They face particular challenges brought on by Covid-19 — issues, experts say, that could lead to retirement earlier than planned. Dorian Mintzer loves her work. A 74-year-old psychologist, coach and author, she has no plan to retire, and has continued to work during...

By Ian Berger, JD IRA Analyst Question: For COVID "special" Aug 31 rollovers, am I allowed to return my 401(k) required minimum distribution (RMD) to my IRA? Thank you, Maria Answer: Hi Maria, Yes, the CARES Act and subsequent IRS guidance allows unwanted 2020 401(k)...

By Ian Berger, JD IRA Analyst Admittedly, it’s not such a bad problem to have. Nonetheless, it’s true that high-paid company plan participants can have their benefits limited by the IRS compensation limit. The compensation limit is $285,000 for 2020 and goes up most...

July 13th, 2020 Chadd Mason, CEO The Cabana Group Equity Markets Show Strength Ahead of Bank Earnings Equity markets moved to the high end of their trading range over the past week. For those keeping track, the S&P 500 has been rangebound between 3000 and 3200 for...

By Sarah Brenner, JD IRA Analyst The countdown to the much delayed 2019 tax filing deadline is on. The deadline is July 15, 2020, which is only a couple of days away. Time is running out. Is your IRA ready? Making Your 2019 IRA Contribution Due to the COVID-19...

Recovery is starting quickly as states reopen, but the journey gets bumpier from here, Kelly and fellow strategist David Lebovitz warn. There is still a long way to go before the United States has a full economic recovery and it is therefore wise for investors to be...

By Sarah Brenner, JD IRA Analyst Question: Hello, I am aware of the IRA one-rollover-per-year rule. What I can’t find is if a married couple that files jointly violates the rule if they each do a rollover from their own individual IRAs? For example: One person has an...

By Andy Ives, CFP®, AIF® IRA Analyst As we have written on many occasions, the “Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act” (CARES Act) waives required minimum distributions (RMDs) for 2020. This waiver applies to company savings plans and IRAs, including both...

July 7th, 2020 Chadd Mason, CEO The Cabana Group Midyear Outlook: Acknowledging Where We Are To start, I hope everyone had a safe and restful July 4th holiday. Time spent with family and friends is what matters most. The older I get the more that reality sinks in. I...

By Ian Beger, JD IRA Analyst There’s been a flurry of recent government regulation of company retirement plans. Here’s a quick summary: Electronic Disclosure of Retirement Plan Documents On May 27, 2020, the Department of Labor published a final regulation making it...

By Andy Ives, CFP®, AIF® IRA Analyst Question: If someone took two IRA distributions earlier in 2020 that were considered RMDs, and now wishes to repay the cumulative amount back into the same IRA, are there any rules about the number of rollover deposits they can...

Now that we’ve entered a bear market for the first time since 2009, many pre-retirees are likely asking questions about the impact on their retirement savings. Will the stock market sell-off wipe out years of growth in their 401(k)s? Are there any steps that can be...

-Darren Leavitt, CFA The financial markets continued to be volatile throughout June but were ultimately able to build upon May’s gains.  Optimism surrounding the reopening of the global economy fueled investor’s risk appetite for cyclical issues such as financials and...

By Sarah Brenner, JD IRA Analyst IRAs are supposed to be for saving for retirement but in challenging economic times like these many individuals may be forced to take distributions before retirement age. Be careful! If you tap your IRA before reaching age 59 ½, the...

June 22nd, 2020 Chadd Mason, CEO The Cabana Group Covid-19 Cases Spike in the U.S. as Boeing Resumes 737 Max Test Flights The S&P 500 closed on Friday just below its 200-day moving average. This was the culmination of a 5% drop for the week. The Dow and Nasdaq...

By Andy Ives, CFP®, AIF® IRA Analyst After a six-month sprint through a diabolical obstacle course of new laws, a pandemic, record unemployment, deaths, confusion and complete disruption of everyone’s professional and personal lives, this seems like a good time to...

