Q. I’m a federal employee at HAFB in Utah, and I’m getting ready to retire in six months. Looking at my TSP account today, I have lost more than $3,000 in the past couple days. I’m getting nervous because I’m so close to retirement and I don’t want to lose a lot of what I have in there. Right now, I have $283,249 in L 2020 and I contribute 20 percent of my GS-11 Step 8 income in the C fund which has $9,518 in there. Should I just go ahead and move everything over to the G fund and…
Browsing: TSP
Q. Years ago, I worked for an aerospace company. Now this company is offering me a lump sum for my pension. Is it possible to directly transfer this lump sum or a portion of the lump sum into my TSP account? A. Probably, if the existing account contains no after-tax contributions. See the instructions for Form TSP-60 for the basic rules of eligibility for transfers into the TSP.
Q. I am 62, have only been with the government for five years, and have $50,000+ in the G fund. I changed my contribution to 50 percent of salary from 25 percent and plan to work as long as I can, but I have health issues. I plan to leave the money in the TSP after retirement, and realize the G fund is too conservative. (I have been expecting a stock market crash but it looks like the fed will continue the zero or near-zero interest-rate policy). I am thinking about transferring all into the L2020 because it is conservative…
Q. I retired several years ago. I receive income from pension benefits and Social Security. In August of 2015, when I reach age 70, I will convert from a Social Security survivor benefit to one based on my own history. All pensions have COLA increases, at rates somewhat less than actual inflation. My pension and Social Security income will probably always exceed my actual expenses, plus I will have additional funds available from RMD’s, in addition to other investments. I have no children, and upon my death, any remaining assets will go to my two sisters, and to charities. When…
Q. Is FICA withheld from TSP monthly payments? A. No.
Q. When I retire from civil service and start drawing from my TSP account, will the monthly amount be divided between my contributions and the federal government’s contribution, or will it be my portion until it is exhausted then start coming from the federal government? A. It will be divided.
Q. I am working for the Veterans Administration and I have a TSP account. When I retire, do I have to roll over to IRA to withdraw money or withdraw from TSP? A. You do not have to roll over your TSP account to an IRA, and may (and should) maintain and manage it for as long as you live.
Q. I plan to retire prior to fully repaying my TSP loan balance. If the loan balance is eventually repaid in a lump sum from my TSP account balance, does that count as my one partial lump-sum distribution? A. No.
Q. I’ve decided that it would be financially advantageous for me to default on my current TSP loan, in order to pay off other, more pressing and expensive debts. My loan payment is currently deducted automatically from my biweekly civil-service paycheck by the Treasury Department. So I have three questions: 1) Is there a mechanism by which I can have Treasury stop making the loan payment/deduction? 2) If so, then if I do so as of Oct. 15, will I be liable for the taxes on the deemed disbursement in this tax year, or in the next tax year? (I…
Q. How do administrative costs of TSP compare with TIAA-CREF? A. In general, the TSP costs are lower. TIAA-CREF offers a wide variety of investment and plan options and the administrative costs vary among them, so the difference depends upon what, exactly, you are comparing to the TSP.