The purpose of an IRA is to save for retirement, so this tax-advantaged savings vehicle is specifically designed to discourage investors from withdrawing funds before turning age 59½. If you do so, the IRS imposes a 10 percent penalty on top of the income taxes you pay on the withdrawal. There are some exceptions that allow early withdrawal without penalty, so please see a tax professional for more detailed tax advice or visit the IRS website.

Yes. There are no income limits to make contributions to a traditional IRA. Your ability to make deductions may be affected by filing status and your participation in an employer retirement plan

You must begin to annually withdraw a required minimum distribution (RMD) from your IRA once you turn 73 years of age. RMD guidelines, set by the IRS, ensure that investors don't use an IRA as a permanent shelter from income taxes.

Yes. There are specific rules and forms to ensure that your IRA funds are dispersed to your intended beneficiary, in case of death. You can use the Individual Retirement Account Beneficiary Designation/Change form to select your beneficiary.

Yes. Effective January 1, 2015, the IRS imposed the new IRA Rollover rule which stipulates that an IRA owner may complete only one IRA-to-IRA rollover per 365 days, regardless of how many IRAs you own, without differentiating between Traditional, Roth and SEP IRAs. This change of only one rollover per year will only affect rollovers, and will not have any impact on trustee-to-trustee transfers. The once-per-365-day rule does not apply to the direct rollover of 401(k) funds to a Traditional IRA.