Knowledge Base
Retirement Planning Guides
Turning savings into income: withdrawal rates, account sequencing, Roth conversions, Social Security and Medicare timing, and health coverage before 65.
39 guides
401(k) Withdrawal Rules
401(k) withdrawals are taxed as income; before 59½ most also owe a 10% penalty unless an exception applies, such as the Rule of 55.
403(b) Plans: How They Work for Educators and Nonprofit Employees
A 403(b) is a 401(k)-style plan for public school and nonprofit employees, with the same $24,500 limit in 2026 but different investment rules.
457(b) Plans: Deferred Compensation for Executives
A 457(b) lets government and some nonprofit employees defer $24,500 in 2026 on top of a 401(k) or 403(b), with no 10% early-withdrawal penalty.
Annuities Explained: When They Help and What to Watch For
An annuity is an insurance contract that turns savings into income. Simple income annuities address longevity risk; complex ones can carry high fees.
Cash Balance Plans: High-Income Retirement Strategy
A cash balance plan is an employer-funded pension with account-style balances that can allow owners much larger deductible contributions than a 401(k).
Custodial Roth IRA: Retirement Savings for Minors
A custodial Roth IRA is a Roth IRA for a minor with earned income, run by an adult until the child takes control; 2026 contributions cap at $7,500.
Deferred Compensation When You Leave: How 409A Payouts Work
Nonqualified deferred comp pays out on the schedule you elected in advance. Changing it requires a 12-month wait and at least a 5-year further delay.
Deferred Compensation Withdrawal Strategies
Deferred compensation pays out on dates you elect in advance under Section 409A; timing drives tax brackets, state tax, and employer credit risk.
Divorce and Retirement Accounts
In divorce, 401(k)s and pensions are split by a QDRO and IRAs by a transfer under the decree; done correctly, neither split is taxed.
Early Retirement Account Access: Rule of 55, 72(t), and Roth Options
Before 59½, the Rule of 55, 72(t) payments, and Roth contributions can avoid the 10% early-withdrawal tax. Ordinary income tax may still apply.
How 529 Education Savings Plans Work
A 529 plan is a state-sponsored account where money for education grows federally tax-free and comes out tax-free when spent on qualified school costs.
Inherited IRAs & the SECURE Act 10-Year Rule
Most non-spouse heirs must empty an inherited IRA by the end of the 10th year after death, with annual RMDs if the owner had started RMDs.
Learning to Spend in Retirement After Decades of Saving
Strong savers often underspend in retirement. A clear income floor, a flexible withdrawal plan, and regular check-ins can make spending feel safer.
Maximizing Your 401(k) Contributions
For 2026, you can defer $24,500 to a 401(k), plus $8,000 at 50+ or $11,250 at ages 60 to 63; total contributions from all sources cap at $72,000.
Medicare Planning: Enrollment, Costs, and Income Surcharges
Medicare starts at 65; signing up on time avoids lifelong penalties, and higher incomes pay surcharges (IRMAA) based on tax returns from two years earlier.
Money After Marriage: Accounts, Taxes, Beneficiaries, and Kids
Marriage changes your tax filing, how property is owned, who inherits by default, and which benefits you can use, so several accounts need updating.
Money Decisions at Life's Turning Points: Marriage, Kids, Moves, Divorce, and Windfalls
Marriage, a child, a move, a job change, divorce, or an inheritance can change your taxes, insurance, and savings. Review the plan at each turning point.
Net Unrealized Appreciation (NUA): Company Stock in Your 401(k)
NUA lets you take company stock out of a 401(k) in kind, pay ordinary tax only on its cost basis, and pay long-term capital gains rates on the growth.
Pension Lump Sum vs Annuity, Evaluating Your Payout Options
A pension annuity pays for life and shifts longevity risk to the plan; a lump sum gives control but shifts investment and longevity risk to you.
