Investing in RE with a 403b from an old employer

[Tarcizio Goncalves]

Hi BP community, 

I have 403b from an old employer that I want to use to invest in RE. There is just under 100k in this account and when looking to withdraw the money, I was told I would incur over 30k on fees and penalties. 

Been reading articles online and one is more confusing than the other. One article says something while others say something else completely different. Was hoping someone in the forums had done this before and was successful in doing so. Is there a difference between the withdrawal guidelines between a 401k vs a 403b? Any guidance would be extremely appreciated. 

Thank you

[Brian Eastman]

@Tarcizio Goncalves  If you withdraw money out of the 403b to yourself, that is a taxable event.  The $100K would be added to your taxable income for the year and there would be an additional 10% penalty for early distribution if you are under age 59 1/2.  These are the same rules for most all retirement plans.

The alternative would be to rollover the 403b to a self-directed IRA or Solo 401(k). This would keep that money in a tax-sheltered retirement plan, but allow you to invest the plan into real estate instead of just the stock market. This is not YOU getting access to the money, but rather you diversifying your retirement plan. All investments must be at arm's length and exclusively for the benefit of the plan. The plan buys real estate and receives the income the real estate produces.