Individual Retirement Accounts - IRAs
Strategies for maximizing your Individual Retirement Account (IRA’s) Investments, Tax Savings and Timing of Required Minimum Distributions
Found 389 Articles.
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Why the Beneficiary Form is Key
One point we emphasize regularly is the importance of the beneficiary designation form for IRAs, pensions, annuities, and a few other assets. The disposition of these assets is not influenced at all by your will or a trust. Only the beneficiary designation form on file with the IRA sponsor or other custodian of the assets […]
RMD Relief for 2009, Not for 2008
Congress and the IRS disappointed investors in late 2008. The steep decline in IRA values caused many investors to ask for a suspension or reduction in required minimum distributions from IRAs and other qualified retirement plans for those over age 70½. Congress did not act, and the IRS said it had no authority to suspend […]
Why You Must Convert Your IRAs
Converting a traditional IRA to a Roth IRA has been a valuable tool to consider since the Roth was created in 1997. There are two reasons why a conversion is worth far more consideration now than in the past. First, a brief review of the basics. A Roth IRA has “back-ended tax benefits.” There are […]
IRA: Key Questions and Answers
The financial crisis continues to have secondary effects few people anticipated. Decisions are required, especially with regard to IRAs. Let’s take a look at the IRA: key questions and answers. Is there relief for IRA owners over age 70½ who have not yet taken their required minimum distributions for the year? IRA owners must take […]
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How Heirs Can Secure the Stretch IRA
Estate plans often go awry simply because beneficiaries were not aware of the actions they needed to take or that the estate owner wanted taken to fully implement the plan. IRAs are the assets beneficiaries are mostly like to handle poorly. In a recent IRS ruling, an IRA beneficiary avoided a tax disaster, but she […]
Dos and Don’ts of IRA Investing
Many people own substantial IRAs and do a lot of their investing through IRAs. These investors might not realize some investments are prohibited from IRAs and others are allowed but incur tax penalties. This issue is more important in today’s climate, because “hard assets” and other nontraditional assets-those that are doing well today-are primarily those […]
When Should You Reverse an IRA Conversion
IRA owners who convert their traditional IRAs to Roth IRAs during the year need to continue monitoring their accounts. It might be advantageous to reverse an IRA conversion. Reversing an IRA conversion, known as a recharacterization, can be done any time before the due date for the tax return for the year of the conversion, […]
How to Avoid Tricks and Traps in Required Minimum Distributions
Required minimum distributions from IRAs and other qualified retirement plans are a source of frequent mistakes. This is an area in which you want to avoid mistakes, because the penalty is steep. The IRS changed the rules for RMDs in 2001 and 2002. There still are a lot of publications and web sites with the […]
