Quit my job and now i need some help!

[Momo]

Well I quit my job a week ago and now I need some help. I have a 401k and stocks from the company that I need to "roll over", as the paperwork says. I have no idea what im doing or even need to do. Right now the 401k is through Merrill Lynch and the stocks are through Computershare i believe. What do I need to do now? I recieved some paperwork from the company saying i need to move these but I don't know where or how. Anyone with some advise i can use?

[adios]

You can roll it over into a self directed IRA account without paying any tax. All kinds of online brokers offer these.

[Momo]

Any idea which one to use? I know nothing about them, and since I like the show Law and Order, TDWaterhouse looks good to me lol.

[John Gaspar]

TD Waterhouse will work as well as any other online brokerage.

I'm assuming you have less than 5k in your 401(k). If you have greater than 5k, your company can not force you to choose a rollover. If you have less than 5k, the company can and in most cases will force you to rollover your account. If you aren't comfortable researching brokerages, I'm sure Merrill Lynch will take the rollover. You'll have to fill out paperwork to open a personal IRA at Merrill and they would perform a transfer of your balance from your company account to your personal account. The downside will be the fees that you will have to pay for your stock holdings when you would like to sell.

[GeorgeF]

You may not have to roll over. I don't think it is manditory.