Rollover took way longer than I expected (401k to Gold IRA)
- •Just wanted to share my experience with a 401k to Gold IRA rollover, partly to vent and partly to see if anyone else had similar timelines.
- •About two months ago, I decided to move the last chunk of my old 401k, about $80,000, into my Gold IRA.
- •I figured it would be a fairly straightforward process, maybe a few weeks max.
Just wanted to share my experience with a 401k to Gold IRA rollover, partly to vent and partly to see if anyone else had similar timelines. I’m a retired teacher here in Phoenix, and I’ve had most of my nest egg in gold since the 2008 crash – felt a lot safer to me back then, and still does with all the craziness going on. About two months ago, I decided to move the last chunk of my old 401k, about $80,000, into my Gold IRA. I figured it would be a fairly straightforward process, maybe a few weeks max.
My dealer was great on their end, got all the paperwork sent in right away. But honestly, the 401k administrator was a nightmare. It felt like every other day there was a new form, a question about a signature, or just general foot-dragging. I spent so much time on the phone, sometimes waiting 30 minutes just to speak to someone who could barely help me. My initial estimate for funds getting transferred was about 3-4 weeks, but it ended up taking closer to six weeks for the funds to actually hit my Gold IRA account.
Then, of course, came the actual purchase and delivery of the coins. I went with a mix of American Gold Eagles and Canadian Maple Leafs this time. That part was much smoother, gratefully. From the time the funds landed to the physical gold being delivered to the depository here in Arizona, it was another two weeks. So, all told, I’m looking at almost two months from start to finish. I know it's done now, and I feel much better about having that money in a tangible asset, but wow, what a process.
Is this typical for a direct rollover? Are some 401k providers just notoriously slow? I was always told direct rollovers are pretty seamless, but my experience was anything but. Just curious if I'm an outlier or if this is par for the course these days.