Before you move your 401(k), understand the decisions that move with it.

Should you roll it over at all?

A plan participant leaving an employer typically has four options and may use a combination of them. Each choice offers advantages and disadvantages:

• Leave the money in the former employer’s plan, if permitted.
• Roll the assets into a new employer’s plan, if one is available and rollovers are permitted.
• Roll the assets into an IRA.
• Cash out the account value.

Where will retirement income come from?

Coordinate withdrawals, pension income, Social Security, and cash reserves.

How should your investments change?

Revisit risk, liquidity, and allocation as you move from saving to spending.

Is there a Roth-conversion opportunity?

Evaluate the years between retirement and required minimum distributions.

Traditional IRA account owners should consider several factors before performing a Roth IRA conversion. These include income-tax consequences on the converted amount in the year of conversion, withdrawal limitations from a Roth IRA, and income limitations for future contributions to a Roth IRA. If you are required to take a required minimum distribution (RMD) in the year you convert, the RMD must be taken before converting to a Roth IRA.

How do Social Security and Medicare fit?

Consider timing, taxable income, and potential IRMAA exposure together.

Are your beneficiaries coordinated?

Review retirement-account elections alongside your broader estate intentions.

What is the withdrawal strategy?

Decide which accounts to draw from, in what order, and with what tax impact.