I hate 401K Rollovers
bThis is the first 401K rollover I've ever had to do. When I moved to Boston, my first company didn't contribute to my 401K, so I just opened an IRA and contributed to that. I was a little lazy and didn't immediately rollover my old 401K and Roth 401K into my new IRA account. So lalala I finally figure out this fall that I should stop being lazy and try to start the process.
And what a process it was.
It took me like an hour of phone calls to figure out how to get the form to fill out. Then another couple days to get in contact with either the account place, or the account manager in order to figure out how to fill out the form. Because you could check two boxes - IRA or Roth IRA rollover. I had both. Like a week later someone gets back to me and tells me to just check both boxes. I turn the paperwork in, and expect things to happen.
Well they didn't happen. Nor did they contact me. So a month goes by, and I'm like, where is my f***ing money? I call them up. Eventually the HR person figures out that they were confused b/c I checked both boxes. Then when she told them I had both types of accounts and that's what they told me to do... they were like "oh." But that's not the right form for that. *SIGH*
I fill out the other form and FINALLY today, after like 3 months of trying to get this shit done, I got the checks in the mail.
WTF? You're supposed to mail those checks directly to my bank, not to me. I'm not supposed to be involved so that I don't get taxed. At least they filled out the check right and didn't put the to: with my name instead of my bank.
So, all in all, extremely disappointed with both ADP Retirement Administration and Merrill Lynch. They made it extremely difficult to get my 401K rolled over. I'm sure these kind of tactics work with people who aren't persistent. I mean, they didn't even send me a freaking account update after I left my old job. I think they do it on purpose and I hope that I forget that I have money there. These places are freaking ridiculous. It's such a scam.
I'm extremely impressed with Charles Schwab. They are amazing. Every time I've called them, they've been extremely helpful. Extremely. Every time I've called a real person has picked up the phone by like the third ring. No automated system. And, the best part, they KNOW how to do stuff and where stuff needs to be sent. They know how to do more than just check my account balance. And it doesn't even matter what account I'm talking about, my bank account, my brokerage account, my retirement accounts, they know the answers to all of them. It's like if you walked into a bank and asked for help! It's awesome.
Charles Schwab bank is the place to be. They offer completely free checking. They don't charge you ATM fees, and they refund all the ATM fees that you accrue in a month that other banks charged you. You get paid interest on your checking account (1.6% right now I think...), they send you postage paid envelopes and free deposit slips, if you need new checks they print them for free. No minimum balances, no minimum deposit. I'm telling you it's awesome.
People always choose banks based on how close it is to your house. But you're not going to stay in the same spot all of your life. And you rarely get any good benefits from local places. It really doesn't change how I bank, because I never actually go into a bank. I take that back - it does change it - because now I don't go out of my way to find 'my' atm. I just go to any atm - because I know that any fees will be refunded at the end of the month, so it's much more convenient.
And what a process it was.
It took me like an hour of phone calls to figure out how to get the form to fill out. Then another couple days to get in contact with either the account place, or the account manager in order to figure out how to fill out the form. Because you could check two boxes - IRA or Roth IRA rollover. I had both. Like a week later someone gets back to me and tells me to just check both boxes. I turn the paperwork in, and expect things to happen.
Well they didn't happen. Nor did they contact me. So a month goes by, and I'm like, where is my f***ing money? I call them up. Eventually the HR person figures out that they were confused b/c I checked both boxes. Then when she told them I had both types of accounts and that's what they told me to do... they were like "oh." But that's not the right form for that. *SIGH*
I fill out the other form and FINALLY today, after like 3 months of trying to get this shit done, I got the checks in the mail.
WTF? You're supposed to mail those checks directly to my bank, not to me. I'm not supposed to be involved so that I don't get taxed. At least they filled out the check right and didn't put the to: with my name instead of my bank.
So, all in all, extremely disappointed with both ADP Retirement Administration and Merrill Lynch. They made it extremely difficult to get my 401K rolled over. I'm sure these kind of tactics work with people who aren't persistent. I mean, they didn't even send me a freaking account update after I left my old job. I think they do it on purpose and I hope that I forget that I have money there. These places are freaking ridiculous. It's such a scam.
I'm extremely impressed with Charles Schwab. They are amazing. Every time I've called them, they've been extremely helpful. Extremely. Every time I've called a real person has picked up the phone by like the third ring. No automated system. And, the best part, they KNOW how to do stuff and where stuff needs to be sent. They know how to do more than just check my account balance. And it doesn't even matter what account I'm talking about, my bank account, my brokerage account, my retirement accounts, they know the answers to all of them. It's like if you walked into a bank and asked for help! It's awesome.
Charles Schwab bank is the place to be. They offer completely free checking. They don't charge you ATM fees, and they refund all the ATM fees that you accrue in a month that other banks charged you. You get paid interest on your checking account (1.6% right now I think...), they send you postage paid envelopes and free deposit slips, if you need new checks they print them for free. No minimum balances, no minimum deposit. I'm telling you it's awesome.
People always choose banks based on how close it is to your house. But you're not going to stay in the same spot all of your life. And you rarely get any good benefits from local places. It really doesn't change how I bank, because I never actually go into a bank. I take that back - it does change it - because now I don't go out of my way to find 'my' atm. I just go to any atm - because I know that any fees will be refunded at the end of the month, so it's much more convenient.
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