Q. I am about 70½ years old and have a TSP. I retired in 1994 but left my TSP funds intact. Do I have to begin withdrawing these funds now that I am 70½ years old?
Author Mike Miles
Mike Miles
Mike Miles is a Certified Financial Planner licensee and principal adviser for Variplan LLC, an independent fiduciary in Vienna, Virginia. Email your financial questions to fedexperts@federaltimes.com and view his blog at money.federaltimes.com.
Q. Why do the L Funds have a greater percentage in the I Fund versus the S Fund? The I Fund 10-year composition is 3.20 percent versus S Fund’s 8.03 percent. What got my curiosity is the year-to-date returns: I Fund at 1.42 percent versus S Fund at 15.27 percent.
Q. When one retires under FERS, is it the last three years’ annual salary or the last three highest salaries that determine the benefits?
Q. I will be 50 years old in September 2017 and will have more than 20 years of federal law enforcement service. I plan to retire Dec. 31, 2017. I know I must leave my retirement funds in the TSP to qualify for the Public Safety Act’s penalty-free withdrawal options. However, I plan to withdraw about $150,000 from the TSP and start a lifetime annuity with the remaining $400,000. Will the $150,000 and/or the $400,000 withdrawals will be penalized? (I know I’ll have to pay tax, which is fine.) Can I take the $150,000 withdrawal and then a few years later initiate…
Q. I’m only 26 years old, with nine years of federal service. I recently was forced to resign due to unforeseen circumstances. After I pay off the outstanding balance on a TSP loan, and request a full withdrawal (single payment), to what percentage of my TSP balance am I entitled?
Q. I have been contributing money to the voluntary contribution program throughout the year, and I plan to make a fairly large contribution before the end of year, at which time I plan to retire. I am 60 years old, with 41 years of service. I plan to roll the VCP contributions to a Roth IRA. Will the Roth IRA account have to be held for 5 years before being able to withdraw without a penalty? Do I need to complete the VCP-to-Roth rollover before I retire? Do I need to complete the required forms for the rollover as part…
The election has demonstrated how difficult it can be to predict the effect of world events on the investment markets. If there was a consensus on the effect the outcome would have on the markets, it was that a Trump victory would be bad for stocks. While the stock market did drop significantly immediately following the news that Trump had won, by the end of the following day, it was in positive territory and continuing to climb. During the following weeks, several major stock market indices went on to reach new record highs. Ahead of the election, I did not…
Q. My husband and I are both FERS with law enforcement coverage. He is 52 years old but will be retiring soon because of terminal illness. He has a total of 31 years of federal time. I am 45 years old and just completed my 25th year of federal LEO coverage. I have no plans of retiring anytime soon. My husband will most likely dip into his TSP upon retirement. He has made me his beneficiary of his TSP. Whatever money is left in his TSP after he passes, how does that affect my beneficiary status? Does his TSP remain…
Q. I will be 70½ years old in October 2017. I was planning to take a full withdrawal of my TSP account so I can set up trust funds for my grandchildren. I was told this was a bad idea, due to taxes in Virginia. What do you think? A. The alternative is to leave your TSP in place, make the trusts the beneficiaries of the account and contribute the required minimum distributions to the trusts as they are taken. This will allow you (and your grandchildren) to reap the unique benefits of the TSP for as long as you…
Q. I understand TSP does not withhold state taxes from periodic payments, but what I don’t understand is how those state (Ohio, specifically) taxes get paid. Does that mean I will have to pay estimated tax four times a year?