Know Your IRA

For an area as highly regulated as IRAs and company plans, it’s not surprising that there’s a ton of abbreviated terms to keep track of. Here’s 18 common ones that you should know.

Whenever there is a new administration there is a lot of uncertainty about what the change will mean for retirement accounts.

IRAs have now been around for decades. This means these accounts are now being inherited by beneficiaries and even, increasingly, by successor beneficiaries. Here are 3 things you must know if you are a successor beneficiary who inherits an inherited IRA.

Most people are aware of the tax concept, Required Minimum Distributions or “RMDs.” These are the tax rules that force you to take a distribution from your IRA or qualified plan, even when you don’t want to. Moreover, that distribution is usually taxable, and it cannot be rolled over!

Do you know the date you’re required to begin taking your required minimum distributions (RMDs) from your retirement accounts? For IRA owners or employer plan participants, your required beginning date (RBD) is a day that should be marked in red on your calendar. Be aware that the rules differ depending on the type of retirement account you have and whether you are the account owner or the beneficiary.

Prohibited transaction rules are in place to discourage account owners from acting in a self-serving or “self-dealing” manner. Do you know the rules?