Retirement Accounts (IRA, 401k, etc.)

Seriously, open and fund your Roth IRA now. You’ll regret it later if you don’t get started now.

Since your employer’s plan usually has the most limited number of choices, pick the best it has to offer that fits with in your over all plan.

Putting all of your retirement eggs in one basket is easy to carry, but risky. Fund your employer’s plan with no more than is necessary to get the match and then fund your Roth IRA and build your taxable savings.

Yikes! This is a costly mistake.

Many executors, trustees, or even estate plans make careless mistakes which end up in Roth IRAs being distributed too quickly. Here’s a list of ways to prevent your estate plan from ruining your Roth.

You can’t touch the earnings on your contributions until you’ve had an account open for 5 years and you’re either over age 59 ½ or you meet special exceptions.

The legal answer to this question is: there is no limit. The practical answer is: it depends on a number of things.

The rules for post-70 ½ IRA contributions depend upon whether the account is a traditional IRA, Roth IRA or SEP IRA.

The IRS has a rule that if you are doing a rollover for a 401(k), you have 60 days to complete that process. But what if you experience a tragedy and can’t finish on time?

Taking the smallest distribution each year will ensure the beneficiary achieves the maximum tax-free growth of tax-free income.

It can be easy to forget about your company’s 401(k) because you aren’t depositing the money yourself, your pre-tax contributions are deducted from your paycheck and are electronically deposited by your employer.

With many types of retirement accounts available, it can be difficult to keep track of how much you can put away where, especially if you are eligible to contribute to multiple accounts.

The IRS does not require dependents whose gross income is only earned income to file a tax return if the amount is less than a certain amount.

SEP plans offer a powerful way to provide for your own retirement in the same way that 401ks do.

There are some cases that are not as straightforward and if you fall into these categories, you might not know whether or not you are allowed to contribute to a Roth IRA.

I recently read a foolish article entitled “Call for a National Savings Plan” that assumed we haven’t tried a national savings plan already.

If you have not yet funded your Roth account for 2015, it is not too late!

The University of Virginia plan includes funds sufficient to produce these excellent portfolios.

Age appropriate asset allocation for 2016 using the choices available in the University of Virginia’s Fidelity 403(b) Tax Deferred Savings Plan (TDSP).

Age appropriate asset allocation for 2016 using the choices available in several of the University of Virginia’s Fidelity Retirement Plans.

The backdoor Roth strategy involves contributing after-tax funds to a traditional IRA.

David John Marotta was interviewed on radio 1070 WINA discussing which retirement accounts you should fund for the best tax outcomes.

You can only contribute to your Roth IRA if you have what the IRS calls “earned” income. This makes it all the more important to contribute to your Roth IRA every year you can.

I’m on the borderline for being able to contribute to a Roth IRA. How do I determine how much I can contribute?

Regardless of the reason, if you have put too much money in your Roth IRA, the solution is the same.

I have earned income but my wife does not. Can I contribute to my wife’s Roth IRA?

Even over the income threshold, you may still be able to add funds to your Roth IRA with what is called a backdoor Roth.

Differing legislation makes one of the two preferable.

The calculations for this are a little strange. Here is the formula and two examples of how it works to help you.

Which account you should fund depends on your circumstances, but here are some general guidelines you can follow to make your decision.

The terminology is a little confusing, but you are allowed to have and contribute to both individual retirement accounts and employment-related retirement accounts.

Most tax professionals don’t think of such tax planning opportunities, because they have to focus on complying with tax accounting regulations.

Sometimes, there isn’t enough to do it all. Even then, fund your Roth.

You have 3 basic options, but whichever option you choose, do not lose track of the accounts you own.

Roth IRAs can only be funded with earned income and therein lies the confusion.

As with many financial decisions, our gut feelings deceive us on this matter.

Good financial planners can be worth their weight in gold in helping clients build a tax-efficient portfolio.

How do you know if you can contribute to a Roth IRA? See this flowchart for answers.

My wife and I are 65 years old and I am newly retired. Is there any advantage in doing a Roth conversion this year?

Roth conversions are a great way to save money and if you have a good financial planner, they need not be a headache.

Someone has to be proactive about your child’s retirement and every year you don’t open a retirement account is another year you’re holding back compound interest.

A reader asks, “My wife has a $250K SEP IRA earning 1.5% interest. Can we use any of the funds for real-estate investments?”

“Once you put cream in the coffee, all coffee removed from the cup is partly cream and partly coffee.”

Roth accounts have several advantages over traditional retirement accounts.

How to report a backdoor Roth in Turbo Tax.

A complete guide to using Roth IRAs to build lasting wealth.

Many people lack the time and expertise to develop an intelligent retirement asset allocation plan.

We have created several asset allocation tools to aid those seeking an intelligently diversified portfolio.

A backdoor Roth IRA contribution requires some extra steps but allows high-income earners equal access to the tax-free benefits of a Roth IRA.

A dollar saved on your taxes is better than a dollar earned which causes you to pay more tax.