Can a work 401K be rolled into self directed IRA?

Someone I know has a 401K at work and of course they are laden with fees. Can they just roll that into a self directed IRA and just buy SPY instead?

 

Only after he gets fired or quits.

 

Only after the person is no longer employed by the company.

 

Wow what a scam. so they underperform the S&P 500 and get to pay fees etc.. for this.

Why is such a choice not allowed?

 

See what funds are available, check costs and performance, and see what's the best available. You cannot roll until you leave the job.

I would imagine letting people roll while in their current 401k would create quite a papework/tracking mess. Not to mention, how would those mutual funds take their fees then? 401k's are great for funds/insurance vendors -- people put $ in, maybe check a few times a year, never have to report the actual fees being taken other than buried in a prospectus with size 6 font that noone reads. Really a brilliant business model - get people to believe they must put $ into the funds, leave it there, don't allow them to move it while working at the same employer all the while telling them how important it is to save for retirement today!

 

Put it in a money market .. but yeah, what the others said about quitting first.

 

Or once you reach 59 1/2 years of age. Then you can roll.

 

Such a scam, please read this, and/or the many books of similar ilk.

http://www.amazon.com/Great-401-Hoax-Protect-Family/dp/0738206350

Don