Retirement & Taxes
Long-term financial planning, retirement accounts, government benefits, tax law, and IRS rules. Covers the intersection of policy and personal finance that affects how people save, invest, and plan ahead.
Latest in Retirement & Taxes
Spreading a required IRA withdrawal across the year can smooth a retiree’s tax bill
Retirees who own traditional IRAs and most workplace retirement accounts must begin required minimum distributions the year they turn 73, and the total owed for...
A grandparent raising a grandchild may be able to claim a benefit on a Social Security record
Grandparents who step in to raise a grandchild full time sometimes assume Social Security has nothing to offer them beyond their own retirement check. That...
Applying for SSI can also open the door to state supplements and automatic Medicaid
A single application for Supplemental Security Income does more than establish a monthly federal payment. In most states, that same application functions as a Medicaid...
SSI’s asset limit can end a low-income senior’s monthly federal check once savings top the cap
Supplemental Security Income exists for people with limited income and limited savings, and the Social Security Administration enforces the second half of that test just...
A federal retiree’s survivor annuity continues for a spouse only if the worker elected it
A federal employee who retires under CSRS or FERS does not automatically guarantee their spouse a monthly income after they die. The survivor annuity that...
A special-needs trust preserves government benefits for a disabled heir
Leaving money directly to a disabled heir who receives Supplemental Security Income or Medicaid can backfire badly: those programs cap how much a recipient can...
Gifting up to the annual exclusion each year quietly shrinks a taxable estate
The federal government lets anyone give away a set amount of money to as many people as they want every year, with no gift tax...
Medicaid’s estate recovery can be waived when repaying would cause an heir real hardship
Medicaid is not free once its recipient dies. States are required by federal law to try to recover what they paid for a deceased enrollee’s...
A community-spouse allowance lets the healthy spouse keep income and assets when the other needs a nursing home
When one spouse needs nursing-home-level care and applies for Medicaid to pay for it, federal law does not force the other spouse to spend down...
A durable power of attorney lets a trusted person handle your finances if you can’t
A power of attorney is a one-page legal fix for a problem most families only discover mid-crisis: someone needs to pay a parent’s mortgage, sign...
A revocable trust can name someone to manage your money if illness leaves you unable
A revocable living trust does more than route money to heirs after death. Written correctly, it also names a backup manager — a successor trustee...
Naming a minor directly as a beneficiary can force a court guardianship a trust would avoid
A parent or grandparent who lists a child directly as the beneficiary on a life insurance policy or retirement account is choosing the option that...
A 60-day IRA rollover done a day late becomes a taxable withdrawal
A retirement distribution that’s meant to pass briefly through a saver’s hands before landing in a new account carries a deadline that shows no leniency...
Delaying Social Security while first drawing down an IRA can cut a retiree’s lifetime taxes
Waiting until 70 to claim Social Security raises a retiree’s monthly check by roughly 8% for every year past full retirement age, but it also...
An ABLE account lets a disabled person save tens of thousands without losing benefits
An ABLE account lets a person with a qualifying disability save and invest money in a dedicated, tax-advantaged account without the balance counting against the...
Medicare covers part of outpatient mental-health therapy visits
Depression and anxiety don’t retire when a person turns 65, and Medicare’s coverage for outpatient mental health treatment is broader than many beneficiaries assume, extending...
Medicare’s Part D now covers shingles and other adult vaccines at no cost
For years, the shingles vaccine sat in an awkward gap in Medicare coverage: recommended for nearly everyone over 50, but priced high enough out of...
Medigap plans are standardized by letter, so identical coverage can cost wildly different premiums
Two people can buy a Medicare Supplement Insurance policy carrying the exact same letter, from two different insurance companies, and pay premiums that differ by...
A spousal IRA lets a non-working spouse keep saving on the earner’s income
A spouse who has left the paid workforce, whether to raise children, manage a home, or simply because one paycheck covers the household, is not...
A qualified charitable distribution lets those 70½ and older give from an IRA tax-free
Once an IRA owner turns 70½, the tax code offers a narrow but valuable shortcut: money can move directly from the account to a qualified...