By Ian Berger, JD IRA Analyst Question: Hi Ed, If a person takes that 100k distribution, can they elect to split evenly in 2020-2022 as income? Or can they determine how to apply the income? Shannon Answer: Hi Shannon, Those persons who qualify for up to $100,000 of...

Americans without retirement savings are increasingly moving in with their millennial children. Sian-Pierre Regis, 35, is used to living with roommates. For the past 10 years, he has split the rent on his apartment in the Chelsea neighborhood of Manhattan with two (in...

By Ian Berger, JD IRA Analyst The IRS has extended the rollover deadline for required minimum distributions (RMDs) taken from IRAs or company plans in 2020. In Notice 2020-51, released on June 23, the IRS said that any unwanted 2020 RMDs can be repaid via rollover to...

Are you acting in your clients’ best interest when it comes to rollovers? On June 30, the new SEC Regulation Best Interest (Reg BI) becomes effective. Reg BI establishes a “best interest” standard of conduct for broker-dealers when they make recommendations to clients...

June 22nd, 2020 Chadd Mason, CEO The Cabana Group Which Way Will the Market Break? U.S. equity markets continue to be range bound but hold above the all-important 200-day moving average at 3000 (S&P 500). I read over the weekend that there remains a record amount...

The economic gut punch of the COVID-19 pandemic is being felt by retirees. Even those who have savings and other resources now fear that the financial stability they had envisioned for their post-working years is gone. With the U.S. economy staring at a recession and...

By Sarah Brenner, JD IRA Analyst On June 19, the IRS released additional guidance on coronavirus-related distributions (CRDs) from retirement accounts. The new guidance will make many more individuals eligible for these tax-advantaged distributions allowed under the...

By Sarah Brenner, JD IRA Analyst Question: Thank you for all the great resources you provide. I have been looking for an answer to my specific situation and have not been able to find a clear answer to what I think is a pretty straight forward situation/fact pattern....

By Andy Ives, CFP®, AIF® IRA Analyst FIX: Rolling Over the Tax Withheld on a Distribution. Was the mandatory tax of 20% withheld on your work plan withdrawal even though you intended to roll over the entire account? Did you change your mind on an IRA withdrawal and...

June 15th, 2020 Chadd Mason, CEO The Cabana Group Markets Show Important Reversal at Even More Important Level Two weeks ago, we commented on the ongoing test faced by the broad indices at their respective 200-day moving average. We noted that if equity markets were...

Right now, spending habits are changing, for better or worse. With unemployment at an all-time high and many people working from home, your budget could be totally different from usual. You may be tight on money or have a little extra cash in your pocket. Regardless...

By Ian Berger, JD IRA Analyst In the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, the IRS has temporarily relaxed the rule that spousal consent to certain retirement plan distributions and loans must be witnessed personally by a notary public or a plan representative. In Notice...

By Andy Ives, CFP®, AIF® IRA Analyst Question: Under the SECURE Act, if we can assume a Special Needs Trust can qualify for the stretch via the disabled beneficiary, what happens when the special needs trust beneficiary passes? The next named beneficiary (remainder)...

By Sarah Brenner, JD IRA Analyst By now, most IRA owners have heard the bad news. The SECURE Act eliminates the stretch IRA for the majority of beneficiaries who inherit in 2020 or later. Instead, for most, a 10-year payout rule will apply. Here is how this new rule...

June 8th, 2020 Chadd Mason, CEO The Cabana Group Perception is Not Reality We have spent the past few weeks discussing the need to have a rules-based process in place that helps to take the emotion out of investing when markets appear to disconnect from what we...

By Andy Ives, CFP®, AIF® IRA Analyst The King of the Land wanted to send 100,000 of his greatest warriors off to battle. However, he was told that 20,000 of the warriors needed to remain behind to protect the castle. The King of the Land did not like this news. He...

The Washington Post spoke to six Americans who have come to the end of their work lives with no financial cushion, no nest egg. The coronavirus pandemic has scrambled many Americans’ financial futures, but some baby boomers have found surprising ways to cope with the...

