in both?

Second, in her most recent job, she had a 457 deferred compensation Vanguard account which has $22,000 in it.
Should she roll the Vanguard account over into one of the above plans, or leave it alone?

Lastly, she has a 3-month old and wants to put a lump sum of $10,000 toward an account she can make contributions to, but she isn't sure which account would be best. Florida has a pre-paid program, but are there better options?

Rachel has a question on retirement accounts as well!:


Rachel recently left a government job where she had a TSP. In addition to that, she also has two IRAs - a small traditional IRA and slightly larger Roth IRA. She's actively contributing to the Roth IRA.

When she left her job, she started an S-corp, and as she looks forward to business picking up, she wants to know how to best organize her retirement savings moving forward to make it easier to manage. She's also interested in tax optimization.

What actions do we recommend she take?

Stephen, a new listener, asks:


If we're following the 4% rule route, does it make sense to fund an HSA, Roth IRA, Traditional IRA, or 401(k) at work? Or should we put all of the money in a Vanguard fund?

Essentially, if you're planning to retire in 10 years or less, which is more beneficial: splitting up your money, or focusing on one account?

P.S. If you have a question you want me to answer on an upcoming Ask Paula episode, leave it here!