<prompt> Human: Hi All, I am 30 Getting married soonish. I earn 90k gross, she earns 120k gross. 401k is in bad shape for our age. We both only have about 12k in there. I have been thinking of starting a Roth IRA as well as seriously trying to max my 401k in the near future but no company match and need the extra cash right this second. My concern is the income contribution limits. Once we get married we will certainly be over the limit. What happens to the Roth IRA then? It sits there doing nothing locked in at that amount for the next 35 years? Or I am forced to convert it into a traditional IRA?What do you guys think? I mean, as far as I can tell it doesnt make much sense to have a 401k and a traditional IRA so it seems a bit pointless to start a Roth if its only going to ever get 5500 in there. Help me understand. Thanks guys. EDIT: Okay I have a bit of a better understanding now. If I wanted to keep my tax situation relatively easy, would it be wiser to just contribute and extra 5.5k to my 401k than to start a Roth IRA that will likely need backdoor contributions in the near future? I imagine the whole backdoor thing does complicate the tax picture a little bit.  <response>: You can either let it sit, or if you dont have an existing traditional IRA the backdoor conversion method is an option. Going over the contribution limit in the future is never a reason not to contribute to an IRA now.What do you guys think? I mean, as far as I can tell it doesnt make much sense to have a 401k and a traditional IRA You wouldnt be eligible for the traditional IRA tax deduction anyway at your income level.so it seems a bit pointless to start a Roth if its only going to ever get 5500 in there.Its not pointless to fund tax-advantaged retirement accounts when saving for retirement. 