You can put as much money as you want into a taxable investment account (or brokerage account) and take money out whenever you want, but you’ll have to pay taxes on any money your account earns. Max out your 401(k) and tax-favored investment options. When you have extra money to invest, the first step is to max out your 401(k) and/or Roth IRA.That’s great! Next, you can think about putting your retirement savings into high gear and consider other investing options. If you’re still not saving 15% of your income with those options, then go back to your traditional 401(k) and invest the rest there if you can. Then, if you qualify to contribute to a Roth IRA, max that out.

Traditional: If you don’t have a Roth 401(k), invest up to the match in your traditional 401(k).

And the majority of your Roth 401(k) or Roth IRA balance is likely to be growth at retirement age. A Roth lets you make contributions with after-tax money, and then you have tax-free growth and tax-free withdrawals in retirement.

Roth: Second, do all the Roth you can through employer-sponsored or individual accounts.

Fully vested simply means 100% of your employer’s contribution belongs to you, and whether you’re fully vested right away or over time varies by employer. You can think of it as a 100% return on investment-if your match is fully vested. Who wouldn’t? So, if your employer offers a match with their retirement plan, invest enough to get it all.

Match: We will always take free money.

And the way we look at it, a company match beats Roth beats traditional. If you have access to an employer-sponsored retirement plan like a 401(k), you can start there. Not sure where to begin? It depends on the choices available to you and your eligibility.

We recommend that you invest 15% of your income into tax-advantaged retirement savings accounts.

Bond amortization schedule excel