Does anyone out there have first hand experience with leaving the service and than doing a direct rollover of their TSP Roth into a pre-exisiting ROTH IRA?
Here's my thoughts. If I can only contribute to my Roth IRA at a rate of $5,500 but I can contribute up to $17,500 a year to a Roth TSP, it seems like a loophole to the IRS's normal contribution limits. Once I leave the service from what I have read and understand off the TSP and IRS website, do a direct rollover of my TSP account into my Roth IRA. The reason I would close out my TSP at the end of my service is simply more investment options available to a Roth IRA account.
So if I can make larger contributions to my retirement vehicle earlier on in my life, those contributions can take advantage of compounding interest at a greater rate (everything else remaining the same), giving me a higher total by the time I'm 59 and a half.