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post-tenure financial adjustments

Started by Puget, January 26, 2024, 04:02:24 PM

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clean

Quote. My thought was I should max out the 403b first, since that is tax advantaged?

An IRA would likewise be tax advantaged. 
IRA withdrawals can start as soon as 59 !/2, though many 403s will not allow that unless/until you leave employment (and are either 55 or 59 1/2... there is a rule about 55).

regarding Tax Advantaged...   Do you mean that you take the deduction now, with the intention to pay taxes on the withdrawals?
Do you believe that taxes will be higher or lower in retirement?  (remember that Social Security payments may well be taxed in retirement, and the National Debt is not getting smaller, and the federal budget isnt going down)... (Not to make a political statement, but I really believe that we are at a lower tax rate now than is sustainable.... The Trump tax cuts will reverse in 2025 (going back to what they were) meaning that they are going back up! 

By saving in a Roth 403 or IRA, you do not get a deduction on the contributions today, but you can withdraw from the funds tax free later.  (at least under the current law!) 

Remember that when you take the money out in retirement, it is taxed as Regular income, even though the earnings are mostly capital gains (which otherwise would be taxed at a much lower rate). 

Anyway, For what it is worth, I switched to Roth accounts for all of my retirement contributions (403 and IRA)  as soon as my employer allowed it. 
"The Emperor is not as forgiving as I am"  Darth Vader

spork

1. Increase your 403(b) contributions to the legal annual max. HR/payroll can get the correct amount automatically deducted from your paychecks. These contributions reduce your taxable income, which means the dollars you retain through lower taxes now are worth more than the same amount of dollars handed to you in the future (because of inflation and compounding returns over time when current dollars are invested).

2. Open a Roth IRA and contribute the legal annual max. Just put it all into a low expense ratio index fund like Vanguard's S & P 500 fund.

3. Pay off the credit union loan for the solar panels.

4. Assuming you plan to stay put for the next decade or so, invest in energy efficiency upgrades for your house. The cheapest energy is the energy you don't use. I had my house's original single-glazed windows replaced over a two year period with insulated vinyl windows. My back of the envelope calculations said that, given the area ratio of windows to wall in my house, R value, etc., new windows would pay for themselves in seven years. My calculations turned out to be correct.

5. You can ladder CDs -- i.e., buy one 12-month CD each month for a year -- to have money earning interest at a far higher rate than in ordinary checking/savings accounts used for "emergency funds" (which often have interest rates of ~ 0.1%), with chunks of that money available almost immediately for many larger than typical expenses. You can put a big ticket item on a credit card and pay off the entire balance within a month with a CD that you don't renew.

6. I recommend the book Psychology of Money by Morgan Housel. And The Simple Path to Wealth by J.L. Collins.
It's terrible writing, used to obfuscate the fact that the authors actually have nothing to say.

clean

Quote1. Increase your 403(b) contributions to the legal annual max. HR/payroll can get the correct amount automatically deducted from your paychecks. These contributions reduce your taxable income, which means the dollars you retain through lower taxes now are worth more than the same amount of dollars handed to you in the future (because of inflation and compounding returns over time when current dollars are invested).

Here is the problem with that.  It is not the same amount.  If you deposit 5000 a year for 20 years and earn 8% you deposit 100,000 but the account is now worth 228,820.  Except for one year recently, inflation has been well below 8%, so you are making a real return.

It also assumes that tax rates are the same.  Do you think that tax rates will stay the same or go down in the future?  AS I indicated in an earlier post on this thread, I do not and I am putting my money into Roth accounts so that the withdrawals come out tax free.

Another point is about the Required Minimum Distribution (which I grant has gotten better recently as it starts later than the original 70 1/2.)  However, today you can control your taxes.  Once you start the Required Minimum Distribution, you dont have that control.  You can easily find that your RMD and social security force you into a higher tax bracket (or at least that you pay taxes on your social security). 

WIth a Roth account, you do not face the RMD.  Also, if you want/need to take out a larger lump sum to buy a house or for some other need, it does not change your taxable income.

A Roth IRA gives you options.  A traditional IRA gives you headaches. 
"The Emperor is not as forgiving as I am"  Darth Vader

spork

The maximum annual 403b contribution for this year, as I understand it, is $23,000. For Roth IRAs, the total annual max is $7,000 if you're under 50. Make the maximum allowed contribution to both. Pay your future self first. Retirement savings, whether tax-deferred or not, are not an either/or proposition.
It's terrible writing, used to obfuscate the fact that the authors actually have nothing to say.