Ask the Retirement Expert About RMDs & Taxes: Ed Slott

Advisors face a myriad of evolving retirement-related rules and regulations this year — from the Department of Labor’s proposed new fiduciary rule to required minimum distribution challenges and the Internal Revenue Service’s anticipated Secure Act-related guidance.

In this episode of Ask the Retirement Expert, ThinkAdvisor Washington Bureau Chief and Senior Editor Melanie Waddell speaks with IRA and tax expert Ed Slott of Ed Slott and Co., about how advisors can keep up with the existing and looming retirement-related rules.

2024, Slott relays, will be another busy year: Beyond the DOL’s proposed fiduciary rule, “we’re still waiting for regulations” on the original Secure Act and final regulations on Secure 2.0.

“There are still lots of questions up in the air…,” he explains. And there will “be a lot of new information coming out next year – so advisors have to stay on top of these things and communicate changes to clients.”

In this podcast, Waddell and Slott unpack several tricky retirement-planning topics and review the steps advisors must take to address them. The main themes include:

• Why RMDs are a nightmare this year and what should advisors be doing about them, ideally before year-end.
• Key tax and charitable-giving strategies that advisors need to move on and help clients with before Dec 31.
• Year-end tips and strategies for advisors to share with their clients.
• Roth conversions and what advisors should be doing with clients in this area.
• Using Roth contributions – rather than non-taxable contributions – as a hedge against the uncertainty of higher tax rates for future retirees.
• The latest thinking on rollovers of non-taxable accounts into Roth accounts – and how this process varies by clients’ income levels.

To listen to the first episode in this series, click here.