Individual Retirement Accounts - IRAs
Strategies for maximizing your Individual Retirement Account (IRA’s) Investments, Tax Savings and Timing of Required Minimum Distributions
Found 370 Articles.
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Making the Most of 401(k) Plans
Rollovers from 401(k) accounts are the main reason IRAs are among the most valuable assets many retirees own. When people leave a job, for either a new job or retirement, they often roll over the 401(k) balance to an IRA. To maximize the value of your IRAs in retirement, you need to maximize 401(k) account […]
10 Key IRA Mistakes to Avoid in 2017
It doesn’t take much to squander a large piece of an IRA or 401(k) account. For many people, these are among their most valuable and important assets. Yet, the accounts often are taken for granted, and people don’t realize all the nuances of the rules and regulations. Every day both owners and beneficiaries who inherit […]
Arranging Your Finances to Make an IRA Conversion Less Costly
Last month, we addressed the different factors to consider when evaluating whether it makes sense to convert a traditional IRA to a Roth IRA. While a Roth IRA has many benefits, there is a cost to the conversion. You have to include the converted amount in gross income as though it were distributed to you […]
The Pension Fund Dilemma of Low Interest Rates
While individual investors fret about zero interest rates around the globe, the low rates also are creating substantial problems for pension funds, life insurers, and an array of other entities that depend on investment returns. This article in The Wall Street Journal delves into detail how bad zero interest rates are making pension funding. (Subscription […]
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New Rulings Show Importance of Checking IRA Beneficiaries
A series of recent IRS rulings shows how important it is to review carefully your IRA beneficiary designations. The rulings show that your will and other documents don’t matter. Only the beneficiary designation form on file with the IRS custodian or trustee matters to the IRS. In the rulings, an IRA owner had IRAs at […]
Weighing the Pros and Cons of IRA Conversions
Forget all you’ve heard about converting traditional IRAs into Roth IRAs. There are too many rules of thumb, shortcuts and plain misinformation floating around. Also, circumstances change. You might have evaluated the conversion option a few years ago and reached a decision. You should re-evaluate that decision regularly, because important factors might be different now. […]
Knowing When RMDs Can Be Delayed
Not everyone has to begin taking required minimum distributions (RMDs) from all qualified retirement plans right after reaching age 70½. There are a few exceptions in the tax code. The exceptions don’t apply to IRAs. You must take RMDs from traditional IRAs after age 70½. But the exceptions do apply to some qualified retirement plans, […]
Optimizing RMDs from IRAs
It is time for many individual retirement arrangement (IRA) owners to consider carefully their required minimum distributions (RMDs). When you’re older than age 70½, you have to take RMDs from IRAs and other qualified retirement plans each year. The IRS realized a few years ago that many people were calculating their RMDs wrong, or not […]