By Ian Berger, JD IRA Analyst Question: I understand that I don’t have to take any RMDs during 2020.  However, is the CARES Act rule that it is an-all-or-nothing for RMDs or can I take a portion of my RMD for 2020 but not all John Answer: Hi John, Since RMDs are...

By Ian Berger, JD IRA Analyst As a result of the current economic downturn, we can expect more and more companies to offer lump sum buyouts to employees with defined benefit (DB) plan benefits. A lump sum buyout is a limited opportunity for DB plan participants to...

June 1st, 2020 Chadd Mason, CEO The Cabana Group The Stock Market Continues to Climb as Protests Spread Nationwide Equity markets closed out the month of May with big gains. The S&P 500 climbed more than 5% for the month despite a lot of volatility. Swings of more...

-Darren Leavitt, CFA Financial Markets continued to rebound nicely in May as economies around the globe started to reopen.  There were also constructive news headlines related to effective coronavirus therapies and positive data on some early-stage results for...

By Sarah Brenner, JD IRA Analyst More than 40 million Americans have filed for unemployment since the Corona virus pandemic hit in in the middle of March. With job loss can come questions of what to do with retirement savings such as your 401(k) plan. A rollover to an...

KEY POINTS About half of Americans retired earlier than they expected, according to a recent survey. Less control over your retirement date could become more prevalent in a post-coronavirus economy. Based on your work prospects, you may retire either much earlier or...

Friday, May 29, 2020 The Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement (SECURE) Act single-handedly upended many long-standing retirement rules when it became effective on January 1, 2020. Shockingly, the SECURE Act was pushed to the back burner when all the...

By Sarah Brenner, JD IRA Analyst Question: Since no RMD in 2020 is required, what will the tax treatment be for QCD checks to charities written before the CARES Act became effective? Will 1099-R dollar amounts be included in AGI and charitable contributions only...

By Andy Ives, CFP®, AIF® IRA Analyst Gold members of a national hotel chain, big airline or just the local club expect lofty benefits for their dedicated patronage. Bronze members have access to A, B and C. Silver members have access to A, B, C, plus D, E and F. At...

May 26th, 2020 Chadd Mason, CEO The Cabana Group What Investors Can learn from Today's Market Equity markets worldwide continue to climb in the face of dire economics. In two decades of investing I have never seen a starker example of investors immediately setting the...

By Ian Berger, JD IRA Analyst The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Recovery (CARES) Act continues to cause confusion. In the April 22, 2020 Slott Report, we discussed four misconceptions surrounding the new law. In this article, we add one more: If your employer...

As a licensed fiduciary for over 15 years and spending most of that time with retirees, I’ve heard the same desires and concerns repeatedly: They want a retirement product that will offer them safety, income, and growth. My clients fear a repeat of 2000 or 2008, are...

By Andy Ives, CFP®, AIF® IRA Analyst Question: Hi, My question is:  Does the SECURE Act affect inheritors of a Roth IRA account?  If so, in what way, and why - since it is not a pre-tax account? I look forward to your reply.  Thanks. Regards, Vikram Answer: Vikram,...

By Sarah Brenner, JD IRA Analyst With markets down, many IRA owners are thinking this may be the time for a Roth IRA conversion. Converting when account values are down can be a good bargain. You pay a tax bill on a lower balance now in exchange for potential tax-free...

May 18th, 2020 Chadd Mason, CEO The Cabana Group Markets Closed Up Big Today Amid Positive Coronavirus Vaccine Results The past week saw continued volatility as equities sold off Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday just below the 200-day moving average and right at the late...

By Andy Ives, CFP®, AIF® IRA Analyst The coronavirus-related distribution (CRD) rules for Roth conversions have a gaping hole. An “affected person” (as we have defined in previous blogs), is entitled under the CARES Act to withdraw up to $100,000 from their IRA or...

“Jobs Friday” is usually a nerdy day for financial types and economists only. But everyone was watching the most recent jobs report. I had a big drink and told my family to remember May 8. For labor economists, it will be a day to remember. For the first time, even...

