<prompt> Human: My boyfriend was talking about trying to pay off about 12k in credit card debt by taking the money from a 401k. Is this a good or bad idea and why?  <response>: Horrible idea. Hell pay taxes on the withdrawal. Hell pay a 10 penalty on the withdrawal This means to get 12K hell be pulling out around 20K, give or take. Theres no way to get the money back into the retirement account once its out, so hes just set back his retirement date.If he posts a budget, people will weigh in on it with suggestions of how to unbury himself in a less horrible way.Good luck! 