I'm thinking of openining an IRA. Should i open a Roth IRA, or a traditional one.?
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Roth Definitly. You can read some on it at the web site listed below
839674
The first step is to save a little at a time.  For example, you could open up a savings account and put $25.00 per month in it.  Force yourself to put the money in the savings account no matter what.  Cut out anything extra that you would have done with that $25.00 for the month.  Doing that, you would save $300.00 per year.  The BIGGEST THING in this is to FORCE yourself to put over money monthly.  Your savings will slowly grow, and pretty soon you won't be able to believe how much you were able to save.   There are some high interest savings accounts out there.  I would search for the highest interest rate on savings accounts to put your money into.  The higher the interest, the more money you will make. \n\nIf you would like to save for retirement, a great option to save with is a Roth IRA.  You put money into it just like any other savings, but you can't touch the money without penalty until you are 59 1/2 years old.  The good thing about a Roth IRA is that when you take the money out during retirement, the interest you earned is tax-free. :)  That can save you a lot of tax dollars in the long run!
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Educational Roth IRA, or just a ROTH IRA depending on their age.  These are tax free, the educational one can be used for college or other types of school.  The other is used for retirement, if you start saving early; they will thank you in the end.\n\nAlbert Einstein once said the most powerful formula is compound intrest.
1180754
depends on what investment options each employer provides.  If you really like the investment options at your preivious employer, you should leave it there.  If you really like the investment options at your new employer your should transfer it over there.  \n\nIf you like neither, you should roll it over to an ira at a big name company like fidelity or vanguard that have a lot of good options.
1018959
Its always best to pay the intrest fist befor earning interest.  Unless you are earning higher interest then what you are paying.  If you are earning higher then 11% intrest with the IRA, then dont pay the card at all.  If the intrest rate of the IRA is lower than 11%, put all of your money to the card.  Money works faster if its not being charged intrest. \n\ni.e.  lets say you have a ballence of $10 at an apr of 10%\nYou also have a savings account with a rate of 5%\nIf you put $10 in the account it would earn $0.50 in a year.\nDuring that same year the card balance would increase $1.00 \nSo you lost $0.50 that year.  If you payed off the balance at the begining of the year, you wouldnt lose any money.
502652
E Trade is good, but you will have to pay every time you buy/sell a stock. Why not get a no load mutual fund invested in a Roth IRA (minimal openeing balance) at Vanguard or Fidelity. You are a great age to start an IRA.
1074203
Ahhh, the million dollar question for Roth accounts...\n\nAnd the answer is - it depends (sorry).  Unfortunately, you need a crystal ball for this one.  Your decision will likely come down to what you believe the future holds.  You need to consider several factors, but you basically have two courses of action to take.  \n\n1)  Take the sure thing - Roll your 401(k) into a traditional IRA and then convert it to a Roth IRA, paying tax upon the principal and earnings at your current income tax bracket.  The conversion option is currently subject to AGI limitations, so check with the IRS or a competent accountant first.\n\n2) Let it Ride - Simply roll your 401(k) into a traditional IRA and enjoy tax-free compounding of interest until you are able to take a qualified distribution (usually at retirement) at which time you will pay taxes on the principal and earnings at your future income tax rate.\n\nSo, look into your crystal ball...\n\nDo you believe that you will be in a higher tax bracket at retirement age than you are right now?  If so, the Roth conversion option may be the right choice for you as you will likely pay less in tax today than you would 35 years from now.  Likewise, if you believe you will be in a lower tax bracket in retirement, it makes more sense to simply roll your account to a traditional IRA, enjoy your tax deferral over the years, and pay the piper upon retirement.\n\nThere are several wild cards to consider in this scenario, not the least of which is the possibility that tax brackets change.  If you want my honest opinion, I think it is naive to assume that the historically low tax brackets we enjoy today will be around in 30 years.  I am also 31 years old and, without getting political, just look at the current landscape of our country and its budget deficits.  The cost of wars, strains on social security from aging baby boomers, etc, leads me to believe that the government is mortgaging our nation's current problems and our generation will likely have to pay for it.  And how will we pay for it?  Higher taxes.  All things being equal, if I were you, I would opt for the Roth conversion.
