Tuesday Tax Tidbit: Is a Roth IRA Conversion Right for You?

If you have a traditional IRA, you might benefit from converting some or all of it to a Roth IRA. A conversion can allow you to turn tax-deferred future growth into tax-free growth. It also can provide estate planning advantages: Roth IRAs don’t require you to take distributions during your life, so you can let the entire balance grow tax-free over your lifetime for the benefit of your heirs.

There’s no income-based limit on who can convert to a Roth IRA. But the converted amount is taxable in the year of the conversion. Whether a conversion makes sense for you depends on factors such as:

• Your age,
• Whether the conversion would push you into a higher income tax bracket or trigger the 3.8% net investment income tax,
• Whether you can afford to pay the tax on the conversion,
• Your tax bracket now and expected tax bracket in retirement, and
• Whether you’ll need the IRA funds in retirement.

We can run the numbers and help you decide if a conversion is right for you this year.

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