transferring roll-over IRA

[ER_Hopeful]

had a 401k acct with my former employer and I rolled it over into a roll-over IRA in Fidelity couple years ago. is it possible to transfer it to Vanguard? what does process entail ?

 

[FIREd_2015]

had a 401k acct with my former employer and I rolled it over into a roll-over IRA in Fidelity couple years ago. is it possible to transfer it to Vanguard? what does process entail ?

I recently transferred some roll-over IRA at Fidelity to Schwab. Assuming the process for Vanguard is similar - this is what I had to do.

1) Open roll-over IRA account at Schwab
2) Use the online transfer menu to select transfer from Fidelity to Schwab
3) Enter requested info
4) Download online transfer form (Acct info, type of asset to transfer, $ amount or percentage, etc,)
5) upload the completed form along with the most recent Fidelity statement
6) A couple of days later the money showed up in my Schwab account

 

[swakyaby]

Yes, it’s possible to transfer your rollover IRA at Fidelity to a rollover IRA you set up at Vanguard. You would call Vanguard, ask to be transferred to their retirement specialists, explain that you would like to transfer your rollover IRA from Fidelity, and the customer rep at Vanguard will happily and enthusiastically assist you with the paperwork details.

 

[PaunchyPirate]

Yep, easy to do using the instructions above. One key aspect... when you create the new rollover IRA at Vanguard, make sure it is titled exactly the same as the one you are transferring from. Make sure the Name on it matches it exactly. The process could fail if the two are not identically matched.

Note, if the existing IRA holds any investments that Vanguard doesn't work with, you would have to liquidate them first prior to the move. When you call Vanguard, be sure to go thru your list of current investments with them and make sure they can transfer them all. Most likely they can. But there are some investments out there that they may not want to deal with.

 

[easysurfer]

had a 401k acct with my former employer and I rolled it over into a roll-over IRA in Fidelity couple years ago. is it possible to transfer it to Vanguard? what does process entail ?

When I left megacorp, that's pretty much what I did. 401K from megacorp Fidelity to VG IRA. I remember talking to very helpful person from Vanguard who helped me set up IRA as holding place. Also, I remember a conference call with Fidelity and VG (think that was more a courtesy thing than a requirement).

The nervous part was there wasn't a direct asset transfer so had Fidelity cut a check payable to VG and send to me, then I had to send to VG to deposit in the IRA. Talk about hoping the snail mail comes through .

Note: This was a long time, over 10 years ago, so I have no idea how the process may have changed, if any, since then.

 

[MRG]

When I left megacorp, that's pretty much what I did. 401K from megacorp Fidelity to VG IRA. I remember talking to very helpful person from Vanguard who helped me set up IRA as holding place. Also, I remember a conference call with Fidelity and VG (think that was more a courtesy thing than a requirement).

The nervous part was there wasn't a direct asset transfer so had Fidelity cut a check payable to VG and send to me, then I had to send to VG to deposit in the IRA. Talk about hoping the snail mail comes through .

Note: This was a long time, over 10 years ago, so I have no idea how the process may have changed, if any, since then.

I did the same thing from a small provider about 7 years ago. The process was the same as they had no other vehicle to get the assets to them.

I did it from my new front yard on my cell. Wasn't hard.

 

[PaunchyPirate]

When I left megacorp, that's pretty much what I did. 401K from megacorp Fidelity to VG IRA. I remember talking to very helpful person from Vanguard who helped me set up IRA as holding place. Also, I remember a conference call with Fidelity and VG (think that was more a courtesy thing than a requirement).

The nervous part was there wasn't a direct asset transfer so had Fidelity cut a check payable to VG and send to me, then I had to send to VG to deposit in the IRA. Talk about hoping the snail mail comes through .

Note: This was a long time, over 10 years ago, so I have no idea how the process may have changed, if any, since then.

The check portion of this process was because you were transferring from a 401k to an IRA. That's almost always the case with 401ks unless it's a transfer within the same broker.

The OP already has rolled over to an IRA. So they will be doing an IRA to IRA transfer, I would not expect this to involve a paper check.

 

[ER_Hopeful]

thanks for all the info, guys!

 

[easysurfer]

The check portion of this process was because you were transferring from a 401k to an IRA. That's almost always the case with 401ks unless it's a transfer within the same broker.

The OP already has rolled over to an IRA. So they will be doing an IRA to IRA transfer, I would not expect this to involve a paper check.

Thanks for the clarification.

Brings back good memories as that conference call was one of the first moves I made after FIRE'd .