How do you go about cashing in some of your 401K?

Is their normally a penalty?

How long does it normally take to receive the money?

Are you over the age of fifty-nine and a half, or younger?

Younger 31

Normally there's a 10% penalty in addition to the tax hit for early withdrawals. In some cases you can borrow from the plan without incurring the penalty. Call the plan administrator for the details of what to do.

Most finance gurus urge not making early withdrawals unless it's an emergency. If you are dealing with an emergency, good luck.

If it is a company 401K ask about taking a loan against some of the funds. You will then continue to have money withdrawn from your paycheck but instead of going into the 401K it is taken by the employer to payback your loan. Money will again go into your plan once the loan is repaid. In that way there is no 10% penalty.

You should kick down some more details or just go speak to the HR dept at your firm, or find the plan manager for your organization. There are some reasons you can get the money out w/out penalty.