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I just spoke to the principal of an international school about this last week.  His school has worked out a Roth with an office that is in a U.S. territory nearby.  The tax is prepaid so there's no tax or penalty paid at retirement.  Email a investor in the Mainland to see what they can offer.  Some offices are just ignorant of the law, as most folks are for most things like voting, taxes, shipping things to people who are abroad.  You may want to email an investment group someplace like the Virgin Islands, Guam, Puerto Rico...  They're more familiar with policies and retirement programs for Americans living outside the Mainland.
1148050
Go to Clark Howard.com. for the answer to this and many other questions dealing in the wise use of money!\n\nCiao,\n\nAngelo Fragapane\n\nRoth IRA 101 \nThe Roth IRA in a nutshell \nBy Kaye A. Thomas\nUpdated February 11, 2006\nGet a quick overview of the benefits and basic rules of Roth IRAs.\n\nThe Roth IRA was born on January 1, 1998 as a result of the Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997. It's named after the late Senator William V. Roth, Jr.\n    The Roth IRA provides no deduction for contributions, but instead provides a benefit that isn't available for any other form of retirement savings: if you meet certain requirements, all earnings are tax free when you or your beneficiary withdraw them. Other benefits include avoiding the early distribution penalty on certain withdrawals, and eliminating the need to take minimum distributions after age 70½.\n\nPlus and Minus\nThe chief advantage of the Roth IRA is obvious: the ability to have investment earnings completely escape taxation. The advantage comes at a price, though: you don't get a deduction when you contribute to the Roth IRA.\n    So which is more important? It depends on your personal situation, and also on what assumptions you want to make about the future. How long before you withdraw money from your IRA? What will your tax bracket be then? What earnings can you anticipate in the interim?\n    You can do lots of fancy analysis, but the bottom line is that most people are better off in the Roth IRA. The chief reason is that the Roth IRA is effectively bigger than a regular IRA because it holds after-tax dollars. If you can take advantage of this feature of the Roth IRA by maximizing your contributions you'll add greater tax leverage to your retirement savings.\n    There are two other significant advantages to the Roth IRA. One is that the minimum distribution rules don't apply. If you're able to live on other resources after retirement, you don't have to draw on your Roth IRA at age 70½. That means your earnings continue to grow tax-free. The other big advantage is the ability to take certain early distributions without paying the early distribution penalty. In short, the Roth IRA makes it easier to keep your money in, and also easier to take your money out.\n\nEligibility\nYou can establish a Roth IRA by making a regular contribution to a Roth IRA or by converting a traditional IRA to a Roth IRA.\n    You may be eligible to make a regular contribution to a Roth IRA even if you participate in a retirement plan maintained by your employer. These contributions can be as much as $4,000 for 2006 ($5,000 if you're 50 or older by the end of the year). There are just two requirements. First, you or your spouse must have compensation or alimony income equal to the amount contributed. And second, your modified adjusted gross income can't exceed certain limits. For the maximum contribution, the limits are $95,000 for single individuals and $150,000 for married individuals filing joint returns. The amount you can contribute is reduced gradually and then completely eliminated when your modified adjusted gross income exceeds $110,000 (single) or $160,000 (married filing jointly).\n    You can convert your regular IRA to a Roth IRA if (a) your modified adjusted gross income is $100,000 or less, and (b) you're single or file jointly with your spouse. You'll have to pay tax in the year of the conversion, but for many people the long-term savings outweigh the conversion tax.\n\nDistributions\nDistributions from Roth IRAs are tax-free until you've withdrawn all your regular contributions. After that you'll withdraw your conversion contributions, if any. Special rules apply when you withdraw your conversion contributions. When you've withdrawn all your contributions (regular and conversion), any subsequent withdrawals come from earnings. The withdrawals are tax-free if you're over age 59½ and at least five years have expired sinc
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Do you have earned income?  Are you filing your tax return in the states?  If so, you might still qualify to open and contribute to traditional IRA or ROTH IRA.  If you're self-employed, you might be qualified to open a SEP IRA where the maximum contribution limit is 42,000 or 100% of income.\n\nDefinitely do save/invest in addition to IRA limit for a secure retirement.
