Please help...very confused on tickets!

[QT Pooh]

Quote "I hope someone has told you that not only will you pay income tax on the withdrawal, you will also be liable for a 10% penalty tax for early withdrawal."

This does not hold true if you are taking a loan against your 401K, but IMHO if you can't afford this vacation, don't go. I mean, what happens if after you go on this trip a real emergency happens - someone gets sick or loses a job - car troubles or the furnace in your house dies - you then have no place to go for funds. You will not be able to take another loan against the 401K without having the first one paid off. You could take an early withdrawal, but then you WOULD be subject to a 10% penalty.

I hate to sound like a downer, but your financial stability should come before Disney vacations (especially if it's one you really don't want to be on!)

 

[Stitch1962]

Quote "I hope someone has told you that not only will you pay income tax on the withdrawal, you will also be liable for a 10% penalty tax for early withdrawal."

This does not hold true if you are taking a loan against your 401K, but IMHO if you can't afford this vacation, don't go. I mean, what happens if after you go on this trip a real emergency happens - someone gets sick or loses a job - car troubles or the furnace in your house dies - you then have no place to go for funds. You will not be able to take another loan against the 401K without having the first one paid off. You could take an early withdrawal, but then you WOULD be subject to a 10% penalty.

I hate to sound like a downer, but your financial stability should come before Disney vacations (especially if it's one you really don't want to be on!)

OHHH, I didn't read the part about dipping into the 401K. DON'T DO THAT! Others have very good advise about getting the money without doing that... and if that means postponing the trip a year or 2, well... in the long run, you will be all the better for it! We had to do that for our honeymoon. We couldn't afford Disney at the time, so we saved for a year and a half and were able to stay 7 nights in a moderate with the best tickets that had to offer at the time, and had plenty of spending money and no debts waiting for us when we got home.

If, however, you are dead set on dipping, then as another poster stated, don't do Universal this time, and for $6 more add the 2 days onto your Disney ticket. Only do one park per day, and consider not doing the MPP package. Or cut your trip short so it fits into your budget without going into your 401K. That is FAR too important to mess with for the sake of a vacation. Sorry to rain on your parade!

Sorry I answered late at night and only skimmed over the original post.

 

[umaangel00]

I honestly don't think a Disney Trip is worth it if it's putting a strain on you like it is. Under NO circumstances should you take out money on your 401k. That is just plain stupid. You are subject to taxes and a penalty for it. If you can't afford the trip without doing it, then you need to either consider the options you are planning on doing and cut them out, go a shorter time, or wait till you can afford it. Disney can be a VERY expensive place. Plan for the inevitable.