Q. I’m a 52-year-old federal employee serving in military status. I have the following in my Thrift Savings Plan account: C Fund — $145,000; G Fund — $30,000; F Fund — $10,000; and I Fund — $7,000 for a total of $192,000. I have other IRA investments of $70,000. I plan to buy back about eight years of military service for my federal retirement. My risk level is somewhat moderate, and I wanted to know if I should move a percentage of my C Fund into G? The fiscal cliff concerns me. I’m not sure if I’m balanced in my…
Browsing: C Fund
Q. If I have $100,000 in my C Fund and 100,000 in the I Fund and transfer the balance to the G Fund, will the balance be $200,000 if nothing changes in the market overnight? A. Yes.
Q. I’ve worked for the Food and Drug Administration for 18 years. I started investing in the Thrift Savings Plan about 10 years ago and don’t plan on retiring until 2030. I’m investing 15 percent right now, and I plan on doing more. I’ve been advised to invest in the L Funds. But lately I’ve been looking at the F, C, S and I funds, which are doing so much better than the L. I want to switch to the one that’s earning the most. Isn’t the L fund for those who are ready to retire within a couple of years? I’m…
Q. Is there any way to manage one’s Thrift Savings Plan account so as to effect a bucket strategy of withdrawal? My reasoning is that not all funds will be up in any one year. I would like to have a three-to-five-year bucket (G Fund) for the lifetime monthly withdrawals and a six-to-10-year bucket for asset growth (C, S and I funds). Periodically, I would move money from the longer-term bucket to the shorter-term bucket. As it stands now, withdrawals come out of each fund based on the percentage in each. My reasoning is that the rock bottom expense ratios…
Q. I am looking for some feedback on information received from a financial adviser. I have been in the L2020 fund. The financial adviser is primarily for military and federal employees. He indicated that the L2020 fund currently has 60 percent in stocks (C, S and I funds) and 40 percent in fixed income (G and F funds). He had suggested conducting an interfund transfer to allocate 65 percent to stocks and 35 percent to fixed income. The formula would be 25 percent C, 20 percent S and 20 percent I funds, equaling 65 percent. The second equation would be to put…
Q. I am 29 years old and serve in the Air Force. I contribute the maximum $5,000 amount to my Roth IRA every year, and have a few thousand dollars in the standard Thrift Savings Plan. I am concerned about the lack of investing options besides the G, F, S, C, I and L funds within the TSP. With the new Roth TSP option, would it be possible for me to continue to contribute $5,000 directly to my Roth IRA, then contribute $17,000 to a Roth TSP, and finally roll that $17,000 over to my Roth IRA each year? A. Your participation…
Q. I’m a FERS retiree, age 64, with a $36,000 annual pension. My spouse has a $40,000 annual salary. We have a rental property that brings us $24,000 a year. And we have a home mortgage balance of $500,000. Our living expenses so far do not require me to withdraw my $600,000 Thrift Savings Plan fund. I plan to live until age 85. As I approach age 70½ with minimum distribution, what is the best tax strategy for transferring the $600,000 from the TSP into a private investment account? A lump-sum rollover into a Roth account after paying the taxes? A calculated…
Q. Effective Feb. 29, 2012, I am a CSRS retiree from federal service; I participated in both the Thrift Savings Program ($201,000), and the Voluntary Contributions Program. I must make an election soon of the funds now in the VCP: $87,637 (nontaxable); $34,682 (taxable). I am married, and I will be 66 years old in October. I (we) do not foresee needing the money from these two sources in the near term. I will likely convert everything to a traditional IRA then Roth IRA in April of the year after I turn 70½, to be left to my son after I…
Q. I am sure the upcoming elections will affect the market, as elections always do. What would be the recommended fund to put my money into for this? I have 13 years until I plan to retire, but I want to maximize earning without taking too big of risk. Right now, I have about 90 percent in the C Fund the rest in the S Fund. A. Assuming that your Thrift Savings Plan is your only investment account, your current allocation is unnecessarily risky and inefficient. If you’re not a competent investment manager, and your question hints that you’re not,…
Q. I retired the end of July 2011. Since then, companies are coming out of the woodwork requesting that I invest my Thrift Savings Plan funds with them because “keeping it in the TSP will not allow growth due to the fact that I am no longer contributing.” But I am hesitating to do anything with it because once I hear their fees, it scares me. I don’t expect to need the money and would like it to grow into a nice inheritance for my daughter. I have about 90 percent in the G Fund and the remaining 10 percent divided…