Sarah Brenner, JD Director of Retirement Education The new required minimum distribution (RMD) rules recently issued by the IRS include some good news for trusts named as retirement account beneficiaries. A documentation requirement (that tripped up many trustees...
By Ian Berger, JD IRA Analyst Question: Under IRS rules, if I am currently receiving required minimum distributions (RMDs) and die today, my non-spouse beneficiary has 10 years to pay out my IRA. If that beneficiary dies five years later (in August 2029), does the...
By Andy Ives, CFP®, AIF® IRA Analyst In my August 19 Slott Report (“Year of Death RMD – Deadline Extended!”), I wrote about the required beginning date, who takes the year-of-death required minimum distribution (RMD), and the deadline for taking that distribution....
Ian Berger, JD IRA Analyst If you have multiple traditional IRAs and want to do a 60-day rollover (or Roth conversion) in a year when a required minimum distribution (RMD) is due, the IRS has a surprise for you. RMDs from multiple traditional IRAs (and SEP or...
By Andy Ives, CFP®, AIF® IRA Analyst QUESTION: I have been getting emails from a few sites pitching their subscriptions. They claim that Roth IRAs will all be taxable in the future. They say there are things you can do to avoid these taxes, but to find out what...
Sarah Brenner, JD Director of Retirement Education In 2020, the SECURE Act completely changed the game for nonspouse IRA beneficiaries. Now, most are subject to the 10-year payout rule. Recently released final RMD rules keep the controversial proposed rule that...
By Andy Ives, CFP®, AIF® IRA Analyst When a person reaches the required beginning date (RBD) – generally April 1 of the year after the year the person turns age 73 – required minimum distributions (RMDs) must officially start on traditional IRAs. But what if an IRA...
By Andy Ives, CFP®, AIF® IRA Analyst Trapped. For two nights in July, I slept on the floor at Atlanta Hartsfield International Airport – a victim of the mass Delta computer outage. Booking a hotel after midnight (when the final cancellation hit) was not worth the...
By Ian Berger, JD IRA Analyst One of the positive outcomes of the new IRS final SECURE Act regulations on required minimum distributions (RMDs), released on July 18, is that more beneficiaries will be able to stretch RMDs over their lifetime. Under the 2020 SECURE...
By Andy Ives, CFP®, AIF® IRA Analyst In Part 1 (July 17), I discussed 5-year clock issues when a non-spouse beneficiary inherits a Roth IRA. In Part 2, I will hit on the important concepts and options available when a spouse inherits a Roth IRA. Keep as...
By Ian Berger, JD IRA Analyst Question: One of our clients wants to cash out his IRA and then roll it into a Roth IRA within 60 days. Can this be done directly, or does it have to be rolled back into an IRA first and then converted? Thanks, Samuel Answer: Hi Samuel, A...
By Ian Berger, JD IRA Analyst One of the more interesting rules (if any could be called “interesting”) from the 2022 IRS proposed regulations requires spouse beneficiaries in some situations to take RMDs (required minimum distributions) before doing a spousal...
By Andy Ives, CFP®, AIF® IRA Analyst QUESTION: Do required minimum distributions (RMDs) need to be taken when a non-spouse beneficiary inherits Roth IRA? It seems this has been a point of confusion for some time. ANSWER: This is something that confuses a lot of...
By Sarah Brenner, JD Director of Retirement Education If you are charitably inclined and have an IRA, a Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD) can be a great strategy. With a QCD, you can move IRA funds to the charity of your choice tax-free. Here are 12 QCD rules...
By Andy Ives, CFP®, AIF® IRA Analyst If I pour too much water into a glass, removing liquid from a different glass does not correct the problem. The excess water must be removed from the “offending” receptacle. Such is the case with excess IRA contributions. If too...
By Ian Berger, JD IRA Analyst If you take a taxable withdrawal from your IRA or 401(k) (or other company plan) before age 59 ½, you normally have to pay a 10% penalty in addition to taxes. But Congress continues to carve out exceptions to this penalty, and there are...
By Sarah Brenner, JD Director of Retirement Education More and more Americans have retirement savings in Roth 401(k)s. With their rising popularity come some complicated tax issues. These funds are often rolled over to Roth IRAs at retirement or when a...
By Sarah Brenner, JD Director of Retirement Education Question: I have a question about the Roth IRA distribution ordering rules based on a client’s situation: 1. The client is 45 years old. 2. She has had a Roth IRA open for five plus years. 3. She made a $6,000...
By Andy Ives, CFP®, AIF® IRA Analyst You know the game “beer pong?” Arrange 6 or 10 cups in a triangle, fill each one with a couple of ounces whatever beverage you are enjoying, and your opponent tries to toss a ping-pong ball into one of the cups. If a throw is...
By Ian Berger, JDIRA Analyst A recent survey found that over 80% of 401(k) plans now offer employees the option of making Roth 401(k) employee contributions. More and more employees are now taking advantage of that opportunity. (In this article, I use the term “Roth...