(MONEY Magazine) – Q. I am a 54-year-old federal government employee and plan to retire within 18 months. I have two savings plans at work -- a thrift plan that is just like a 401(k) and another plan in which I invest after-tax dollars that then grow tax deferred. When I leave, I plan to spend the after-tax contributions I made and then roll everything else into an Individual Retirement Account I set up in 1982 when my IRA was deductible. An accountant I know says I should roll over each company plan into its own IRA. If I do that, I'll have three IRAs. Is this necessary? Todd D. Hagenah Williamsburg, Va.

A. No. You need only one IRA, not three. I can understand, however, why someone would suggest having three accounts. You see, your existing IRA consists of funds that haven't been taxed yet. Ergo, when you withdraw the dough, you will owe income taxes on it -- plus a 10% early-withdrawal penalty if you raid your IRA before age 59 1/2. The accountant is probably worried that if you mix the untaxed money in your existing IRA and thrift plan with the already-taxed contributions to your other plan, the IRS might get confused and mistakenly claim that all or most of your money is taxable. A snafu like that could give you, in the words of Saturday Night Live's Coffee Talk hostess Linda Richman, shpilkes in your ganectegazoing. But in your case, there's no chance for such a slipup. The Internal Revenue code does not allow you to roll over your after-tax money into an IRA. So you can't mix untaxed and taxed money. Your plan to spend your after-tax contributions and roll everything - else into your existing IRA, therefore, is like buttah.

Q. I received a solicitation from a group called Investors Alliance of Fort Lauderdale, Fla. claiming that for an annual $89 fee, I can get portfolio management software, a monthly newsletter, a dividend-reinvestment plan directory and other benefits. The outfit, which purports to be a nonprofit education and research association for individual investors, promises that the fee is 100% refundable if the customer isn't satisfied. Is this deal worth considering? Nelson P. Rulona Pearl City, Hawaii

A. Only if you want to get your hands on IA's stock and mutual fund software, which has received positive reviews in several publications, including MONEY. With a modem, the software lets you tap into two databases that contain performance data and other information on 5,000 stocks and 2,300 mutual funds. Your only cost for unlimited usage is the $89 a year -- plus the long-distance phone bill. IA, which has been around for almost seven years, can offer this attractive deal because of its tremendous volume (about 52,000 members) and low overhead. It's run -- get this -- from a four-room office above a Subway sandwich shop. In the past year, more than a dozen complaints have been filed with the Florida attorney general's office about IA customers' inability to get help on the phone, a problem endemic to fast-growing on-line services. The agency assured Money, however, that the firm has resolved these gripes satisfactorily. Frank Lardino, IA's president, adds that customers can get assistance within a week by mail or in two days via voice mail, E-mail or fax. A bit inconvenient, yes, but whaddya expect for 89 bucks?

Q. I am about to lose my job and with it my dental benefits. In the meantime, my 11-year-old son needs braces, at a cost of $3,000 to $4,000. My wife is employed, but her salary just covers our basics. Since this dental work is for my son's benefit, can I dip into the $25,000 I've invested for him in two mutual funds under the Uniform Gifts to Minors Act (UGMA) to pay his bills? If so, what are the tax consequences? James J. Brock Omaha

A. It's a gray area (well, since we're talking about teeth, let's say ivory), but it looks like someone in your financial straits should be free to use the cash to straighten junior's choppers. (Custodial accounts, by the way, can cut your tax bill, since, for children under 14, the first $600 of investment income is free of federal taxes and the next $600 is taxed at the child's rate.) State law governs how money in UGMA accounts -- now called Uniform Transfers to Minors in 44 states -- can be spent. But states generally say that: 1) the money must be used for the child's benefit (not much needed parental vacations to the Costa del Sol) and 2) Mom and Dad have an obligation to support their offspring, so they can't dip into the accounts to pay for their kids' food, clothing, shelter or basic health care unless they have no other means to support the children. Wallace Becker, a lawyer with Kinsey Ridenour Becker & Kistler in Lincoln, Neb., points out that the law doesn't specifically mention braces. But he argues that while basic dental care is part of your support obligation, elective orthodontia may not be -- particularly if you have no extra income to pay for it. So as long as it's clear that you're not raiding your son's assets to avoid your parental duty, it's almost surely okay to take the money from the account. As a practical matter, your only risk is that years later your straight-toothed son could drag you into court for supposedly squandering his cash. (Only you know whether that's likely to happen.) If you go ahead with the withdrawal, document its purpose by transferring the money from the mutual funds to a bank custodial account. (Do not put the cash into your everyday checking account; state law usually frowns on that.) Then, make out checks directly to the orthodontist. You won't owe taxes on the money you extract, because the IRS has already collected them on your original investment and on its earnings each year. Thankfully, the IRS gets only one bite of the cash.