Category Archives: SECURE Act
What Qualifies as a Qualified Charitable Distribution?
Qualified charitable distributions allow individual retirement holders to divert some of their federally taxable required distributions to charity, reports a recent article “A tax break for retirees is back. Here’s how to use it–and what to avoid,” from The Washington Post. Known as QCDs, they were not a big deal until 2017, when a… Read More »
The Stretch IRA Is Diminished but Not Completely Gone
Before the SECURE Act, named beneficiaries who inherited an IRA were able to take distributions over the course of their lifetimes. This allowed the IRA to grow over many years, sometimes decades. This option came to an end in 2019 for most heirs, but not for all, says the recent article “Who is Still… Read More »
Does a Will Supersede a Beneficiary Form?
It’s a simple question: do you know who your retirement account beneficiaries are? These tax-deferred accounts are complex, with significant tax implications for heirs that become more challenging if key information is missing on beneficiary forms, which is often the case. According to this recent article from The Street, “Secure your IRA—Review Your Beneficiary… Read More »
Stretch Out IRA Distributions, Even Without ‘Stretch’ IRA
It’s sad but true: the SECURE Act took away the long lifetime stretch that so many IRA heirs enjoyed. It was a great efficiency tool for family wealth transfer, but there are ways to fill the gap. A recent article “3 Strategies That Dry Your Stretch IRA Tears” from InsuranceNewsNet.com explains what to do… Read More »
Inherited IRAs Require Careful Handling
For those who inherit IRAs, the intersection of taxes, estate law and financial planning can be a tricky place. There are many choices, maybe too many, and making the wrong choice can be costly, according to the recent article “6 inherited IRA rules all beneficiaries must know” from Bankrate. There are two categories of… Read More »
Coronavirus Makes Estate and Tax Planning an Urgent Task
The Covid-19 pandemic has brought estate planning front and center to many people who would otherwise dismiss it as something they would get to at some point in the future, says the article “Estate and Life Insurance Considerations During the Covid-19 Pandemic” from Bloomberg Tax. Many don’t have a frame of reference to address… Read More »
Update Will at These 12 Times in Your Life
Estate planning lawyers hear it all the time—people meaning to update their will, but somehow never getting around to actually getting it done. The only group larger than the ones who mean to “someday, ” are the ones who don’t think they ever need to update their documents, says the article “12 Different Times… Read More »
Are You Making the Most of the SECURE and CARES Acts?
The SECURE Act made a number of changes to IRAs, effective January 1, 2020. It was followed by the CARES Act, effective March 27, 2020, which brought even more changes. A recent article from the Milwaukee Business Journal, titled “IRA planning tips for changes associated with the SECURE and CARES acts, ” explains what… Read More »
Tapping an Inherited IRA?
Many people are looking at their inherited IRAs this year, when COVID-19 has decimated the economy. The rules about when and how you can tap the money you inherited changed with the passage of the SECURE Act at the end of December 2019. It then they changed again with the passage of the CARES… Read More »
Alternatives for Stretch IRA Strategies
The majority of many people’s wealth is in their IRAs, that is saved from a lifetime of work. Their goal is to leave their IRAs to their children, says a recent article from Think Advisor titled “Three Replacements for Stretch IRAs.” The ability to distribute IRA wealth over years, and even decades, was eliminated… Read More »