Update: I found out the situation where I work. They do not have and will not permit an “in-service” withdrawal. I was told it was IRS regs and it was out of their hands. Not true but oh well.
Long story short - I no longer work there (after >10 yrs) and my 401k money will (in <45 days) no longer be where it can be vacuumed up by wall street. I hope. Those guys are sneaky.
One of my best friends went from wealthy retired to bankrupt Walmart greeter (really) after Enron so I think about what she told me years ago - do not trust them!
I take it she bet the farm in her 401k, or was all in or darn close to it with 100% in Enron Stock?
Make sure to move it as a DIRECT TRANSFER to an IRA. Do NOT take the money directly and think you have 60 days to roll it over. While that is technically true trust me, you will not be happy with what happens. Your company MUST withhold 20%, but you have 60 day to roll over 100%. Ugly.
Sorry about your friend. She had to be heavily invested in Enron stock, which was one of many choices in her 401(k). Diversification is your friend. Putting a lot of eggs in any one basket can be trouble. Especially if that basket is ONE company.
“One of my best friends went from wealthy retired to bankrupt Walmart greeter (really) after Enron so I think about what she told me years ago - do not trust them!”
The most important thing to know about investing, and it’s something all investment advisors tell you, is: DIVERSIFY! DIVERSIFY! DIVERSIFY!
People who had all their money in Enron stock did indeed lose all of it, but Enron 401Ks had options for investing in mutual funds, it’s not Enron’s fault that people didn’t have the common sense of a fly.
I hope in your attempts to “avoid Wall Street” you won’t end up falling for some scheme and lose it all — some unscrupulous people are taking advantage of exactly people like you — buy real estate in Timbuktu, etc....
I recommend rolling over your 401K into a Rollover IRA at a reputable, large brokerage firm, that offers multiple families of mutual funds and diversify among those.