IRAs allow investing in the future now for financial security when you retire.

Assess your financial needs:

• Where am I, financially? The Securities and Exchange Commission can help you evaluate your financial situation.
  
  
• What will my Social Security retirement benefit be? Calculate what you can expect as your Social Security retirement benefit.
  
  
• How much do I need when I retire? Use the American Savings Education Council’s calculator to estimate what you'll need. (ASEC is a nonprofit national coalition of public- and private-sector institutions raising public awareness about personal financial independence.)
  
  
• The U. S. Department of Labor also has retirement plan information on its website.

Getting Started:

• What kind of IRA best suits my needs? Traditional IRA or Roth IRA?
  
  
• You can set up an IRA with a:
  • bank or other financial institution,
  • life insurance company,
  • mutual fund or 
  • stockbroker.
    
    
• How should I invest my IRA? We can't give you advice about specific investments but this Securities and Exchange Commission information will help you get started.
  
  
• See The IRS Does Not Approve IRA Investments, Publication 3125

Additional IRA Resources:

See Publication 590, Individual Retirement Arrangements (IRAs) for information on how your IRA works.

• Setting up an IRA 
• Contributions to an IRA
• Transferring money or property to and from an IRA
• Handling an inherited IRA
• Distributions (withdrawals) from an IRA
• Taking a credit for contributions to an IRA
• A comparison of traditional and Roth IRAs