Chris’s Summary
Jim and I discuss secure income as we review a Yahoo Finance article for middle-class retirees. We use it to highlight longevity considerations and the differences between guaranteed income approaches and traditional safe withdrawal rate or Monte Carlo methods. We also cover where spending-segmented planning and hybrid long-term-care annuities might fit in.

Jim’s “Pithy” Summary
Chris and I discuss an article titled “How Middle-Class Retirees Can Make Their Money Last 25 Years or Longer” to get into the parts of retirement planning that actually matter when you may be retired for far longer than the industry tends to model. The article leaves out the realities of aging, the changing ability to manage complex finances, and the specific expenses that follow you for life, which lets me lay out why the Minimum Dignity Floor needs to be treated differently from everything else rather than blended into one big withdrawal strategy that assumes stability where none exists.

I talk through why I push back so hard on traditional safe withdrawal rate thinking, especially the notion that retirees should simply trim spending whenever markets dip. I know you’ve probably heard me say it before – that approach ignores the reality many retirees face by not addressing what people cannot reduce and overstating what they can. It also glosses over how income behaves differently depending on its source, why some streams ratchet upward while others swing unpredictably, and how risk pooling creates stability that a portfolio alone cannot. The gaps in the article also give room to dig into long-term care, including why certain tax-driven situations make hybrid LTC annuities funded by non-qualified contracts worth considering. And underlying all of this is the point that the goal is not to react to markets for decades on end—it is to build a structure that supports the life you want to live. That is where secure income becomes essential.

Show Notes:
Yahoo Finance Article

The post The Importance of Secure Income for Retirement: EDU #2550 appeared first on The Retirement and IRA Show.

Jim and Chris discuss listener questions on Social Security family maximum and suspending benefits, a listener PSA on IRMAA premiums, a listener PSA on Medicare premiums, a listener PSA on Social Security claiming strategies, Roth contribution rules, and Roth conversion disadvantages.
(4:30) George asks how the combined family maximum benefit works when two retirement records are combined to increase the family limit for auxiliary benefits paid to a spouse and two minor children.
(16:00) A listener asks what additional factors should be considered when suspending a Social Security benefit at full retirement age and restarting at 70 after previously claiming early.
(30:15) The guys share a PSA in which a listener states that IRMAA is a premium rather than a tax because Medicare enrollment is optional.
(37:45) Georgette shares her objections to Chris describing the base Medicare premium as “free” and explains why she feels that is misleading.
(44:30) A listener offers a couple of PSAs, first sharing their thoughts on Nokbox, then sharing an article on a Social Security claiming strategy they believe could help people concerned about sequence of returns.
(51:00) The guys answer a question about how a 529-to-Roth IRA transfer affects the annual Roth contribution limit when part of the rollover is gains.
(56:30) Jim and Chris address what disadvantages exist when choosing a Roth conversion instead of a non-RMD IRA withdrawal when both would be taxable.

Show Notes:
NokBox

Social Security | Readjust your claiming strategy | Fidelity

The post Social Security, IRMAA, Medicare, Roth Contribution Rules, Roth Conversions: Q&A #2549 appeared first on The Retirement and IRA Show.

Chris’s Summary
Jim and I review the QLAC 1098-Q and walk through how this form reports premiums, fair market value, and contract status. We compare it to Form 5498, outline how the fair market value and excess annuity payments can be used under Secure Act 2 Section 205 with other IRAs, explore the age-85 and surviving-spouse reporting rules, and touch on listener PSAs about using QLACs as part of a broader self-funded long-term care approach.

Jim’s “Pithy” Summary
Chris and I use the QLAC 1098-Q as a way to show how the IRS keeps tabs on your QLAC and why that little form matters more than people think. I talk about it as the “kissing cousin” of Form 5498, walk through how box 3 tracks cumulative premiums against the current $210,000 lifetime limit, and explain how the fair market value and projected income give the IRS what it needs while also giving you the data to run the Section 205 strategy after Secure Act 2.

Then I get into the strange rule that says the company only has to send 1098-Qs until age 85 or death for the original owner, contrast that with the different rule for a surviving spouse, and spell out why it could be a real problem if the insurer stops providing a usable fair market value once income has been turned on. We kick around how that interacts with the prohibition on DIY fair market value calculations, the inability to get a QLAC quote after age 85, and why advisors and clients are going to care which companies keep sending this information even when they technically don’t have to. On top of that, I read listener emails about using QLACs alongside self-funding long-term care and push back on the idea that you only insure things you are “sure” you’ll need.

The post The QLAC 1098-Q appeared first on The Retirement and IRA Show.