If you have an HSA, you will want to give some thought to what will happen to this account after your death. The rules are a little tricky and careful planning is important to minimize the tax bite.
Trusteed IRAs have been in the news recently. More and more financial organization are making these products available. Is a trusteed IRA a good strategy for you? Here is what you need to know about this increasingly popular option.
This week's Slott Report Mailbag looks into beneficiaries, inherited IRAs, RMDs and annuities.
This week's Slott Report Mailbag looks into inherited IRAs, beneficiaries, and RMDs when you are still working.
Most people think it is easy to leave an IRA to their heirs. But is it? The following is a quick quiz. How many of these beneficiary questions can you get correct? The answers are at the end of the quiz.
This week's Slott Report Mailbag looks into inherited IRAs, beneficiaries, and backdoor Roth IRA strategies.
Generally, the goal when naming IRA beneficiaries is that they will stretch out their distributions on the inherited IRA for as long as possible. The tax code and regulations currently support this goal by stating that the stretch option is the default option. But, of course, there are certain rules that must be followed. The IRA agreement must allow for a stretch option. As unbelievable as it may seem, there are still IRA custodians that do not offer a stretch option to beneficiaries.
Last week my Slott Report article created something of a firestorm in my email inbox. Shortly after it was posted I began to receive a litany of emails, all written very respectfully, but all of which said my post was incorrect and that revisions were necessary in order to avoid Slott Report readers from making errors with respect to their planning. To recap the article and the point of contention in a nutshell; I gave the hypothetical of a married couple, of which one spouse was about to pass and owned stock in his name only at a loss. I then suggested that a sly strategy would be to gift that stock to the other spouse prior to the owner-spouse’s death so as to preserve the potential loss.
It’s not exactly a fun thing to think about, but death is an absolute inevitability. When that time comes or more aptly, sometime before that time comes, there are a number of planning strategies that you can implement to make sure that you preserve tax benefits and minimize present and future income taxes for your heirs. One such planning opportunity may present itself if you own an investment with a loss as your time nears. The issue and possible planning options are best explained by example, so with that in mind, consider the following case of “Bob and Betty:”
A new year brings a fresh start and a chance to do things better. You probably have a few resolutions for 2017. You may be planning to eat healthier, get more exercise, or stick to a budget. As you are making your resolutions for the new year, don’t overlook your IRA. Here are a few suggestions for 2017.
