Listen to Episodes of Talking Money^®

THE BEST OF TALKING MONEY: IRA Rules: Why They Matter, Part 2

Air Date: August 5th, 2023

Mike discusses more questions surrounding IRAs including:

• When should you consider moving from a traditional to a ROTH IRA?
• What are some advantages of keeping things in a traditional IRA?
• What about conversion assets?
• What are the tax rules for a ROTH?
• What are the earnings rules?
• What is the five year rule and how does it affect my planning?
• What are some beneficiary considerations I should be thinking about?

THE BEST OF TALKING MONEY: IRA Rules: Why They Matter, Part 1

Air Date: July 29th, 2023

Mike answers questions about IRA rules, including:

• What are your plans in case something happens to you?
• What are the different kinds of IRAs and what are their different contribution limits?
• What about a non-deductible IRA?
• What kind of contributions should you be making?
• What is the back door ROTH IRA?
• How does your tax bracket affect your planning decisions?
• My tax software will figure everything out for me, right?
• To ROTH or not to ROTH?

IRA Rules: Why They Matter, Part 2

Air Date: August 13th, 2022

Mike discusses more questions surrounding IRAs including:

• When should you consider moving from a traditional to a ROTH IRA?
• What are some advantages of keeping things in a traditional IRA?
• What about conversion assets?
• What are the tax rules for a ROTH?
• What are the earnings rules?
• What is the five year rule and how does it affect my planning?
• What are some beneficiary considerations I should be thinking about?

IRA Rules: Why They Matter, Part 1

Air Date: August 6th, 2022

Mike answers questions about IRA rules, including:

• What are your plans in case something happens to you?
• What are the different kinds of IRAs and what are their different contribution limits?
• What about a non-deductible IRA?
• What kind of contributions should you be making?
• What is the back door ROTH IRA?
• How does your tax bracket affect your planning decisions?
• My tax software will figure everything out for me, right?
• To ROTH or not to ROTH?

IRA Distributions: When and How

Air Date: January 8th, 2022

In this episode, Mike looks back on some past listener questions that still get asked frequently today:

• When exactly do I need to start taking my required minimum distribution (RMD)?
• What is the best way to take that RMD?
• Has the age requirement changed?
• How does the qualified charitable distribution (QCD) work?
• Is there a more tax efficient way to give?
• How does lowering the balance of your IRA affect your RMD amount?
• What are some ways to lower the balance of an IRA?

IRA Strategies Part 2

Air Date: October 23rd, 2021

Mike discusses questions and issues around things that are on the table in Congress that could change how you handle your IRA:

• The back door Roth conversion elimination:
  • What is the back door Roth conversion and how does it work?
  • Who would be affected by this policy change?
• Roth conversions for those with an income over 400k may become limited.
• Required Minimum Distribution and Qualified Charitable Distribution rules could be changing.
• Recharacterizations might no longer be allowed.
• Step up in basis might be  going away, but would be replaced by carry over basis. An example of the difference: giving to a child.
• The tax rate could go up for higher income earners: how this could affect small business.
• Capital gains rate could go up.

He also discusses some other issues such as:

• How increasing taxes increases inflation
• What about social security? Is that at risk? What are some ways you can plan to supplement your social security income?

The Many Options of Beneficiary Selection

Air Date: October 16th, 2021

Mike takes a look into the world of beneficiaries and answers some common questions:

• What takes priority: what your Will says or how beneficiaries are named in the various contracts?
• Per stirpes: what is it and how does it keep your assets in your family?

(for more information on per stirpes, read this Blog post.

• How can you make sure your in-laws get what you expect?
• What are some accounts that have beneficiaries?
• Is it possible to name a charity or other non-profit as beneficiary? Is that a good idea?

For more reading on beneficiaries, check out Ron Blue’s book Splitting Heirs.

IRA Strategies Part 1

Air Date: October 2nd, 2021

This week, Mike discusses a listener question regarding taking money out of an IRA to pay off a mortgage:

• tax considerations
• longevity of being in the house; ROI
• consider your risk tolerance

He then continues with some other IRA strategies and considerations:

• Other reasons to take money from IRA
• Use caution if someone wants you to use your IRA as collateral for a loan vs. using it to secure an unsecured loan
• Watch for the red flag of advisors telling you specific percentages of returns they can get
• How upcoming tax legislation could affect IRA rollovers and withdrawals

The Confusing World of IRAs

Air Date: August 21st, 2021

Mike unpacks some of the confusing world of IRAs. A listener recently asked a question about transferring an IRA from a deceased family member to multiple family members.

What are some of the tax considerations and implications for transferring an IRA?

What is a step up in basis? Does an IRA get a step up in basis?

Is there a required minimum distribution? When does this apply?

How important is it to know your tax bracket and taxable income?

How quickly do you need to start the process of transferring an inherited IRA?

Should you transfer it all to stocks? How soon will you need the money? Does that factor into the decisions you make?

How did the SECURE Act change IRA rules?

Can you give an inherited IRA to a charity? How?

What if I am in a qualified retirement plan?

Is it a good idea to set up a trust for minor recipients?

Beneficiaries, Part 2

Air Date: June 12th, 2021

Mike continues his discussion of setting up beneficiaries on your various accounts.

• Remember that beneficiary designations will take priority over anything named in your will.
• Don’t unknowingly disinherit your grandkids: a helpful tool for this is using per stirpes language.
• Is there a danger to naming only one child as the beneficiary and trusting them to distribute to the other heirs according to your desires?
• How can you make sure your IRA assets get paid out over time instead of one lump sum?
• Life Events such as birth of a new child, death of a loved one, divorce, marriage should act as triggers for you to double check your beneficiaries.
• What is the difference between Tenants in Common and Joint Tenants With Right of Survivorship (JWROS) on a real estate deed?
  • When was the last time you double checked your deed to see how it is titled?
• What about having JWROS on a bank account or a brokerage account?
• Is it a good idea to have a joint account with an elderly parent and their child who helps them with day to day responsibilities?
• What about your child’s spouse (your in-laws) and your grandchildren? Have you drafted your documents to make sure they get the assets as you intend?
• What about 2^nd marriages and kids from previous marriages?
• There are times when a trust would be the most appropriate. Have you considered that route?
• What about minor children?
• There are certain people you shouldn’t name as beneficiaries: who are they?
• Did you know you can name your church or favorite charity as a beneficiary? There are special considerations for this, too.