By Ian Berger, JD IRA Analyst Question: Sir: The CARES Act includes a waiver of RMDs for this year from company savings plans and IRAs. I am in the minority of retirees that took my 2020 RMD in January 2020, withheld 20% for taxes and am now finding out that I...

By Andy Ives, CFP®, AIF® IRA Analyst The evil genie in the IRA lamp wants your money. He roars with laughter at the thought of you facing hard times. Given an opportunity, he will line the pockets of creditors with your IRA dollars, and he will serve your remaining...

By Sarah Brenner, JD IRA Analyst The recently passed CARES Act includes some changes that impact your HSA. These changes will allow you to access more medical services without worrying about your deductible, and also enable you to take more tax-free distributions from...

By the time most of us reach retirement age, we feel as if we don’t have enough money to live the life we envisioned. Our feelings aren’t wrong: a 2019 analysis from the Employee Benefit Research Institute found that over 40% of American households in which the...

May 4th, 2020 Chadd Mason, CEO The Cabana Group Can April's Rally Continue, or is More Economic Disruption on the Horizon? Equity markets finished off April with the biggest monthly gain since 1974. The huge rally followed an even bigger decline in March. Face-ripping...

April 2020 Market Review -Darren Leavitt, CFA Global markets continued to rebound in April as global governments and central banks added more stimulus to combat the economic slowdown caused by COVID-19.  Developed markets outperformed emerging markets, and growth...

Here's how the ongoing crisis could wreck your long-term plans -- and what you can do to prevent that from happening. COVID-19 has turned the U.S. economy on its head, battering the stock market and forcing millions of workers into unemployment. But while the crisis...

By Andy Ives, CFP®, AIF® IRA Analyst Question: Dear Mr. Slott, I seem to have gotten myself into a jam with my 2020 RMD withdrawal and the CARES Act, as it stands now. Hoping you are able to help, or make a suggestion on how to proceed. In January, over three...

April 27th, 2020 Chadd Mason, CEO The Cabana Group Will COVID-19 Change Our World (and our Markets) Forever? As our country begins to consider reopening for business, I am left wondering how we will forever be changed? Will we shake hands with new acquaintances? Will...

By Andy Ives, CFP®, AIF® IRA Analyst 77 and sharp - that’s my dad. A voracious reader. Daily crossword puzzles. Curious. Engaged with the community. But he gets a little loose with technology. Comedic evidence suggests he is blissfully unaware if he is having a...

By Andy Ives, CFP®, AIF® IRA Analyst Like most people’s lives, the retirement world is upside down. This is made evident by a single statement: “Required minimum distributions (RMDs) can be rolled over.” Yes, that is the new normal – at least for this year. RMDs are...

By Ian Berger, JD IRA Analyst Question: The virus pandemic has prompted legislation that has eliminated the requirement for me to take a required minimum distribution (RMD) from my IRA for the year 2020. Am I therefore allowed to do a partial Roth IRA conversion in...

Dick has worked as a hospital administrator for 30-plus years. He was planning to retire in a few months. COVID-19 just delayed his plans for many months, or perhaps for years. Reflecting on what the market decline has done to his retirement savings, he conceals his...

By Ian Berger, JD IRA Analyst The recently-enacted “Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act,” or CARES Act, includes special tax relief for IRA and company plan withdrawals made in 2020 and for company plan loans. Who gets relief? Both the distribution and...

March 30th, 2020 Chadd Mason, CEO The Cabana Group Americans Come Together as Markets Close Out Worst Quarter Since 1987 Stock markets around the world are trying to stabilize after the historic drop we have seen this month. Swings of 4% a day have been the rule for...

By Sarah Brenner, JD IRA Analyst As the coronavirus pandemic has spread, many Americans have been hit hard. Their retirement accounts have also taken a serious blow as markets have plummeted. In these tough times, there is a bit of good news as the government has come...

