Traditional IRA

Know the Facts on a GuideStone® Traditional IRA

Why should I consider a Traditional IRA?

  • If you expect to retire in a lower tax bracket
  • If you want to invest more than your employer’s retirement plan allows
  • If you want to open an IRA for your spouse or family member

What are the potential advantages of a Traditional IRA?

  • Earnings accumulate tax-deferred.
  • Contributions may qualify as tax-deductible. (See your contribution and deductibility limits.)
  • Participants who are age 50 or older have expanded contribution limits.
  • Contributions may be made for spouses, even if they have no income.
  • Assets can be invested in our award-winning,1 faith-based Funds.

Learn more about our investment industry recognition as a Lipper Fund Award recipient from Refinitiv.

Who is eligible to contribute?

  • Must have U.S. taxable earned income
  • Must be within IRS income limits for the current tax year

How much can I contribute to my Traditional IRA?

  • If you’re under age 50, you can contribute up to $6,000 annually.*
  • If you’re age 50 or older, you can contribute up to $7,000 annually.*

*Or your annual household income, whichever is less. Based on IRS contribution limits.

What are the potential limitations on withdrawals?

You may choose to take penalty-free withdrawals from your Traditional IRA after age 59½ but must begin taking them by age 72. In either case, there are no penalties imposed, but federal income tax will apply to withdrawals (except for the return of non-deductible contributions).

In addition, any withdrawals made prior to age 59½ are subject to a 10% penalty, except in the following circumstances:

  • Higher education expenses for you or your immediate family members
  • First-time home purchase expenses to buy or build a first home for yourself or your parents, children or grandchildren ($10,000 lifetime maximum)
  • Death or disability
  • Certain medical expenses (or health insurance premiums due to unemployment)

How do I start an online application?

Open an account

Can I print an application?
Download, print and complete a Traditional IRA application

Please review the following information:
Traditional IRA Disclosure Statement 
Traditional IRA Custodial Agreement 
Prospectus
Privacy Notice

What if I would like to complete a rollover or transfer of assets?

Complete and submit this form to perform a direct rollover or transfer of assets:
Traditional IRA Transfer of Assets/Direct Rollover Form

Complete and submit this form to perform an indirect rollover:
Traditional IRA Rollover Certification Form

Where should I mail the completed application?

First-Class Mail® address:
GuideStone Funds
P.O. Box 9834
Providence, RI 02940-8034

Overnight express address:
GuideStone Funds
c/o BNY Mellon Investment Servicing (US) Inc.
4400 Computer Drive
Westborough, MA 01581-1722

Rethink your perspective on faith-based investing.

Leverage the nation's largest faith-based mutual fund family.2

Learn how you can also Do well. Do right. Do MORE.™ Talk with a GuideStone Funds® representative today:

1 The entire GuideStone Funds family won the Lipper Fund Award for 2019 Best Overall Small Company over 3 years (out of 29 eligible as of November 30, 2018). Based on risk-adjusted total return.

2 As of December 31, 2020, GuideStone Funds® has $16.3 billion in assets, which makes GuideStone Funds the nation’s largest faith-based mutual fund family. No other faith-based fund family exceeds GuideStone Funds in asset size.

You should carefully consider the investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses of the GuideStone Funds® before investing. A prospectus with this and other information about the Funds may be obtained by calling 1-888-GS-FUNDS (1-888-473-8637) or downloading one. It should be read carefully before investing.

BNY Mellon Investment Servicing Trust Company serves as IRA custodian.

Investing involves risk, including the potential loss of principal. The Funds may experience negative performance, and past performance does not guarantee future results. There can be no guarantee that any strategy (risk management or otherwise) will be successful.

GuideStone Funds shares are distributed by Foreside Funds Distributors LLC, not an adviser affiliate. Foreside is not a registered investment adviser and does not provide investment advice.

Retail products are made available through GuideStone Financial Services®, member FINRA. For more information about the firm, products and services please review the GuideStone Affiliate Form CRS and visit FINRA's Broker Check.

Be sure to consider all of your available options before rolling over your retirement assets. It is important to consider all of the potential advantages and disadvantages of rolling over your retirement assets to an IRA, including the different investment options that are available to you as well as the services, fees, expenses, withdrawal restrictions and tax consequences of rolling over your assets to an IRA. Other options are available besides rolling over your employer-sponsored retirement plan, including leaving the account with your previous employer. An employer-sponsored retirement plan may offer advantages investors can’t get if they roll the money into an IRA.

The U.S. Lipper Fund Award for Best Overall Small Fund Family is based on a review of 29 fund families for 2019 and based on risk-adjusted performance for the three-year period ended November 30, 2018.

In order to qualify for Lipper’s Overall Small Fund Family Group Award, a fund family will need to have at least three distinct portfolios in each of the following asset classes: equity, bond and mixed-asset. An overall Group Award will be given to the fund family with the lowest average decile ranking of its respective asset class results based on the three-year Consistent Return measure of the eligible funds per asset class and group. The Lipper Leader for Consistent Return rating, which is a risk-adjusted performance measure, is calculated over 36, 60 and 120 months. The fund with the highest Lipper Leader for Consistent Return (Effective Return) value in each eligible classification wins the Lipper Fund Award. The Lipper Fund Awards, granted annually, highlight funds and fund companies that have excelled in delivering consistently strong risk-adjusted performance relative to their peers. Additional information is available at LipperFundAwards.com.

Group Award Methodology: For the 2019 Lipper Fund Awards from Refinitiv, a small fund family is defined as having assets of $76.8 billion or less.

Lipper Fund Awards from Refinitiv, ©2019 Refinitiv. All rights reserved. Used by permission and protected by the Copyright Laws of the United States. The printing, copying, redistribution or retransmission of this content without express written permission is prohibited.

The information presented is for informational purposes only and should not be considered legal or tax advice; questions regarding your specific situation should be directed to your legal or tax advisor.