Taxes and Retirement – What is Important to Consider

By | July 22nd, 2021|Retirement|

You’ve figured out your budget, your retirement nest egg is substantial, and you’re ready to make the transition to living on income from savings instead of income from work. But have you thought through the tax implications? It’s very common for tax planning to be overlooked, under the assumption that you’ll be in a lower tax bracket and Social Security payments aren’t fully taxed. In fact, a recent study found that 57% of Americans rarely consider the taxes they will pay/are paying in retirement.1 This can be an expensive mistake, and it has implications for other retirement benefits.

A New Tax Landscape

Depending on your income from other sources, up to 85% of your Social Security benefits may incur Federal income taxes. Additionally, withdrawals from a 401(k) and traditional IRAs are taxable, since the money you funded them with was tax-deferred. Pension payments are also considered taxable income. If you have taxable investment accounts you should be aware that dividends, interest income and capital gains from stock sales will all create tax liabilities.

Your new retirement tax bracket is derived from your combined income, which is your adjustable gross income, nontaxable interest income and some portion of your Social Security. If your income is high enough, you may have to pay a premium over regular rates for Medicare Part B.

Lifestyle Tactics to Lower Your Tax Bill

The first step to reducing your potential tax bill is to lower your income needs. To do this, many people try to pay off or pay down as much as possible on mortgage and other debts before retirement. This means you won’t have to withdraw as much income, which will lower your tax liability. This may require some re-jiggering of budgets or putting off discretionary expenses during the last years of working, but the advantage over the course of your retirement may be worth it.

If you’re planning to move in retirement, or even if you hadn’t thought of it but are open to the idea – consider moving somewhere with lower taxes. This can include lower state income taxes or even states that don’t tax retirement income.

If you’re set for income needs and had planned to make a charitable contribution, consider doing it directly from a traditional IRA. Once you reach the age of 72, Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs) will kick in. The lower your balance, the lower the amount of the RMD.

Investment Strategies for Managing Income

 Asset allocation is a strategy for diversifying your accounts across investment types. Asset location refers to a strategy for placing investments in accounts where they have the potential to lower your tax liability.

Taxable accounts, such as brokerage accounts, should hold tax-efficient investments. These include stocks you will hold for more than a year; tax-exempt municipal bonds; and index funds. Tax-deferred accounts are good homes for tax-inefficient investments. These include fixed income, commodities, some alternatives, and other actively managed strategies.

If you have a Roth IRA from which you can withdraw tax-free, along with a traditional IRA, you may want to be thoughtful about your total income picture when determining which account to withdraw from. Taking from the appropriate account based on whether your income is likely to be higher or lower in a given year can lower taxes.
Converting to a Roth IRA may also be a good strategy – but you’ll need to think through when and how much you’ll convert, or your upfront tax bill will be quite large. Staggering the conversion over several years can make it more manageable.

The Bottom Line

Retirement planning doesn’t stop with creating an investment strategy to generate the income you want. Carefully thinking through the tax implications and making tactical moves to keep income as tax-advantageous as possible can have a lasting impact.

 

1. The 2021 Nationwide Retirement Institute Tax-Efficient Retirement Income Survey. The Harris Poll. March 25, 2021.

 

The information contained herein is intended to be used for educational purposes only and is not exhaustive.  Diversification and/or any strategy that may be discussed does not guarantee against investment losses but are intended to help manage risk and return.  If applicable, historical discussions and/or opinions are not predictive of future events.  The content is presented in good faith and has been drawn from sources believed to be reliable.  The content is not intended to be legal, tax or financial advice.  Please consult a legal, tax or financial professional for information specific to your individual situation.
This work is powered by Seven Group under the Terms of Service and may be a derivative of the original. More information can be found here.

2021 Financial Wellness: Mid Year Check-In

By | July 8th, 2021|Financial Planning|

July marks the mid-point of the year. With kids out of school and the prospect of real, not-in-the-backyard vacation this year, it can be easy to put off thinking about some of the things you need to do consistently to keep your entire financial picture in focus.

Below are a few things you should be thinking about as we head into the second half of the year. We’ve organized them by life-stage, from having small kids to being closer to retirement. We’ve also included charitable giving, as that happens at every stage.

College Savings Plans

  • If you haven’t started one yet – the sooner you get saving, the better. You can fund a 529 plan with up to $15,000 per year and still quality for the annual gift tax exclusion – but you can also fund 5 years at once.
  • If you have a 529 plan set up, it’s a good idea to revisit your allocation as your child gets closer to college age, to make sure you’re not taking too much risk. If you don’t want to consistently manage this, your plan may offer a series of target date funds geared to your child’s age that you can roll into as they grow.

Risk Management

  • Life insurance is critical to keeping your family’s lifestyle and goals on track. For most people, a term life policy offers the ability to cost-effectively replace your salary during your prime earning years. The rule of thumb is the policy should be 5-10 times your annual pre-tax income.
  • If you have life insurance, think about any changes you want to make – are you sure your coverage is enough? How has your situation changed since you put the policy in place? Has your debt increased or decreased?

Retirement Savings

  • Volatility in the markets has increased and is likely to remain elevated. If you’re within ten years from retirement, this is the most critical time for investing. Re-visiting your asset allocation is a good idea, given the big drop and then the outperformance over the last year. Does your allocation match your risk tolerance and your goals? Are you maxing out contributions?
  • If you turned fifty during the last six months, you are now eligible to make the additional “Catch Up Contribution” to your IRA or 401(k) of $6,500.

Long-Term Care Insurance

  • It’s generally sooner than you think to start thinking about long term care insurance, either for your parents or for yourself. Since policies are basically impossible to get once you need the insurance, it’s better to have a plan a place at a younger age. It’s also less expensive.

Charitable Giving

  • If you haven’t yet sorted your plan for charitable giving for 2021, the slower pace of summer can be a good time to think about what is meaningful to yourself and your family and where you would like to see your contributions go to make a difference. Come up with a plan now so you aren’t up against year-end deadlines during the busy holiday season.

The Bottom Line

Thinking about your financial picture and keeping all the different pieces tuned up is important to making sure you and your family are achieving your goals and staying protected. Taking a few minutes to review your plans can pay off in the long run – and then it’s time to enjoy summer!

How does your financial view of 2021 look so far? We are here to assist as you as needed so please don’t hesitate to reach out to set up a time to chat!


The information contained herein is intended to be used for educational purposes only and is not exhaustive.  Diversification and/or any strategy that may be discussed does not guarantee against investment losses but are intended to help manage risk and return.  If applicable, historical discussions and/or opinions are not predictive of future events.  The content is presented in good faith and has been drawn from sources believed to be reliable.  The content is not intended to be legal, tax or financial advice.  Please consult a legal, tax or financial professional for information specific to your individual situation.

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U.S. Performance Dashboard – June 2021

By | July 1st, 2021|Markets|

  • U.S. equities ended Q2 with strength, with the S&P 500® posting a gain of 9%, despite inflation concerns and uncertainty over the future course of the Fed’s stimulus efforts. In a reversal from Q1, mid- and small-caps underperformed, with the S&P MidCap 400® and S&P SmallCap 600® up 4% and 5%, respectively. Volatility declined, with the VIX closing at 15.83.
  • All factors posted gains, with Momentum in the lead, after its disappointing performance in Q1. In another reversal, Growth outpaced Value.
  • All sectors except Utilities posted gains, with Real Estate in the lead, up 13%.
June 2021 market update pdf
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