Think Advisor

While most provisions of the tax overhaul known as the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act are set to expire at the end of this year, there is one important exception in the domain of retirement planning — the elimination of the so-called Roth conversion “recharacterization” rules.

Health savings accounts are a powerful wealth accumulation vehicle. They are one of the few account types with a triple tax benefit — tax-free paycheck deferrals, no taxes on account growth and no taxes on withdrawals for qualified medical expenses.

Tax considerations are an important factor in long-term investing, whether the goal is preparing for retirement or maximizing a charitable giving legacy. That said, investors also need to be careful not to “let the tax tail wag the investment dog.”

The takeaway for advisors from the just-released Government Accoutability Report on IRA conflicts is that “unfortunately, more regulation is on the way and that means more burdensome compliance paperwork,” according to IRA and tax expert Ed Slott of Ed Slott & Co.

Financial advisors are well aware of the tax rules that affect retirement withdrawals, required minimum distributions, Roth conversions and rollovers. Clients, though, can often make major wealth-killing mistakes when managing their retirement savings.

The IRS’ final rules on required minimum distributions for beneficiaries under the 10-year rule, released Thursday, have created ”an unnecessary complication” that only Congress can fix, according to IRA and tax expert Ed Slott of Ed Slott & Co.

While an IRA rollover is the best move for most people when distributing money from a 401(k) plan, there is a special case when a lump-sum distribution makes sense — and the justification for one is “bigger than ever,” according to tax and IRA expert Ed Slott of Ed Slott & Co.

It would almost be malpractice for any financial or tax advisor to ignore the coming tax storm,” according to Ed Slott of Ed Slott & Co.

That’s one of the central themes in his new book, “The Retirement Savings Time Bomb Ticks Louder,” Slott told ThinkAdvisor in a recent email exchange. “The taxes growing in the IRAs are what my book title refers to, a ticking tax time bomb.”

Whether a client’s retirement dreams are five years away or 50, the single greatest threat standing in their way is taxes, warns Ed Slott of Ed Slott & Co.

The right tax management strategy can save clients hundreds of thousands of dollars, while the wrong strategy — or no strategy at all — can bring undue hardship during their golden years.

The Labor Department is “going all-in on the IRA rollovers” with its final fiduciary rule, according to Ed Slott of Ed Slott and Co.