401k contributions: pre/post tax and roth.

[mittman84]

What is my best recourse on finding the rules on early withdrawals (say 55 for example)? Fidelity has a million FAQ on their site, but all I have found only says there are penalties for early withdrawal, nothing specific. I don’t like the thought of having a large 401k that I can’t touch until I am 59.5 without large penalties. Given the career I am going into I probably won’t want to retire before 60, but at the same time I want to have the option. Obviously a large portion of my savings will be pre-tax and Roth, but I would like to have something else that I can use if I decide to retire in my 50’s. Also is it possible for the rules to change and the 59.5 year age restriction goes higher, or is that set for good?