Q. In your Dec. 16 column, you suggest leaving money in the Thrift Savings Plan as long as possible. I like the suggestion to withdraw only the required minimum distribution when the time comes. I am confused how this is done since, unlike the mutual fund companies, the TSP doesn’t seem to have an option of partial withdrawals.
A. You’ll have to initiate monthly withdrawals to meet the requirement. Since you can’t go from automatic withdrawals based on your life expectancy to fixed monthly withdrawals, you’ll retain more flexibility by sticking to fixed monthly withdrawals. If your monthly withdrawals fall short of the requirement for the year, the TSP will send a check to make up the difference at the end of the year.
