FiLife User Question: I meet my 5 years at Coca Cola before I quite I have about $2,800 that I need to rollover. I really don't know where to start. I also have a 401k with about $12,000 but I believe I can just leave that where it is.

--mrabe1979

Guru Response: If you want to complete a rollover to an IRA from your old employer's 401(k) plan, here are the steps you need to take:

1. Decide where you want to have the new IRA (what brokerage firm, or bank, or other financial institution).
2. Go to the new firm that will have the IRA, and inform them you want to open a new IRA account and that you're going to do a rollover from a 401(k).
3. Once the new IRA account has been created (although it won't have any money in it yet), get the paperwork from your 401(k) provider to distribute the funds.
4. On the 401(k) distribution paperwork, indicate that you wish to distribute the funds DIRECTLY to the new IRA, and put in the new IRA provider's information. It is important that you request the funds be sent DIRECTLY to the new IRA provider - if they come to you, a portion of the money will be withheld for taxes and this can create other complications for your rollover.
5. Once you submit the 401(k) paperwork, the funds should be sent directly to your new IRA provider and you can invest them accordingly. The distribution process will typically take anywhere from about 1 to 4 weeks, depending on the 401(k) plan provider that's doing the distribution.

--Michael Kitces, FiLife Guru