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In 2020, the SECURE Act completely changed the game for nonspouse IRA beneficiaries. Now, most are subject to the 10-year payout rule. Recently released final RMD rules keep the controversial proposed rule that requires many...

I have a question as to how the July 18, 2024 final regulations impact inherited Roth IRAs. My daughters inherited Roths from their grandmother 3 years ago. She was age 101....

Trapped. For two nights in July, I slept on the floor at Atlanta Hartsfield International Airport – a victim of the mass Delta computer outage. Booking a hotel after midnight (when the final cancellation hit) was not worth the commute...

If you are charitably inclined and have an IRA, a Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD) can be a great strategy. With a QCD, you can move IRA funds to the charity of your choice tax-free. Here are 12 QCD rules you must know. QCDs are...

A recent survey found that over 80% of 401(k) plans now offer employees the option of making Roth 401(k) employee contributions. More and more employees are now taking advantage of that opportunity. (In this article, I use the term...

You have been contributing to your IRA for years. The market is up, and you are watching those investments grow. Maybe you have rolled over funds to your IRA from your company plan. You may now have a significant balance. So far, you...

It is perfectly acceptable for a person to participate in multiple work plans in the same year (even at the same time). For example, a 401(k) and a SEP. Or maybe a 401(k) and another 401(k). However, care must be taken to follow IRS...

We are surrounded with information – and misinformation. Finding accurate up-to-date facts is increasingly difficult. Do an internet search and you will likely run into obsolete websites that have not been updated in years, paywalls...

When can we expect final SECURE Act regulations from the IRS? Mike Answer: Hi Mike, No one knows for sure. However, there is now some hope that these may be coming sooner rather than later. In recently released Notice 2024-35...

As retirement account questions go, this is the shortest inquiry with the longest answer. When asked what factors to consider and what 5-year clocks apply...

If you have an IRA and you are approaching retirement age, you have probably heard the term “required minimum distribution” (RMD). But do you know the details of how the rules work and what they mean for...

I attended the Mid-Year IRA Planning Opportunities 2024 Webinar on May 14th. I missed the reasons for not naming a trust as a beneficiary in an IRA. I know you can name a trust, but what would...

In a famous “Seinfeld” episode, George Costanza, unemployed, living with his parents and without a girlfriend, decides to do the opposite of what he would normally do. It pays off for him big time as he...

It’s been over four years since the SECURE Act upended the rules for beneficiary IRA required minimum distributions (RMDs), and there’s still plenty of confusion about the new rules. The IRS did give us...

If you are at retirement age, you might be at a high risk for excess contributions due to rollover mistakes. This is because of the rule that says that the required minimum distribution (RMD) for the...

QUESTION: My client is terminating employment and rolling over the funds from his 401(k). He was told that the funds must be rolled over to a “rollover IRA” and kept separate from any other IRA funds...

SCENARIO: In one calendar year, Jessie completes the following transactions: 1. Takes a partial distribution from her 401(k) and does a 60-day rollover to an IRA. 2. Does a 60-day rollover from one...

My brother died in 2020 and made me the beneficiary of an IRA he inherited from my sister who died in 2017. Can I continue to stretch the payments from this inherited IRA? If not, how soon do I...

The cost of healthcare continues to climb. Are you frustrated with higher premiums and out-of-pocket costs? You are not alone. You may be looking for new strategies to handle these expenses. If you have...

We answer some pretty complex IRA and retirement plan questions. Our newsletters and other Slott Report entries can get into the weeds on some tricky topics. The thing is, when you spend all your time in...

Imagine walking through a grocery store, intent on purchasing a specific item. As you turn down an aisle, little colorful tags proclaiming “Special Deal” and “Buy 1, Get 1” protrude from each shelf.

Markets continue to climb. That is good news for your retirement account. However, there is a downside. When you contribute to a traditional IRA or a pre-tax 401(k), you make a deal with Uncle Sam. You...

Previous Slott Report articles have covered the new SECURE 2.0 provision allowing 529 funds to be rolled over to Roth IRAs. We’ve reported that there are several unanswered questions concerning this new...

Three times a week, every week, we add to the Slott Report. Two article entries and a mailbag. All factual, measurable information. “This is what to consider when you name a trust as your beneficiary.”...

IRAs are an important, but often overlooked, part of your overall tax planning. As the deadline for filing 2023 tax returns approaches, it is a good time to incorporate your IRA plan strategies with your...

The same conversation has, understandably, been repeated many times. The questions are similar: “What do we do when a trust (or estate) is IRA beneficiary? How do we set up the account? Aren’t we now...

Are you thinking about making a Simplified Employee Pension (SEP) IRA plan contribution for 2023? If so, here are 6 rules you need to know.   Only a business can make a SEP contribution. If...

QUESTION: If an individual has both an IRA and a 401(k) and wants to convert the IRA to a Roth IRA, does he have to take both the IRA and the 401(k) RMD (required minimum distribution) before doing a...

Ever since the SECURE Act created a 10-year payout rule for most IRA beneficiaries, that topic has garnered the bulk of conversation. This is understandable. Not only was the 10-year rule a...

We’re getting lots of questions about the SECURE 2.0 change that allows annuitized IRA annuities to be aggregated with non-annuity IRA funds for required minimum distribution (RMD) purposes. This...

The rules for rolling over IRA distributions can be complicated. These rules can become especially challenging at the end of the calendar year. If you are taking a distribution from your IRA at...

When the bell dropped in Times Square last Sunday night, a bunch of new provisions from the SECURE 2.0 legislation kicked in. This article will focus on the Roth-related changes that are effective in...

