Mainstreet Financial Education · Tax Year 2026
Neither too early nor too late is automatically right. These are the five places retirees most often give up dollars they did not have to.
The years before required minimum distributions start are your best window to control taxes. These are the traps to avoid.
Required minimum distributions begin at age 73 for those born 1951 to 1959, and at 75 for those born in 1960 or later. Once they start, they force large, fully taxable withdrawals every year.
Converting too much in one year can push you into a higher bracket, trigger Medicare IRMAA surcharges, and make more of your Social Security taxable. Spreading conversions across years usually costs less.
Past $25,000 of combined income single, or $32,000 joint, each added dollar can make up to 85 cents of your benefits taxable. A poorly timed withdrawal here can be taxed at a surprisingly high effective rate.
IRMAA is set each year from your income two years earlier. In 2026, income above $109,000 single or $218,000 joint in 2024 adds a monthly surcharge per person to your Part B and Part D premiums.
Most non-spouse heirs must empty an inherited IRA within 10 years. A surviving spouse loses one Social Security check and begins filing single, often at higher rates, so plan for both events early.
Ages 62 to 72 are your control years. These are often the last years you fully control your taxable income, before RMDs and survivor changes take the wheel. The order you draw from each account is what decides how much you keep.
Sequencing the breaks is the plan.
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