can't rollover, considering all index for old account

[crabbypatty]

I have an old 457 that I can't roll over into anything, plus I can't contribute anymore. I neglected the account for years and am now trying to make sense of it. The company it is with (Valic) provides documents that are not easy for me to understand.

If I am reading it correctly, it turns out that of the 5 funds I had, 3 they switched b/c they are no longer offering the funds I had chosen. And they switched them into relatively new funds w/ no track record.

I'm wondering if I should just switch 2 of them into the index that I have with the same co? They were large cap, and this segment of diversification I have otherwise covered in a nonretirement account. I do not have any other index funds.

I guess I just don't like the way they've moved my money without notice into something I didn't approve. Maybe this is standard OP? I know this happens in target funds but these aren't target funds.

WDYT?

ETA: actually the index is S&P 500 so it's a large cap too. Ultimatley I may be over represented w/large caps, but I'm trying to rebalance this first then move on to a larger rebalance.

[crabbypatty]

Or perhaps reallocate to the S&P index, small cap index and mid cap index instead of individual funds that apparently get switched without notice

[LuxLiving]

Why can't you roll it over to another broker?????? That sounds puzzling!

[kv968]

Originally Posted by crabbypatty

I guess I just don't like the way they've moved my money without notice into something I didn't approve. Maybe this is standard OP? I know this happens in target funds but these aren't target funds.

You may be invested in an annuity and they may have the right to change your investments without your consent.

[crabbypatty]

Yep, it's an annuity. It was what my old employer offered.

I hope I am wrong about the no-rollover thing. But that was the impression I was under. Maybe b/c of it's 457 status? It's confusing to me. I distinctly remember not being able to move my 403 into a 457. Now this was years ago, so maybe the rules have changed. Or maybe I just got info from the wrong person.

[kv968]

As long as you don't work for that employer anymore, I would think that you could do a direct rollover into a traditional IRA just like a 401k plan. If you have a company in mind that you'd like to roll it into, I'd give them a call and ask. Granted you'll pay taxes on the rollover but the better investment choices and, I'm sure, lower fees you'll get with the new company will be worth it.

[TBH]

It's true that you cannot always roll over. I've got an old account (altho mine is a 403b) that I can't roll because my old employer has a rule against it. I can't roll it into an IRA, and I can't even roll it into my current employer's 403b plan.

It's a TIAA CREF account, but that's not why I can't roll it. Every employer has different rules, and this one happened to be extremely paternalistic. They won't let us roll our accounts because they want to force us to leave it there til retirement and have no way to spend the money before that. I'm sure for some people that's going to be the difference between having some retirement savings and not having any, but I would really like to have a say in where it's invested! I promise I wouldn't cash it out if I could roll it into an IRA.

I'm hoping that soon my old employer will offer TIAA CREF's new funds, which include a target date fund. When that happens, I'll put all the money in a 2045 target date fund and ignore it for the next 30 years.

Currently it's allocated in different funds according to my overall asset allocation strategy (which needs revisiting) and it's set to automatically rebalance every year.

To the OP: You may be right that you can't roll it, but it's worth a call to your old employer's HR department and to the investment company just to verify that.

[poundwise]

I agree with the target fund approach instead of any specific single index fund. Especially if what you are wanting to accomplish is just to set it and forget it.