FolThe investment advisory firm of Bad Santa & the Grinch continues to disseminate misinformation and lousy, no good, rotten-to-the-core IRA advice. As we saw in “Bad Santa & The Grinch Offer Horrible...

If the Grinch and Bad Santa both passed their FINRA Series 7 exam and decided to open an investment advisory firm, I’m pretty sure they would combine forces to intentionally deliver some of the WORST financial advice possible....

In 2020 and 2021, when I was over 65 years old, I converted some of my IRA into a Roth IRA.  Does the five-year rule still apply to me, or can I now draw out all of the Roth IRA...

An advisor called and said his 75-year-old client had just passed away. He had questions about the payout rules applicable to the three IRAs the client left behind: a traditional IRA, a Roth IRA and an inherited IRA from his sister.

The once-per-year IRA rollover rule sounds pretty easy to understand. You may only do one IRA-to-IRA (or Roth IRA-to-Roth IRA rollover) per year (365 days). However, this rule is often misunderstood...

SECURE 2.0 expands qualified charitable distributions (QCDs) by allowing a one-time only QCD of up to $50,000 to a split-interest entity. As a result of this new rule, there is now a great...

The Ed Slott team answers thousands of IRA and work plan questions annually - emails, phone calls, in-person conversations, webinars, Q&A programs and texts. We accommodate all members of the...

If ever I was traveling from Los Angeles to Atlanta, I would choose a direct flight with no layovers. I want the most efficient route to my destination. Point A to Point B. Take off, land. Assuming...

Last Friday afternoon (August 25, 2023), the IRS gave employer plans two more years to comply with the controversial SECURE 2.0 rule requiring “catch-up contributions” for high-paid...

We are often asked how the Roth IRA 5-year rule works. This is a borderline trick question because there is not one 5-year rule for Roth IRA distributions. There are actually two different 5-year...

When an IRA or retirement plan owner reaches a particular age, that account owner typically must begin taking required minimum distributions (RMDs.) The RMD is calculated based on the year-end...

Question: I am struggling to find an answer to my situation. My wife’s 82-year old father passed away about 8 years ago and he was taking IRA distributions. A portion of his IRA was inherited.  Since then, my wife had been...

The IRS unleashed massive confusion last year. To the surprise of many, it released proposed SECURE Act regulations requiring beneficiaries (on some occasions) to take required minimum distributions...

Are you thinking of naming a child or grandchild as your IRA beneficiary? With the start of the SECURE Act in January 2020, the rules for inherited IRAs were upended.

Is your child or grandchild working hard this summer? A summer job can be a valuable experience for a young person. Whether it is making smoothies, serving tables, or being a camp counselor, a summer job can teach life skills and give...

We say in our training manuals that “the SECURE Act obliterates IRA trust planning.” That’s an aggressive word – “obliterates” – but it is accurate....

Follow Us on Twitter: @theslottreport Question: I believe we are all waiting for the IRS to issue rules related to distribution requirements (or not) for beneficiaries who are subject to the 10-year rule under the SECURE Act....

Follow Us on Twitter: @theslottreport In her June 28, 2023 Slott Report post, Sarah Brenner discussed several reasons why it pays to roll over your retirement plan savings to an IRA. Another option is to keep your funds in the...

If you are like most American workers, you will change jobs many times during your lifetime. With a job change, you will have a decision to make. What should you do with the funds...

Follow Us on Twitter: @theslottreportWhen an IRA owner dies, we look to the beneficiary form to determine who should receive the IRA funds. After death, there is a transition process as assets are moved into an inherited IRA for the...

Follow Us on Twitter: @theslottreportQuestion:Hello, I am involved with a traditional non-spouse inherited IRA that was passed from my mother to myself and two siblings in 2022. My mother was 84 when she passed and was taking RMDs.I...

Follow Us on Twitter: @theslottreportSome of you are aware that there are two types of section 457(b) retirement plans – governmental plans for state and local municipal workers, and “top hat” plans for highly-paid...

Follow Us on Twitter: @theslottreportAlthough the U.S. divorce rate is in a steady decline, it’s still one of the highest in the world. And with divorces often come QDROs – “qualified domestic relations orders.”...

Follow Us on Twitter: @theslottreportFor deaths in 2020 or later, we know that a non-eligible designated beneficiary (NEDB) of an IRA is subject to the 10-year rule. Meaning, the account must be emptied by the end of the tenth...

Follow Us on Twitter: @theslottreport Do you have an IRA you are thinking about converting to a Roth IRA? There are many benefits to converting. You trade an immediate tax bill for the promise of tax-free earnings and...

Follow Us on Twitter: @theslottreport More 401(k) plans are starting to offer Roth options. If you now have this option, you may be wondering what the difference is between a Roth IRA and a Roth 401(k). Which account is right for...

Follow Us on Twitter: @theslottreport Time is running out! The tax filing deadline is Tuesday, April 18. Why is this important? Because that is the last day an IRA can be opened and/or funded for the previous year. Even if a...

Follow Us on Twitter: @theslottreport  The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) has been in the news recently as bank failures have made headlines. The FDIC is an independent agency created by Congress. It provides...

People on TikTok create investment advice videos?

Follow Us on Twitter: @theslottreport A ton of questions on this topic have come across our desks, and we have seen swirling, hypnotizing spirals in the eyes of many an advisor. I can only imagine what the general public is...

As Promised, Some Thoughts on Bonds

Allison Brown, CPA, MBA

Friday, June 26, 2020

Today’s topic will be on bonds – I know I’ve been promising this for a while, but it’s actually been a bit difficult to put my thoughts into a relatively short email. I could probably write a book on this topic...

Where is the Market Going?

Allison Brown, CPA, MBA

Wednesday, May 20, 2020

Where is the Market Going?