The holiday season is over, 2011 is long gone, and the new year has begun. Now is the best time for investors to add money to an existing IRA account. If you currently don’t have one, you might want to consider opening a new account. Whether you are doing a rollover IRA, or creating a new IRA account, the money can be used to supplement your other retirement options. I’ve done the research, and gathered up the best IRA investment promotions for you.
While many individual investors deposited retirement money for 2011 last year, you can still make 2011 contributions until tax day (April 17th 2012). The contribution limit for both 2011 and 2012 is $5,000. If you are over 50 years of age, it is $6,000.
There are many options out there, and I thought I would summarize the best IRA promotions available on the web. The list is in no particular order, and I’ve included traditional discount brokers, but also alternative investments. For taxable account offers, check out our lastest stock broker promotions.
- OptionsHouse IRA Promotion #1
- OptionsHouse IRA Promotion #2
- E*TRADE IRA Promotion
- TD Ameritrade IRA Promotion
- Lending Club IRA
- TradeKing IRA
- optionsXpress IRA
OptionsHouse IRA Promotion #1
Get up to $600 when you open up a new, or rollover an existing IRA account. This offer will end December 31st 2012.
- $200 – Fund at least $25,000 (promo code ROLL200)
- $300 – Fund at least $50,000 (promo code ROLL300)
- $400 – Fund at least $100,000 (promo code ROLL400)
- $600 – Fund at least $250,000 (promo code ROLL600)
To qualify for this promotion, click on the ad banner below and enter the promo code when signing up.
OptionsHouse IRA Promotion #2
This promo is available to new Roth traditional or SEP IRA, or rolling over an existing 401k to OptionsHouse. OptionsHouse will give you 100 commission free trades, and reimburse up to $125 in transfer fees. OptionsHouse does not have any setup fees, annual fees, no maintenance fees, and no low balance fees.
To qualify for this promotion, click on the ad banner below and enter the promo code when signing up.
E*Trade IRA Promotion
Get up to $600 with E*Trade’s no annual fee and no minimum traditional IRA. Save on transaction fees by selecting one of E*Trade’s 80 commission-free ETFs. This offer is available only to new IRA accounts, which can be a rollover IRA, traditional IRA, or Roth IRA. The deposit cannot come from an existing E*Trade account. This promotion will expire on December 31st, 2012.
In order to receive the cash credit you must make a deposit within 45 days of opening the account.
- Fund $250,000 or more you will receive $600
- Fund between $100,000 and $249,999 you will receive $300
- Fund between $25,000 and $99,999 you will receive $100
For more terms and conditions about this E*Trade promo, visit their web site.
TD Ameritrade IRA Promotion
Get up to $600 and trade free for 60 days. This offer is available until June 30th 2012. To qualify, you must transfer from an existing IRA account with another brokerage. The dollar amount bonus and transfer amount is listed below, and must transfer with 60 days of opening your account.
The cash bonus is available if you deposit these amounts:
| Open Account | Cash Bonus |
|---|---|
| $250,000 or more | $600 |
| $100,000 – $249,999 | $300 |
| $25,000 – $99,999 | $100 |
Lending Club IRA
Open up a no fee IRA account with Lending Club. Get up to a 2% Cash Bonus, when you transfer an IRA or rollover a 401k. You can get up up to a maximum bonus of $5,000.
- $25,000 to $49,999 receives a 0.5% cash bonus
- $50,000 to $99,999 receives a 1% cash bonus
- $100,000 to $249,999 receives a 1.5% cash bonus
- $250,000 or greater receives a 2% cash bonus
Peer-to-peer Lending Club members have averaged 9.64% annualized returns. In my taxable Lending Club account, I’ve averaged over 10.50% for the past two years. Lending Club is an alternative to other fix income investments with low annual returns. For details on the terms, click on the link below.
TradeKing IRA
TradeKing low ($4.95 a stock trade) commission fees. Combined with the tax deferment of an IRA, the low commission rates is a perfect way to come out ahead with your investments. Unlike many other discount brokers, TradeKing allows some option strategies in their IRA accounts.
optionsXpress IRA
optionXpress, who was recently acquired by Charles Schwab, offers a no minimum balance IRA. You can trade any type of limited-risk options including covered calls, debit & credit spreads, and cash secured short puts trade your Roth, Traditional, Rollover, SIMPLE, or SEP IRA.
I always like to look for promotions when I’m going to be opening an account or making a purchase anyways. Gotta love the credit card bonuses too, made over 3k in the past year tax-free! Keep it coming!