by Kenny | Oct 18, 2021
By Andy Ives, CFP®, AIF® IRA Analyst When a married IRA owner dies, the surviving spouse is oftentimes the beneficiary. Of course, there are instances where a trust might be named as IRA beneficiary, or the children or a charity or someone else is listed. Regardless,...
by Kenny | Oct 14, 2021
By Ian Berger, JD IRA Analyst Question: I am retired and turned 72 in September, 2021, so I must begin required beginning distributions (RMDs) by April, 2022. I have traditional and Roth IRAs as well as a defined contribution plan with a former employer. I understand...
by Kenny | Oct 13, 2021
By Sarah Brenner, JD Director of Retirement Education As you approach your golden years, you may be looking to simplify your life to wring the most out of retirement. It may be time to right size and move from a larger house with an abundance of maintenance to a...
by Kenny | Oct 11, 2021
By Ian Berger, JD IRA Analyst The Build Back Better Act of 2021, recently passed by the House Ways and Means Committee, includes a number of retirement plan provisions. They were summarized in the September 22, 2021 Slott Report. Two of those provisions are targeted...
by Kenny | Oct 7, 2021
By Sarah Brenner, JD Director of Retirement Education Question: Dear Ed Slott and Company, I am a longtime subscriber, having met and talked with Ed at several industry conferences, going back well over 20 years. Which, with all of Ed’s great work and active...
by Kenny | Oct 6, 2021
By Andy Ives, CFP®, AIF® IRA Analyst When it comes to taxes and the 10% early distribution penalty, do not allow the underlying investments within a Traditional IRA to confuse what is applicable. Earnings within an IRA are just earnings. It does not matter if those...
by Kenny | Oct 4, 2021
By Sarah Brenner, JD Director of Retirement Education It’s hard to keep up with the news out of Washington these days! We have been getting a ton of questions on how the new tax proposals recently passed by the House Ways and Means Committee would impact Roth...
by Kenny | Sep 30, 2021
By Andy Ives, CFP®, AIF® IRA Analyst Question: Good morning, I have an inherited IRA. I took a manual withdrawal from it in late August. I thought I had deleted my auto withdrawal on the custodian’s website. I just noticed today that another distribution was taken on...
by Kenny | Sep 29, 2021
By Ian Berger, JD IRA Analyst Congress designed 401(k) plans as retirement savings vehicles – not as checking accounts. So, there are restrictions on when employees can make “in-service withdrawals” (i.e., withdrawals while still working). It’s important to remember...
by Kenny | Sep 27, 2021
By Andy Ives, CFP®, AIF® IRA Analyst In most states the legal age for alcohol consumption is 21. And you must actually be 21. When you hand your driver’s license to the bouncer and he shines a little flashlight on your date of birth, it is not good enough to say you...
by Kenny | Sep 23, 2021
By Sarah Brenner, JD Director of Retirement Education The House Ways and Means Committee has released a draft of proposed changes to retirement accounts, including adding income limits for conversions and eliminating the back-door Roth conversion strategy. These...
by Kenny | Sep 22, 2021
By Ian Berger, JD IRA Analyst Question: If your employer contributes to either a SEP IRA or a SIMPLE IRA, can you (the employee) also contribute to a Roth IRA? Regards, Alfred Answer: Hi Alfred, Yes, you can make Roth IRA contributions even if you participate in a SEP...
by Kenny | Sep 20, 2021
By Ian Berger, JD IRA Analyst Are you moving assets between IRAs or from a company plan to an IRA (or vice-versa)? You should know that using a direct transfer is a much better idea than doing a 60-day rollover. Direct transfers avoid all of the possible issues which...
by Kenny | Sep 15, 2021
By Andy Ives, CFP®, AIF® IRA Analyst When an IRA owner taking required minimum distributions (RMDs) dies before removing his annual RMD, that year-of-death RMD (or whatever portion remains) must still be withdrawn. Upon passing, the year-of-death RMD immediately...
by Kenny | Sep 13, 2021
By Sarah Brenner, JD Director of Retirement Education President Biden has declared September to be National Preparedness Month. The goal is to encourage Americans to be more prepared for natural disasters. Unfortunately, from flooding on the east coast to fires on the...
by Kenny | Sep 10, 2021
By Sarah Brenner, JD Director of Retirement Education Question: Ed I heard on a podcast that you are the number one authority on IRAs, so I want to go to the most informative source. Could you answer this question for me? I have a Roth IRA and suddenly I was unable...
by Kenny | Sep 8, 2021
By Ian Berger, JD IRA Analyst What if you have an IRA with your spouse as primary beneficiary, get divorced without changing your beneficiary and then die? Who inherits your IRA benefits. If you live in one of the 26 states (as of June 2018) that have...
by Kenny | Sep 2, 2021
By Andy Ives, CFP®, AIF® IRA Analyst Question: I appreciate all of the information you pass along, both through PBS and now through the American College. In one of your recent presentations, you discussed QCDs and their often-overlooked value. I recommend QCDs to...
by Kenny | Sep 1, 2021
By Andy Ives, CFP®, AIF® IRA Analyst Yes, you are allowed to own real estate in an IRA. Of course, not every IRA custodian will accommodate such an investment, but that doesn’t mean it is forbidden. If you want to own a beach house in your IRA, or a commercial...
by Kenny | Aug 31, 2021
By Sarah Brenner, JD Director of Retirement Education The other day an advisor called us with an issue that comes up frequently, especially in these tumultuous times. His client had made an IRA contribution for 2021 and was planning on deducting that contribution....