With all that is going on in the market with the Coronavirus, we have received many requests to give our opinion on how long it will take for a retirement savings to get back to the level it was before the virus took its toll on the market. Understanding that no one...

By Andy Ives, CFP®, AIF® IRA Analyst By their nature, small businesses struggle in the shallows. Now they face a tsunami. However, when the shutters are removed and customers return and the employees are back on the payroll, normal day-to-day concerns will be a...

March 23rd, 2020 Chadd Mason, CEO The Cabana Group U.S. Economy and Day-to-Day Life Comes to a Complete and Sudden Halt On behalf of everyone here at Cabana, I want to wish our clients, investor partners and friends good health and peace at this time. What we are...

By Ian Berger, JD IRA Analyst It’s common for IRA owners to leave their assets to multiple beneficiaries – for example, their children. Before the SECURE Act, it usually made sense to split the IRA into separate accounts either before or after death. That’s because...

Everything these days seems to be about coronavirus, coronavirus, coronavirus. Especially when you have a family, these can be scary times. So, first and foremost: Chances are that you will be OK. The novel coronavirus seems to mostly spare young kids, and if you’re a...

By Andy Ives, CFP®, AIF® IRA Analyst Question: A daughter who has been diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis is listed as the beneficiary on her father’s Roth IRA.  Does this disease qualify as a “chronic illness” for purposes of the exception to the 10-year rule? Is...

By Sarah Brenner, JD IRA Analyst The coronavirus has been wreaking havoc on markets and millions of retirement account balances have suffered significant losses. This has left many IRA owners looking at lower account balances after several years of gains and wondering...

March 16th, 2020 Chadd Mason, CEO The Cabana Group Market Volatility Spikes to Record Highs U.S. and international equity markets dropped 11% just today and are down almost 20% this month alone. Year to date, the S&P 500 is down more than 25%. COVID-19 started in...

By Andy Ives, CFP®, AIF® IRA Analyst When a person takes a distribution from his IRA or workplace plan, he has 60 days from the day of receipt to redeposit (i.e., roll over) those dollars into another qualified account. This assumes no other disqualifying rollovers...

I believe you can grill all year round, whatever the weather. Though going by many of the complaints I see in Facebook groups about rain preventing play, it’s evident not everybody agrees. So in this article, I’m going to give you some guidance on how to master the...

As we progress through life, we find there are certain things we can control and others we cannot. However, even with the things we can’t control, we can exercise good judgement based on facts, due diligence, historical patterns and a risk/reward calculation. These...

By Ian Berger, JD IRA Analyst Question: Hi Ed, First of all, I'm a big fan.  Now here's my question: If I do a backdoor Roth conversion with exclusively nondeductible IRA contributions, is there a 5-year clock on withdrawing the converted dollars without penalty?  In...

By Ian Berger, JD IRA Analyst The amount of annual elective deferrals you can make to a 401(k) or 403(b) plan is limited by the tax code. If you discover that you’ve over-contributed in 2019, time is of the essence to correct the error. If you don’t act quickly, the...

March 9th, 2020 Chadd Mason, CEO The Cabana Group All True Investing Takes Process and Perspective Given the continued bloodbath we are seeing in stocks, this commentary serves as follow up to the Special Report we released just over a week ago, on February 29. In...

By Sarah Brenner, JD IRA Analyst The SECURE Act eliminated the age restriction on contributions to traditional IRAs. The rule outlawing contributions for those 70 ½ or older is no more. This is good news for older IRA owners who are still working or have a spouse who...

Taking these steps before you begin claiming can ensure you're receiving as much money as possible. The majority of retirees will depend on their Social Security benefits for at least a significant portion of their income. In fact, half of married couples and nearly...

By Sarah Brenner, JD IRA Analyst Question: My dad was 86 when he died and I inherited half of his IRA, which I elected to stretch.  Am I correct in thinking that since I am not yet 70 ½, I am not allowed to direct qualified charitable distributions (QCDs) from this...

