Fees
Plan administration, fund expenses and advisory fees can change the answer. Compare the total cost, not the headline.
Bring your retirement with you carefully.
A review for a TSP or 401(k) rollover before anything moves, with the fees, options and tax questions on the table first.
TSP & 401(k) Rollover Review
A rollover is a decision, not a default
Leaving a plan, changing jobs or retiring does not automatically mean rolling the money into an IRA. The review is built to make that decision explicit.
A TSP or 401(k) rollover can be a good move. It can also be a costly one if the fees are higher, the investment options are worse, or the money needs to be available sooner than the new account allows.
River Gem is not the custodian or the adviser in this review. The experience hands the decision to a regulated partner with the customer's documents in front of them.
The review
Six questions before the paperwork
These are the factors a rollover review should cover. They are not a recommendation to roll over or to stay.
Investment options
A wider menu is not automatically better. The question is whether the options fit the plan and the risk the household can carry.
Creditor protection
Federal and state protections differ between plan types and account types. That is a question for counsel, not a marketing page.
Tax timing
A direct rollover is not the same as a distribution. Taxes, penalties and withholding depend on the path and the account.
Required distributions
The age and rules depend on the account and the year. A rollover should account for the withdrawal schedule that follows.
When you need the money
Money needed in the next few years should not be exposed to a market decline it cannot wait out.
What we do
Slow the decision down
A regulated partner owns the advice and the custody. River Gem owns the clarity of the hand-off.
- Explain the difference between a direct rollover, an indirect rollover and a distribution.
- Show the fees and investment options in writing before anything moves.
- Tell you when the question needs a tax professional or licensed adviser.
- Let you stop the process without a sales call.
What we do not do
No guaranteed-return story
Retirement money is not a sales contest. The page should be as clear about the limits as the features.
- Promise a higher return or a guaranteed income.
- Tell you a rollover is right before reviewing the alternatives.
- Move money without a signed, verified instruction.
- Call a bank deposit an investment or an investment an FDIC-insured deposit.
Open an account
Your next pension day can be the first clear one.
Most personal applications take about eight minutes. You will get a decision, a routing number for DFAS and a named banker not a waiting list.
River Gem Bank is a California state-chartered bank. Deposits are FDIC insured up to $250,000 per depositor, per ownership category.