"I wanted to place money in a roth so can I first place in a traditional IRA and then do a Roth Conversion."
Yes, you can do that. What you're proposing is called a "Backdoor Roth IRA." It's a strategy often used by people who want to open a Roth IRA, but whose income is in excess of the allowable amount for making Roth IRA contributions. That "allowable amount" is based on your modified AGI. These limits are well explained on this IRS web page:
https://www.irs.gov/retirement-plans/plan-participant-employee/amount-of-roth-ira-contributions-that...
A Backdoor Roth IRA is perfectly legal and fully acceptable to the IRS. Also, the $6000 limit that others have referred to does not apply to backdoor conversions. It applies to annual contributions.
Setting up a Backdoor Roth is a bit tricky, and there can be significant tax consequences. I strongly urge that you contact the bank or broker that you want to be the trustee for your planned IRA (or your own financial adviser, if you have one), and tell them that you want to open a Backdoor Roth IRA. They should be happy to assist you and to walk you through the process. Be sure the person you talk to has expertise about Backdoor Roth's.
**Answers are correct to the best of my ability but do not constitute tax or legal advice.
