Q: I am 58 years old and have lost my job. I have not moved my 401k and was wondering if my wife and I rolled this into an IRA in both our names could we draw from the account when she turns 59 1/2 this month. She has a thrift savings with the USPS and is still working. Would this affect having an IRA in both our names?

A: I?m sorry about your job loss. Individual Retirement Accounts, or IRA?s, are established using earned income, or are established for employer plan rollovers (such as out of the 401k). Because they are established to benefit a worker, they cannot be made into joint accounts. So, you will roll your 401k into an IRA, and your wife (when she retires) will roll her Thrift Savings Plan into her existing IRA (as long as the money currently in the IRA is pre-tax dollars). You will each have your own IRA, and at 59 ½ can take distributions (which are fully taxable as earned income). At age 70 ½, you have to begin taking Required Minimum Distributions, based on your life expectancy.

Q: Comments: I have $11,000 in credit card debt between four cards. They are all over the limit with interest rates between 24% and 27%. There are no minimum payments anymore. They are just asking for about three large payments to get the balance back below my limit. Our income has been cut down to my husband receiving less hours at work. Do you have any suggestions on how to begin to get these accounts under control?

A: The first thing I would do is call these companies. Explain your situation, and tell them what you can afford to do (be honest and realistic here). If you are delinquent, they may offer a settlement. If you are current, they may be able to re-structure your payments. But, if they don?t stop the over limit fees and high interest, that won?t help much.

If they are not able to work out an agreement with you, contact Consumer Credit Counseling Service (Macon office number is 745-6197). They have arrangements with creditors for reduced payments and interest and offer free appointments in person or over the phone. Explain your situation, and they will make a professional recommendation. They know what is possible, and what is not, and will provide you with solid, objective advice.

Q: Because I am receiving SS benefits, my 17 yr old son is receiving a SS benefit also. Is his benefit subject to income tax?

A: Taxation of Social Security benefits depends on income. He needs to add his annual earned income to half of his annual Social Security benefit to determine if he will owe tax. If this amount totals less than $25,000, he will not pay tax on his benefits. If the total is between $25,000 and $34,000 he will pay tax on 50% of his benefits, and if he earns over $34,000 he will pay tax on 85% of his benefits. I know he probably doesn?t earn that much as a teenager, but wanted to give you the full answer. These earning limits change based on each person tax filing status.

Q: My sister passed away unexpectedly, and I am handling her affairs. She has a small balance in a 401k ($407). What do I do with that? I think I might be the beneficiary, but it may be her children.

A: Call the company, and tell them what has happened and that you are the executor. If you are the beneficiary, they will tell you and send you the paperwork to receive her 401k proceeds. If you are not, they will notify the beneficiaries as to their benefits. Transferring money after a death usually involves a little paperwork, and you will need to provide them with a death certificate.

Q: I have a 401k account, and last year I borrowed half of it as a loan. I would like to take more out. Is there any way I can do this?

A: Employer plans have restrictions on how much you can borrow, and 50% is the maximum amount. The reason they do this is if the 401k plan was eliminated or closed for some reason, there would need to be enough money in your account to repay the loan. So no, there is no way to borrow more.

Q: I lost my job a couple of weeks ago, and took my money out of my 401k account. At the time, they told me that I would owe tax, but I didn?t really consider what this meant. Now, the money is sitting in my checking account and I?m not sure what to do with it.

A: If you cash out of your 401k, the entire amount is considered a ?distribution? and the employer should have withheld 20% for the IRS. Since this just happened two weeks ago, you have time to correct the error. Contact your employer and tell them what you want to do. Confirm that they have sent the 20% to the IRS. Next, you can open an IRA account and move the money you have into it. Here is a good explanation of this situation, from the IRS:

Any taxable amount that is not rolled over must be included in income in the year you receive it. If the distribution is paid to you, you have 60 days from the date you receive it to roll it over. Any taxable distribution paid to you is subject to mandatory withholding of 20%, even if you intend to roll the distribution over later. If the distribution is rolled over, and you want to defer tax on the entire taxable portion, you will have to add funds from other sources equal to the amount withheld. If you are under age 59 ½ at the time of the distribution, any taxable portion not rolled over may be subject to a 10% additional tax on early distributions. (Source: www.irs.gov)