Required Minimum Distributions: Ages, Math, and Planning Options
RMDs are annual taxable withdrawals from pre-tax retirement accounts, starting at age 73, or 75 for those born in 1960 or later.
Retirement Income Distribution Strategy: Account Sequencing
Withdrawal order is choosing which of your taxable, pre-tax, and Roth accounts fund each year of retirement to manage lifetime taxes.
Retirement Planning Basics: Accounts, 2026 Limits, and a Common Savings Order
Retirement planning estimates future spending, subtracts income like Social Security, and fills the gap using tax-advantaged accounts over time.
Retirement Stress Tests: Checking a Plan Against Bad Markets
A stress test checks whether a retirement plan still works if markets fall early, stay flat for years, or inflation runs hot, not just in average years.
Roth Conversions: When They Can Make Sense and What They Cost
A Roth conversion moves pre-tax retirement money into a Roth IRA. You pay income tax now in exchange for tax-free qualified withdrawals later.
Roth IRA Rules and Limits
For 2026, you can put $7,500 in a Roth IRA ($8,600 at 50+) if MAGI is below $153,000 single or $242,000 joint; qualified withdrawals are tax-free.
Safe Withdrawal Rates
A safe withdrawal rate is the share of a portfolio you can draw each year with a low historical chance of running out; 4% is a start, not a rule.
SECURE Act 2.0: Key Retirement Rule Changes
SECURE 2.0 raised the RMD age to 73 and later 75, ended Roth 401(k) RMDs, added a 60–63 catch-up, and allows 529-to-Roth rollovers.
SEP IRA vs SIMPLE IRA: Retirement Plans for Small Businesses
A SEP IRA takes employer-only contributions up to $72,000 in 2026; a SIMPLE IRA adds $17,000 employee deferrals plus a required employer match.
Sequence-of-Returns Risk in Retirement
Sequence-of-returns risk is the danger that poor markets early in retirement, plus withdrawals, shrink a portfolio more than the same losses later.
Social Security Claiming Decisions
Social Security can start anywhere from 62 to 70; each year of delay raises the monthly check, and the higher earner's timing shapes survivor income.
Solo 401(k) & Self-Employed Retirement Plans
Self-employed people can use a solo 401(k), SEP IRA, SIMPLE IRA, or defined benefit plan; in 2026 a solo 401(k) allows up to $72,000 plus catch-ups.
Spousal IRA: How a Non-Working Spouse Can Contribute
A spousal IRA lets a non-working or low-earning spouse contribute up to $7,500 in 2026 ($8,600 at 50+) based on the other spouse's earned income.
Stepping Back From a High-Pressure Tech Job: A Financial Checklist
Leaving a demanding tech role works financially when runway, equity timing, health coverage, and taxes are mapped before you pick a last day.
The FIRE Movement: Financial Independence, Retire Early
FIRE means saving enough, often 25 times annual spending, to live off investments well before traditional retirement age, if the plan survives decades.
The First Five Years of Retirement Withdrawals: A Planning Framework
Early retirement years carry the most sequence risk and the most tax flexibility. A spending reserve, account order, and income targets all matter.
The Rule of 55: Penalty-Free 401(k) Access After Leaving Work
Leave your employer in or after the year you turn 55 and that employer's 401(k) can pay out without the 10% early penalty. IRAs don't qualify.
Thrift Savings Plan (TSP): How It Works for Federal Employees
The TSP is the federal government's 401(k)-style plan, with a $24,500 limit in 2026, low-cost index funds, and up to a 5% agency contribution.
Traditional IRA Deduction Rules
For 2026, you can contribute $7,500 ($8,600 at 50+) to a traditional IRA; the deduction phases out by income only if you or a spouse has a workplace plan.
When Is a Financial Advisor Worth It for Tech Employees?
Many tech employees manage fine on their own. An advisor tends to earn the cost when equity decisions, a liquidity event, or deadlines raise the stakes.