52860
It depends on several variables, including how close you are to 70 1/2, the date in which mandatory withdrawals begin. We chose to cease non-deductible contributions into our regular IRA's several years ago. The downside of continuing your contributions, which are after-tax, is that you may be co-mingling pre and post tax dollars in the same IRA. That means you must file a special form (IRS 8606?) with your taxes each year to tell the IRS how much in your IRA has already been taxed. It's tricky and I'm not sure if it's worth it. If you are young enough and your AGI is low enough, you may be able to convert (and pay tax) on the IRA and put it into a Roth IRA.
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Individual Retirement Account, if your money is before taxes you can contribute to a traditional IRA, this means you earn interest on the untaxed money. You are taxed when you make take the money out at retirement. Roth IRA, you take money that has already been taxed and are able to draw from it at retirement, without taxes. This is rumored to have been named for Ira Cohen, an IRS actuary who was working with them back in 1974. You can go to just about any bank, credit union, or find a financial advisor to explain in detail all aspects, what is allowed, what is not allowes (such as drawing out your money before age 59.5).
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The IRA CD grows tax-deferred or tax-free (if a ROTH) until the IRA is closed out (usually at retirement age 59 1/2 yrs+). The conventional CD is in a taxable account, so earnings/interest are taxable each year.  Both CD's are investments, however they are sitting in different kinds of accounts which dictate when taxes will be paid.
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You should talk to a representative at your financial institution where you have your IRA. They will be more than happy to give you individualized suggestions.
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At 23, time is your best friend (hooray compound interest).  Your best bet is to (if you haven't already,) open up and max out your Roth IRA.  This allows you to allow that compounding to work in a tax-free manner after you deposit. See what a difference that can make here: http://www.dinkytown.net/java/RothIRA.html\n\nIf you work for a company that provides matching funds for your 401(k) or similar retirement account, be sure to get the maximum match - it's free money! (that has to come from your income, but you can use your $10K to buffer your cost of living while you max your contributions).\n\nNote, it'll depend both on your capital gains, and the tax efficiency of your investments, but when I ran the numbers for myself, I found that I was much better off using my 401(k) for investment even though I plan on early withdrawal: http://randomfoo.net/blog/id/4087\n\n(Over a longer time-horizon, the tax efficiency is going to make a huge difference, plus you can also drastically rebalance with near impunity, tax free)\n\nRegardless of the type of account you put your money in, you still have to decide what you're going to invest in.  There aren't guaranteed returns, but for your goals (growth until eventual financial independence, yes?) you're best bet is probably a good index mutual fund. (You'll want to do your own research on this - although index funds are by definition 'average' they tend to provide total returns (after expenses) that beat the vast majority of mutual funds.  Here's one article to help you get started on why that's the case: http://www.fool.com/mutualfunds/indexfunds/indexfunds01.htm\n\nYour best course of action as you save towards financial independence is to continue investing (dollar cost averaging) and to diversify as your capital grows (bonds, international, REITs, metals) and to try to keep an eye towards what your goals are.  A good book on the subject matter is "You Money Or Your Life" by Domniguez and Robin, which talks less about investing (they suggest an extremely conservative approach), but more about a good basic mindset/framework for thinking about money.\n\nIf your goal is early retirement (reaching the point where you can live off your investments) you may also want to take a look at FIRECalc, an interesting early retirement calculator: http://fireseeker.com/ and the related Early Retirement forums (lurking and reading the archives is a good way to dip a toe in the water, so to speak): http://early-retirement.org/forums/
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You should consult a financial advisor to see if a roth IRA or a regular IRA is better suited to your situation.  With a roth, you don't get the tax write off now, but you won't pay taxes on it when you use it at retirement.  A regular IRA you can deduct it on your taxes now, but then you pay taxes on it when you retire.\n\n\nAlso, with a Roth, you can take it out after 5 years without a penalty so it's a good nestegg if you'll need it for a downpayment or something.
373887
Assuming that both were invested in the same thing....and both earned the same interest rate.....the value of both accounts would be the same...\n\nBut when you start to withdraw funds......as the law stands right now....roth IRA withdrawels would be done tax free......but we dont know what the tax rates will be in 40 years.....they could be 0....so once again......the traditional IRA would win because you got an extra tax cut for 40 years......\n\nOr in 40 years...the govt. may decide to tax your roth IRA.......we dont know what the future holds.....and thats why many people take the tax cut now......bird in the hand is worth etc etc