By Andy Ives, CFP®, AIF® IRA Analyst True or False?  “It is mathematically impossible for an IRA account owner to have his first required minimum distribution (RMD) be due for the year 2020.” Here’s why this statement is true. First, we are not talking about inherited...

By Ian Berger, JD IRA Analyst Who can offer them? Most company retirement savings plans, such as 401(k), 403(b) and 457(b) plans, are allowed to (but not required to) offer plan loans. Loans are not allowed from IRAs or SEP and SIMPLE-IRA plans. What is the maximum...

Going through her mail, Kendra slices open an envelope from her preferred airline. Inside she finds a hefty gray card with her name etched on it. The 36-year old reads the enclosed letter informing her of her “achievement.” She has reached Platinum status as a...

By Andy Ives, CFP®, AIF® IRA Analyst Question: Looking for your help. Husband has an inherited IRA (from his dad prior to the SECURE Act) and was taking RMDs using the single life table. Husband passes away in 2020 and leaves the inherited IRA to his wife who is age...

By Sarah Brenner, JD IRA Analyst The SECURE Act overhauled the rules for beneficiaries of retirement accounts. One significant change it brought is the new 10-year payout rule. Here are ten things you need to know about the new 10-year rule. 1. The 10-year rule...

February 19th, 2020 Chadd Mason, CEO The Cabana Group Dow Plunges as Coronavirus Spreads to South Korea, Iran and Italy As soon as we mentioned the first sign that the coronavirus was impacting earnings (Apple lowered forward guidance), the virus broke out of general...

By Andy Ives, CFP®, AIF® IRA Analyst A spouse beneficiary of an IRA faces many decisions. There is great flexibility and many items to consider. For example, how old was my spouse when he or she passed and what impact will that have on my available choices? Do I need...

New federal legislation made sweeping changes in retirement plans. Here's what you need to know. The new year has brought a number of changes in financial rules affecting consumers. Many of them are in new federal legislation called the Secure Act, which mostly...

By Ian Berger, JD IRA Analyst Most workplace retirement plans allowing elective deferrals fall into one of these varieties: 401(k) plans for employees of private sector companies. 403(b) plans for employees of tax-exempt employers, public schools and churches. 457(b)...

By Ian Berger, JD IRA Analyst Question: For the last three years, I have done a back door Roth conversion. I do the conversion in January. I am 68 years old and I am rolling over my 457(b) New York City deferred compensation plan funds to a rollover IRA with Vanguard....

February 19th, 2020 Chadd Mason, CEO The Cabana Group Apple Reports Coronavirus Threat to Tech Earnings have continued to drive equity prices higher throughout the first half of February. This has occurred in the face of a variety of external threats, including...

By Sarah Brenner, JD IRA Analyst Many IRA owners have named trusts as their IRA beneficiaries. You may be one. Trusts offer control from the grave and can be a smart choice, especially to protect beneficiaries who may be minors, have special needs or simply are not...

For many people, retirement is a key reward for decades of daily work—a time to relax, explore, and have fun unburdened by the daily grind. For others, though, retirement is a frustrating period marked by declining health and increasing limitations. For years,...

By Sarah Brenner, JD IRA Analyst Question: Can a QCD be used to pay dues to a charitable organization? Answer: This is an area where we receive a lot of questions. To qualify as a QCD, there cannot be any benefit back to you from the funds that go from your IRA to the...

By Andy Ives, CFP®, AIF® IRA Analyst Do you want to access your IRA funds penalty-free, even though you are under age 59 ½ and no exception fits your situation? It can be done. Starting a new business and need capital from your IRA, but don’t want to pay the 10% early...

February 10th, 2020 Chadd Mason, CEO The Cabana Group Q4 Earnings Continue to Beat Expectations and Provide Investors with Hope U.S. corporate earnings continue to roll in beating expectations on both the revenue and sales side. The S&P 500 earnings growth rate...

Ian Berger IRA Analyst One important difference between IRAs and company retirement plans is spousal protection. Except for community property states, spouses of IRA owners do not have any rights to the account. By contrast, many workplace plans must provide spouses...