One Cent At A Time

A Personal finance blog for saving money and earning more and thus having a better life

What to Know about Roth IRA Conversion’s

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I absolutely love this savvy financial planning tool. When appropriate, the conversion can ultimately save thousands of dollars in taxes. The best part is that is extremely easy. First thing to know about a Roth IRA conversion is the benefits that a Roth itself has to offer. The main difference from its brother the Traditional IRA, is the taxation.

What to Know about Roth IRA Conversion’s

The Roth is taxed at the seeding, and the Traditional is taxed at harvest.  This change from taxing money at the beginning instead of the end is profound when you consider a 20-30 year time frame of invested dollars.  In order to do this, the contributions into a Roth are not deductible.

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7 Unconventional Ways To Save More For Roth IRA

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Are you making the maximum annual contribution to your Roth IRA?

If not, then odds are you know that you should be. After all, your Roth IRA retirement savings is tax-free money, making it far more valuable in your golden years than your 401k or Traditional IRA.

So why do so many people fail to build up their Roth IRA savings? The most common excuse is, “I just don’t have the money!”

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10 Retirement Plan Mistakes to Avoid

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Although I am a financial blogger, I committed many mistakes. although my financial education was solid, still I had my financial bad days. One of them was not having a 401 (k) account or an IRA account as soon as I landed in this country and decided to stay here. Point is, anyone can commit mistakes financially, even experts.

There are many other mistakes people do, USA Today listed a few of them. CBS news claims that their list contains the biggest mistakes. Let me give you some practical advice here for my informed readers. I will not tell you to open a 401(k) account. I know you have a 401(k) or an IRA or Roth IRA, otherwise, that would be the biggest mistake you could do.

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20 Best Practices for Retirement Saving

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Here are some scary facts on American retirement.

  1. 36% of Americans said they don’t contribute anything to retirement savings , like a 401(k) or a IRA.
  2. 35% of Americans over the age of 65 rely almost totally on Social Security alone.
  3. 55% of American workers have less than $2000 saved for retirement.
  4. Starting this year, social security fund outflow exceeds the total inflow from payroll taxes.
Here’s the US census data on use of retirement saving in american household.

Now, here are 20 steps you should take today to secure your future. First let me introduce you to the terminologies, in case you need.

Retirement Saving Terminology

Rollover:  Thisis the term used for funds that an employee and employer have accumulated and have options to be transferred when the employee leaves the job.

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What If You Contribute Too Much To Your Roth IRA?

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What happens if you contribute too much to your Roth IRA? Believe it or not, it’s much easier to do than you might think. How? Suppose you max out your Roth IRA contribution at the beginning of the year, then as the year progresses, you receive a raise, a bonus, or perhaps your spouse goes from unemployed to employed. All of these events could increase your Modified Adjustable Gross Income (MAGI).

Roth IRA

If changes in your MAGI and what you earn are substantial, it’s quite possible that your maximum Roth IRA contribution limit for the year will decrease – maybe even to zero. Under such circumstances, if you’ve already made a Roth IRA contribution assuming a certain contribution limit and that limit subsequently decreases, then the result is an excess Roth IRA contribution.

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Roth IRAs vs. Traditional IRAs: For Filing Taxes and Your Retirement

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This is a guest post from Kellie Englehardt, she sent me this post yesterday and asked if I accepted guest posts. After reading this and gauging its usefulness for your tax return, I decided to publish immediately. 

I sincerely hope at least some of my readers would definitely find it useful. usually I do not post on Thursdays, making an exception today. Enjoy and learn the following.

This year, taxes are due April 17, less than a month away. With the deadline quickly approaching, many people are wondering how they can cut their tax bill. One thing you can do, according to the IRS, is contribute to an IRA. A contribution will not only reduce your taxable income, but it will generate retirement savings as well. It’s a win-win situation.

The great thing about IRAs is that if you contribute before the tax filing deadline, the contribution counts toward your taxes.

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There is No Income Limit for Roth IRA Conversion As Such

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Do you earn too much to make a Roth IRA contribution? Are you bogged down by the Roth IRA limit for your income?

The Roth IRA is a powerful retirement savings vehicle. Unfortunately, the IRS prohibits large number of individuals and married couples from making Roth IRA contributions because (in the eyes of the federal government at least) they earn too much income.

If this describes your situation, you have been barred from making Roth IRA contributions (and probably Roth IRA conversions as well) for more than a decade. And while the Roth IRA income limits are still in effect, the restriction on your ability to make a Roth IRA contribution is not.

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IRA vs 401(k), Should You Rollover?

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IRA vs. 401 (k) , should I rollover my previous employer’s 401 (k)?

I am contributing to 401(k) plans up to 5% of my salary to get full employer match. I am also contributing $5,000 annually to an IRA account. If I leave this job and join another one I’ll have another 401 (k) account from my new employer.

From TD Ameritrade to ETrade, all IRA administrators run incentive programs to encourage people to roll over. I am trying to find an answer to the question:

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