Taxes Articles
Practical explainers and guidance for taxes decisions.
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Should You Use a QLAC in Retirement?
A QLAC can make sense in retirement when part of the goal is creating guaranteed income later in life while reducing the balance counted for required minimum distributions in the meantime. The stronger question is whether delayed income later is worth the liquidity you give up now.
Retirement
What Are Required Minimum Distributions and Why Do They Matter?
Required minimum distributions, or RMDs, are mandatory withdrawals from many pretax retirement accounts. They matter because they can raise taxable income, change withdrawal order, shrink Roth-conversion flexibility, and force retirement-account decisions even if you do not need the cash yet.
Retirement
How to Plan for RMDs Before They Start
Required minimum distributions can reshape retirement income, taxes, Medicare premiums, Social Security taxation, charitable giving, and survivor planning. The best RMD planning usually starts before the first required withdrawal.
Retirement
How to Coordinate Social Security With Portfolio Withdrawals
Social Security claiming and portfolio withdrawals should be planned together. The right coordination depends on cash-flow needs, claiming age, taxes, survivor benefits, Medicare premiums, Roth conversion windows, and how much pressure the portfolio can safely carry.
Small Business
How to Decide What Business Cash You Can Safely Use
Before a business owner uses extra cash for owner pay, debt payoff, retirement contributions, equipment, or savings, the cash should be tested against books, taxes, payroll, vendors, reserves, and debt.
Taxes
Does a Bigger Tax Refund Mean You Did Taxes Well?
A bigger tax refund does not automatically mean you did taxes well. A refund usually means your payments and refundable credits were larger than your final tax liability, so the real question is whether your withholding fit your cash-flow plan.
Budgeting
How to Budget for Medical Costs
Medical costs are easier to manage when they are split into predictable monthly costs, expected care, known upcoming care, and a reserve for deductible or out-of-pocket risk. A useful medical budget connects health insurance, HSA or FSA funding, emergency savings, and cash-flow timing instead of treating every bill as a surprise.
Insurance
HDHP vs. Traditional Health Insurance: Which Should You Choose?
A high-deductible health plan can lower monthly premiums and may open the door to an HSA, but it also shifts more upfront risk to the household. The better choice depends on expected care, cash reserves, employer contributions, prescription and network fit, and whether the HSA will actually be funded.
College Planning
When Should Grandparents Use a 529 Plan?
A grandparent-owned 529 plan can be a strong way to help with education costs, but ownership, control, gift-tax reporting, financial-aid treatment, and family coordination all matter.
College Planning
How Do 529 Plans Affect the FAFSA?
A 529 plan can affect FAFSA asset reporting, but the treatment depends on who owns the account, whether parent information is required, whose education the account is for, and whether the school uses other aid forms beyond the FAFSA.
College Planning
How Much Should You Save in a 529 Plan?
A 529 savings target should be built from the kind of school you may help fund, the years until enrollment, current savings, monthly contribution capacity, likely aid, and how much flexibility you want if the student chooses a different path.
College Planning
How 529 Plans Work for College Savings
A 529 plan can help families save for education with tax-free growth and tax-free qualified withdrawals, but the way it works depends on the type of plan, the expenses you intend to cover, and how you choose to invest the account.
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