An Executor's Guide to Inherited Retirement Benefits: RMDs
Here's a rundown of an estate's options and obligations related to required minimum distributions.
Natalie Choate
Natalie Choate is a lawyer in Wellesley, Massachusetts, who concentrates in estate planning for retirement benefits. Her book, Life and Death Planning for Retirement Benefits, is a leading resource for professionals in this field. The views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect the views of Morningstar.
Latest
A Sneak Preview of Secure Act Regulations
Changes to the minimum distribution rules get some added wrinkles from the IRS.
Is the Secure Act Good or Bad for Trusteed IRAs?
Here’s a look at what a trusteed IRA is and why it was a “dream product” until the Secure Act came along.
How and When to Take Your RMD
There is no one best time to take the required minimum distribution.
Can a Trust Transfer an IRA to a Trust Beneficiary?
The answer is yes, but there are caveats.
Distributions in Year of Retirement: A Complicated Simple Question
The surprising fact about direct rollovers and required minimum distributions.
Indirect Roth IRA Contributions: Backdoor or Trapdoor?
The backdoor Roth contribution is a viable tool for some but not all clients.
Providing for Disabled Beneficiaries After the SECURE Act
An applicable multi-beneficiary trust can solve some--but not all--of the challenges that the new act presents.
Is a Charitable Remainder Trust the Way to Beat SECURE Act?
It might be for clients seeking to provide a life income to a middle-aged or older individual and a significant charitable gift.
Providing for Minor Children After SECURE
The new law makes it more difficult for parents to set up an estate plan that maximizes the funds available for the care and education of their children.
Providing for the Surviving Spouse After SECURE
Contributor Natalie Choate examines how the SECURE Act affects popular strategies for leaving IRAs and retirement plans to a spouse.
3 Strategies to Consider When Sole Beneficiaries Want to Share the Wealth
Unfortunately, no single solution is simple, cheap, and tax-advantaged, says Natalie Choate.
Treasury Issues Favorable CARES Guidance--With a Tight Deadline
The generous and liberal interpretation of the act’s provisions provide substantial flexibility and options to retirement-plan owners.
2020: The Year for Roth Conversions?
Contributor Natalie Choate tackles three scenarios where a Roth conversion seems to make sense--but may not.
Who Qualifies for Coronavirus-Related Distributions?
There are plenty of gray areas in the CARES Act's language about CRDs, says contributor Natalie Choate.
What if I Already Took My 2020 RMD?
The new stimulus plan suspends required minimum distributions for 2020. Contributor Natalie Choate offers advice to early birds who've already taken RMDs for the year.
Surprises With SECURE's 10-Year Rule
Contributor Natalie Choate reviews the questions that some fiduciaries face today.
Don't Make the Client's Problem Your Problem
Contributor Natalie Choate with what not to do to 'help' clients.
SECURE Act Targets Minimum Distribution Rules
Planners have their work cut out for them, says contributor Natalie Choate.
What Revised Life Expectancy Tables Mean for You and Your Clients
The IRS has proposed new actuarial tables for calculating required minimum distributions. Here’s the timeline and the key takeaways.
Death Distinctions Between 401(k)s and IRAs
Contributor Natalie Choate discusses the challenges--and limitations--for heirs when beneficiary designations aren't completed for retirement accounts.
Multiple Beneficiaries and the Year of Death RMD
Contributor Natalie Choate navigates through the complexities.
Roth Rollover Traps
Contributor Natalie Choate reviews the good, the bad, and the ugly when rolling over from a Roth 401(k) to a Roth IRA.
7 Ways to Fix Wrong or Missing Beneficiary Designations
Contributor Natalie Choate explains what to do when a decedent names the wrong (or no) beneficiary on retirement accounts.
How to Maximize Roth Savings Through a Solo 401(k)
Contributor Natalie Choate examines how some self-employed workers can make the most of Roth savings later in life.
How to Maximize Roth Savings Through a 401(k) Plan
Contributor Natalie Choate discusses a little-known--but low-tax--savings strategy.
4 Dumb Answers About IRAs and Retirement Plans
Natalie Choate shares some of the incorrect statements she's heard from IRA providers and plan administrators.
How to Avoid This IRA-to-IRA Rollover Trap
Contributor Natalie Choate reviews a few ways to get around the once-per-year limit.
IRA Annuity Surprises
And not the good kind, either, says contributor Natalie Choate.
Tricky Timelines If You Miss an RMD
For what year or years do you file IRS Form 5329 if you discovered you've missed a required minimum distribution?
Restoring Lawsuit Winnings to an IRA
The ability to contribute a restorative payment to an IRA applies only to the compensatory payment for the actual investment loss.
The 401(k) Early Withdrawal Penalty: It's Not Fair!
Contributor Natalie Choate reviews some of the inconsistencies in the penalty investors pay if they take distributions from their retirement plans too early.
A Good Tax Idea Backfires
Rolling your IRA into your 401(k) while still employed may help you temporarily skirt required minimum distributions, but there can be drawbacks.
Effectively Taking Early IRA Distributions Without Penalty
Natalie Choate simplifies the decision making that come with SOSEPPs.
Managing a Year-of-Death RMD in an Inherited IRA
The rule that you must take the required minimum distribution before doing a “rollover” does not apply to IRA-to-IRA transfers.
Thorny Issues When Leaving IRA to Trust for Young Children
Why do back flips to qualify for a life expectancy payout that may soon cease to exist?
How to Deal with Improper Roth Contributions
There are three courses you can take if you've contributed to a Roth IRA when you shouldn't have.
3 Misleading IRS Forms
Figuring out the tax rules for retirement plans and IRAs is hard enough. It's too bad that some IRS forms make the process even trickier.
How an Expert Botched Her Own RMD
Track IRA transactions like a hawk, from start to finish, to make sure they are carried out completely and correctly.
Avoid the Income Funnel Trap
To reduce income tax, do what you can to limit the flow of items into the top lines of your tax return.
Can Retirement Plan Benefits Be Transferred After the Owner's Death?
Beneficiaries inheriting IRAs generally have more flexibility than those inheriting qualified plans.
Where Recharacterization Is Alive and Well
Although the new tax law placed some limits on IRA recharacterizations, the technique can still be used in certain situations in 2018 and beyond.
What the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act Means for Retirement Benefits
The new law eliminates Roth recharacterizations, offers a break to some employees who take loans against their employer-sponsored plans, and may make qualified charitable distributions even more popular.
Why IRA Holders Need to Scrutinize IRS Form 5498
A mistake on this form can cost investors money and lead to needless audits.
Roths for the Rest of Us
Here are nine less conventional ways to enjoy the benefits of Roth accounts.
How to Roll Over an IRA Into a Qualified Plan
Though uncommon, there are several good reasons to do an IRA-to-plan rollover.
Replace the Stretch IRA?
Today's rules have created a lottery system, and those under consideration in Washington would only make things more complicated.