My husband and I don't make a lot, mostly living off of his teacher salary while I use my part time job to collect savings. Well we recently recieved a nice chunk of change (about $3000 total) and we're trying to use it correctly. Pay off what little credit card debt we have, put most into savings, and use just a little (10%) to buy something nice for our anniversary…
My father also suggested I should use some to open a ROTH IRA, something I probably should have done years ago, but I keep getting overwhelmed with the process. He likes to dump a bunch of info on me and offers no chance for follow up questions, so I wanted to ask you guys; How much should I put into a roth account to start? Do I put the same amount in annually, or do I just not touch it? What would be the best company if I'm kind of new to investing in anything? Is there anything I should consider before I make the roth account?
Need advice on starting a ROTH IRA
byu/TadaSuko inpersonalfinance
Posted by TadaSuko
4 Comments
Put as much as you can in Roth. Annual limit is $7500 for 2026 for under age 50. You can put as much as you can each year. Open acct with Vanguard, Schwab or Fidelity. Look for low cost broad market stock index funds like VT only or VTI plus VXUS.
> How much should I put into a roth account to start?
How much is determined by your budget.
So start with a written budget to you know how much money you have to dedicate to retirement (like a Roth IRA).
Then follow the Prime Directive.
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Sounds like you are asking about a framework for what to do with money.
Start with reviewing the Prime Directive in the PF Wiki. It will answer your question and many other questions you didn’t realize you should be asking.
* https://www.reddit.com//r/personalfinance/wiki/commontopics
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> Do I put the same amount in annually
Depends on your budget. Follow the Prime Directive.
> or do I just not touch it?
Put money in during your working life.
Buy an investment. What is your anticipated year of retirement? If you don’t know the answer to that question, what is the year you anticipate turning 65? Which brokerage do you think you will go with (Fidelity/Vanguard/Schwab)?
Pull money out during retirement.
> What would be the best company if I’m kind of new to investing in anything?
Vanguard/Fidelity/Schwab are the 3 most recommended brokerages.
> Is there anything I should consider before I make the roth account?
Review the Prime Directive.
Open a Roth in fidelity most employers use that. Contribute all of 3.5k to Roth and buy vti and voo
Type that in the fidelity section
Do 2500 voo
1000 VXUS
Done
I opened a ROTH IRA at 34 and im now 36. Best thing I’ve ever done. I put $14k into it and in 2 years I was sitting on 90k. I pulled out the 14k I put into it and now swing trade 10k every other week.