The Roth IRA is one of the most useful tools in the retirement planning bag of tricks. But just as the quality of any tools at your local hardware store might vary from shelf to shelf, so too do the qualities of Roth IRA conversions you might execute. There’s nothing wrong, per se, with a “plain vanilla” conversion, but this article delves into a conversion strategy you might want to look into during stock market volatility: Roth-conversion-cost averaging.
This edition of the Slott Report Mailbag (one of two consumer mailbags this week!) examines how to name contingent beneficiaries, looks at the misconceptions of "taxable income" and answers a reader's question about contributing to an IRA on his wife's behalf.
What kind of nightmarish world would we be living in where prices would go up 2,000% overnight? A world where gas today is $1.50 per gallon, but tomorrow it will cost you $30 for the same gallon. Thankfully, such increases are all but unheard of in the real world. At least that’s the case most of the time. Effective February 1, 2016, the IRS is raising the cost of some IRA (and other retirement account) related private letter rulings (PLRs) by as much as 2,000%... overnight! Here’s the deal.
Let's kick off the holiday festivities with a short list of 10 of the most amazing, surprising and/or illuminating facts about retirement that Jeffrey Levine read in November. Before each fact, you will find Jeff's brief commentary, and after each fact, you will find the original article from which the fact was pulled should you be interested in further reading. Happy Holidays!
It’s taken almost a full year – literally – but Congress is finally set to pass an appropriations act, which will include the much anticipated extenders bill. However, this isn’t your run-of-the-mill extenders bill. This year’s version of the extenders bill permanently extends several key tax provisions, including the QCD (Qualified Charitable Distribution) provision that allows certain IRA owners to give IRA funds directly to charity without having to include them in income. Stuffed into the bill under a section appropriately titled “Miscellaneous Provisions” are several other changes to the tax law – that have nothing to do with the extenders – but that may impact your planning for one or more reasons. The following is a brief summary of some of the most important provisions in the law.
Year-end means busy. Chaotic, time-strapped busy with family obligations, festive celebrations and closing the books on 2015. "Closing the books" includes year-end tax planning - and to assist with that endeavor - I've detailed three tax planning strategies you should consider at year-end. So, if you are self-employed, own your own business or just want to take advantage of tax-saving strategies, read on for my list of key year-end maneuvers.
Did you know that about 70% of those who make it to age 65 will eventually need some kind of long-term care? Here's the complete list of October's Top 10 retirement facts and figures.
Retirement planning for millions of Americans just changed dramatically. Last night, President Obama signed into law the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015, which has a significant impact on both Medicare Part B participants and those trying to employ savvy planning tactics to get the most of their Social Security benefits. Here’s what you absolutely need to know.
Social Security is a necessary component of many current and pre-retirees' revenue streams. However, the personal decisions one must make about when to claim the benefit come with tricky formulas and not-so-obvious choices. This example details how the "clear" choice may not always be the right one.
Roth IRAs are powerful retirement savings tools... if you used correctly. Here are 3 Roth IRA myths you simply can't afford to believe.
