Are you facing the prospect of losing your home in a bank
foreclosure?  Many who are experiencing a temporary financial
squeeze will withdraw cash out of their IRA in order to save
their home.  However, getting a loan from your retirement
account may be a smarter way to go than taking an IRA early
distribution.

As with most people your home and retirement savings probably
represent the bulk of your available assets.  However,
withdrawing money from your retirement accounts, even if it’s to
protect against a foreclosure, will cause you to lose a big part
of your retirement money to taxes. A better strategy is to take
money out of your retirement funds by way of a 401k loan. A loan
from a 401(k) doesn’t trigger any distribution taxes and avoids
the 10 percent early withdrawal penalty, as long as you repay
the loan.

When you have a job you generally can get a loan from your
employer’s 401k plan.  But once you leave or lose your job, as a
rule, you can no longer keep your 401k loan or borrow from the
plan.

You may, however, be able to start your own individual 401k
plan, called a Solo 401k or Self-employed 401k, under new tax
laws that became effective in 2002.  The paperwork to set up a
Self-Employed 401k is easy. You can also transfer any of your
IRAs, 401k, SEP plan or other qualified retirement funds to your
Self-Employed 401k plan.  Most Self-Employed 401k plans allow
you to borrow up to 50 percent of your account balance all the
way up to $50,000.  The 401k loan is tax-free and penalty free.

Home loans in foreclosure hit a record high in the fourth
quarter of 2002.  Experts predict this negative trend to
continue until the problems of a weak economy, anemic job
market, and rising property taxes are addressed.  Small business
owners and contract freelancers are especially vulnerable to
economic slumps.  The small business owner unable to get a bank
loan often has to rely on his own savings to meet cash flow
shortages. 

The Self-Employed 401k is a qualified retirement plan that can
be set up by anyone who has a part-time or full-time business.
This retirement plan is similar to 401k plans of large
companies. The difference is that the Self-Employed 401k is
designed for an individual and as such is less complicated and
less costly to maintain.  Any person with a business with no
employees can set up a Self-Employed 401k plan.

The cost and features of Self-Employed 401k plans will vary
depending on the plan vendor. A typical plan cost less than $200
a year to maintain and allow loans with terms of 5 years or more
at an interest rate close to prime rate.  The good part is that
all of your loan payments including the interest go back to your
401k account. Take caution, however, because not paying your
401k loan on time will trigger IRS tax consequences as if your
loan was a taxable distribution.