In February 2021 I tried to get my Roth IRA and IRA transferred over from New York life to Vanguard. Sometime in March, I had called vanguard and asked for an update. The guy told me that “no news is good news.” So, I waited. In May, I reached out to NYL and asked what was going on on their side. They looked into and said that Vanguard filled out the paperwork incorrectly. I reached back out to Vanguard and they supposedly corrected the issues and we were on our way to getting the accounts transferred. So, I waited. Well, I just checked and see that the Roth has been transferred to vanguard as of June but the IRA is still with NYL and they said that they have no transfer request paperwork from Vanguard for it. I spent 2.5 hours yesterday on hold with Vanguard trying to talk to someone. Finally, I am able to talk to someone (in the wrong department) who told me that they were super busy since they were closed on Monday for the holiday and to call back on Friday because wait times shouldn’t be as bad then. I tried calling the number he gave me, this morning but again was on hold for 20 minutes and had to hang up.
My question is: do I continue to put up with this from Vanguard and get the IRA transferred over? Should I move the IRA to Fidelity and leave the Roth with Vanguard? Should I move everything to Fidelity?
I am super annoyed about the situation because it shouldn’t take 5 months to do this.
Also, the accounts are being transferred in kind. The Roth has $2,500 ish and the IRA has around $4,500. They were opened maybe 5 years ago? It wasn’t until late last year that I even discovered what a Roth was and what should be done with one.
Thanks!
Yikes, this doesn’t sound common from Vanguard. I’ve had nothing but pleasant experiences with them and they are often thought of as being the gold standard for brokerages.
FWIW I’ve used both Vanguard and Fidelity. Fidelity seems to have the better online features and more responsive support options. Either is a fine option with great investment choices.
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