Topher17 said:
I have about ~$1000 in a taxable mutual fund account that I opened when I first started investing in college. It is currently right at about even. Should I sell out of that account and roll the $$ into my Roth IRA to lower the cost basis of my IRA, or just leave it and contribute to the IRA as normal? I have not invested any new money in the taxable account since opening the IRA/getting a 401k through work.
Topher, my recommendations:
1. Make sure you have your "emergency fund" properly funded. Most say 3 months of expenses. I'm more conservative than most and like to have not only 4-6 months... but of income (instead of expenses). I think the sweet spot is somewhere in the middle however you want to look at it.
2. Are you properly insured: Health insurance, life insurance, disability insurance?
3. Do you have any high interest debt that should be reviewed or paid down?
***Note, the above is super boring but cannot be overlooked. They are the foundational pieces to any financial plan. Get them in place (and review it when life events happen) and then build on top of it.
After that's been addressed then:
4. Do you have any short/mid-term goals where you might want to access the funds. I.e. buying a house or something. Maintaining a taxable account and growing that would be a good tool. Without overlooking retirement, it's important to build your liquid accounts too.
5. If there isn't anything pressing and you feel very comfortable with your cash and debt position, my personal absolute favorite is the Roth IRA. I'm assuming you're fairly young, qualify for it, and have many many years for it to grow. My Roth IRA is the first thing I address every year. Max that sucker out man.