Investing in Gold in the Thrift Savings Plan
Gold investments can provide a valuable way to diversify your retirement savings portfolio, but be wary of its restrictions and costs.
Physical precious metals can provide valuable protection in times of recession and inflation, as well as being an effective hedge. But is investing in precious metals through your TSP possible?
TSPs do not permit investment in physical precious metals
Gold has maintained its value over millennia and remains resilient during recessions, making it an excellent diversifier for most retirement portfolios. Furthermore, physical gold retains more value than paper investments like ETF shares or gold mining stocks.
Self-directed IRAs offer the ideal way to invest in physical precious metals. This type of account allows you to store actual bullion that must meet IRS purity standards. To find out how you can start investing with physical precious metals today, click here.
Are You in the Military or Federal Service and Looking to Diversify Your Retirement Portfolio? Consider Rolling Your TSP Over to a Self-Directed IRA (Gold IRA). A gold IRA allows you to own precious metal bullion without paying tax – request your free Gold Kit now for more information! By clicking this button, you agree that autodialer/autoselected calls and text messages from us at both your email and phone numbers provided will occur – please be aware that standard messaging and data rates apply here as well.
TSPs do not allow rollovers
If you are transitioning from federal employment, one option that may make sense for your retirement savings may be rolling over your Thrift Savings Plan balance to an Individual Retirement Account (IRA). There may be various reasons for doing this such as consolidating all retirement savings into one place and lower fees; however there can also be downsides.
Indirect rollovers can be cumbersome, requiring you to wait 60 days after receiving your TSP distribution check before depositing it with either your new employer’s plan or an IRA account. Furthermore, 20% will be withheld from each distribution for taxes.
TSP limits are relatively limited and you cannot invest in mutual funds or individual stocks; furthermore, TSP assets cannot be converted to Roth IRAs. Therefore, it’s wise to carefully weigh all your options prior to making a decision. If unsure, SmartVestor provides free service that matches you with an investment professional according to your unique needs and retirement goals.
TSPs do not allow direct transfers
TSP accounts can be an incredible savings tool when working toward retirement, but once you leave federal service you must decide what to do with them. There are various options for managing them when leaving government service: transfer them into another plan (if allowed); roll them over into an IRA account or cash out your account, each having their own advantages and disadvantages.
Transferring TSP assets into an IRA poses several complications, particularly since the IRS withholds 20% for taxes and penalties; to prevent this, all initial funds should be deposited back within 60 days to avoid incurring fees and tax.
Assist from an investment professional when selecting the appropriate TSP fund allocations. A professional can guide your choices based on past performance while offering insight into market chaos and inflation, both of which should be taken into consideration when choosing TSP funds.
TSPs do not allow self-directed IRAs
Though the TSP provides many investment options, physical precious metals are not part of its repertoire due to their costly storage requirements and needing careful handling. A Gold IRA must also be certified by the government as to weight and purity levels – therefore working with a reliable dealer is key in order to avoid being taken advantage of by unscrupulous sellers.
Many gold IRA companies entrap senior citizens through deceptive advertising and high pressure sales tactics, promising true value but in reality don’t provide it; unlike stocks, gold doesn’t yield dividends and remains speculative investment.
Gold does not provide the same diversification benefits as other investments. Furthermore, its price can be very volatile; during a financial crisis it can drop substantially – therefore diversifying assets is key.
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