Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. Bob Carlson researches all facets of retirement finances. Congress and the IRS made inheriting an IRA a very complicated, ...

An inherited individual retirement account rule change for 2025 could trigger a 25% tax penalty for certain heirs. Since 2020, most non-spouse heirs must empty inherited IRA accounts by the 10th year ...

Retirees whose IRAs become part of their estate assets bequeathed to surviving spouses and heirs are subject to specific IRS rules. There are several strategies that can be deployed to minimize taxes ...

I’m sorry to hear about your mom's passing. Required minimum distributions (RMDs) from inherited IRAs are one of the most confusing things that most people will have to deal with. That's partially ...

According to the Investment Company Institute, the amount of assets in IRA accounts and employer defined contribution plans reached $29 trillion at the end of 2024. With this amount of wealth in ...

As many regular readers of this column know, two significant laws have been enacted in recent years affecting retirement accounts. The SECURE Act of 2019 and the SECURE 2.0 Act (passed as part of the ...

Taxpayers as above are required to make annual distributions from their IRAs, regardless of whether he or she is retired, which are then included in the taxpayers’ adjusted gross income (AGI) and ...

Question: “If my spouse inherits my IRA, which path has the least tax impact? Should I rollover to my traditional IRA or set up an inheritance? He was already taking RMDs from his traditional IRA. I ...

There’s a new rule in place that makes 529 plans an even more attractive way to save for your child’s education. As of last year, unused funds in a 529 plan can be transferred into a Roth IRA. As a ...