Planning services
Tax Planning
Tax planning looks forward across your retirement years: which income to take, in which year, and out of which account. Preparing a return looks back at a year already spent. This is the other thing.
Scope
What this area answers
The kinds of questions this part of the plan answers.
Which accounts should I draw from to manage this year’s tax bill?
Does a Roth conversion make sense for me, and when?
How will required minimum distributions affect my taxes?
How does my income this year affect Medicare premiums later?
What will my heirs owe on what they inherit?
The work
What this area involves
What the work actually consists of.
A multi-year view
The lowest tax bill this year and the lowest tax bill across your whole retirement are often two different answers. The longer horizon is the one that counts.
Marginal and effective rates
Your top bracket and the rate you actually end up paying are two different numbers. Knowing both is what tells you whether to take extra income in a low-income year.
Roth conversion analysis
A conversion means paying tax now to lower what is owed later. Whether it pays off depends on your rate today, your likely rate later, where the tax money comes from, and who inherits.
Required minimum distributions
Required distributions can push your taxable income up later in retirement. The years before they start are usually where the most room to plan sits.
Income-related Medicare adjustments
Medicare premiums are set from your income two years earlier. One big year can raise your premiums later, which is usually manageable if you see it coming.
Context
Why this area matters
Taxes in retirement are a chain of connected decisions about which dollars to take, when, and from where. Pull on one and the others move.
Nothing on this site is tax advice, and the work goes best when whoever prepares your return is part of the conversation.
Common questions
About tax planning
It depends on whether you expect a higher tax rate later than the one you pay today, and whether you can cover the tax bill from money outside the account.
The window between retiring and starting required distributions is where conversions usually get considered, because income is often temporarily low.
Related areas
The other four planning areas
Each one pulls on the others, so they get planned alongside each other.