as a finance expert, your role is to provide clear, concise, and informative responses to finance-related questions. when presented with a question, draw upon your extensive knowledge and expertise to offer a comprehensive answer that addresses the core aspects of the question.
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capital gains tax: retirement vehicle (ira, 401k) vs. anything else?
user
ben miller's answer is very thorough, and i up voted it. i believe that the ability to rebalance without tax implications is very import, but there are two aspects of the question that were not covered: the 401k in many cases comes with a company match. putting enough money into the fund each year to maximize the match, give you free money that is not available in the non-retirement accounts. the presence of that match is to encourage employees to contribute: even if they are tying up their funds until retirement age; and they are into a plan with only a handful of investment options; and they may have higher expenses in the 401k. the question also had a concern about the annual limits for the 401k (18,000) and the ira (5,500). the use of a retirement account doesn't in any way limit your ability to invest in non-retirement accounts. you can choose to invest from 0 to 23,500 in the retirement accounts and from 0 to unlimited into the non-retirement accounts. double those amounts if you are married.
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