Carefully Plan Your Future…Especially in Your Sixties

While we should be financial planning for the future our whole lives, many of the realities of retirement become evident in our sixth decade.

Before you settle into a retirement routine, tackle one more important task: invest the time to develop a strategy of balancing income, asset sales and distribution timing over the next 10 years to maximize your returns and minimize taxes.

You’ll have much to consider:

• Social Security becomes available at age 62, fully vested at between 66 and 67, and maximized at 70.
• Your retirement accounts can be tapped without penalties at 59 ½ and must begin annual distributions at 70 ½.
• Medicare becomes the health insurance plan of choice at age 65.
• You may own a business to sell, a vacation home to liquidate, and a drawer full of investment statements to organize from a lifetime of purchases with stars in your eyes.

And of course, myriad senior discounts become available during these years, so it’s time to live it up, right? You’re probably thinking if you planned properly, you should be well-placed financially by now.

But wait a minute…not so fast! Just when you’re about to enjoy the harvest of a lifetime of wealth accumulation, the IRS sticks its grubby little hands into your pocket full of assets. Now you’re left wondering and worrying…maybe you actually didn’t save enough to support you and your family the next 25+ years…

Now what?

Many economists predict during the next eight years we’ll enjoy the lowest individual income tax rates we’ll see in our lifetime. So start making an inventory of those investments and income sources to determine when best to sell or withdraw them in preparation for retirement.

What you shouldn’t do: sell everything all in one year, resulting in such a spike in taxable income you’re pushed into a higher tax bracket. You also should consider deferring your Social Security benefits until you get other taxable assets liquidated, minimizing the tax these first few years.

Additionally, look at Roth rollovers, even though they may generate some tax. You may find paying 12% tax now could save you paying 25% or more in IRA distributions in your seventies.

The objective here is to level your income over this first decade of your golden years…so you can save your valuable retirement assets for you, not your Uncle Sam.

Need help with this important financial retirement planning? Our team of CPAs and tax accountants stands ready to assist with your cash-flow and budget planning for your sixties…and beyond.

Contact us: Office@CPAsite.com or 904-396-5400.