WHAT IS A TRADITIONAL IRA?
With a traditional Investment Retirement Account (IRA) you pay taxes when you take the money out at retirement in the future. Make sure that this account is really worth opening in your situation because what you put in the account today may be fully deductible, partially deductible or non deductible, depending upon your income and other retirement coverage. If you contributions are not fully deductible then this account is probably not for you. The traditional (and Roth IRAs) allow you to save $3,000.00 in 2004 and $4,000.00 in 2005. If you are over 50 years old you can save an additional $500.00 as catch-up.
You put the maximum amount in if you (or your spouse) are not covered at any time during the tax year by a retirement plan, including a 401(k) account, at work. If you can't afford to save the maximum then just do the best that you can.If you are single or a head-of-household taxpayer with annual adjusted gross income (AGI) between $40,000 and $50,000 and are eligible for a company retirement plan, your deduction will be reduced. Deductions are also limited for married couples filing jointly or qualifying widows or widowers who earn from $60,000 to $70,000 per year. Even if you don't have a retirement plan at work, your deduction may be limited if your spouse, with whom you file a joint return, has a company pension plan. In this case, your deduction will be reduced if your joint income is between $150,000 and $160,000.
No deduction is allowed if your AGI exceeds $160,000. If you have a non-working spouse, he or she can contribute up to $3,000 ($3,500 if 50 or older) to an IRA also as long as the two of you together make at least as much in annual income as you contribute. As I said before profits and income from investments are not taxed until you retire and begin withdrawing funds. You can pay capital gains taxes on you stock market profits and then withdraw funds, without penalty, after you reach age 59?. If you take out money before then, you usually will face a 10 percent penalty, plus taxes on the withdrawn amount.
Under certain circumstances, you can take penalty-free distributions before age 59?. In the year that you will turn 70? you can no longer make contributions to your account. In fact, at that age you must start withdrawing money from the traditional IRA or face additional penalties. This account is ideal for individuals in high tax brackets who cannot open or contribute to a Roth IRA and anticipate facing a lower tax bracket upon retirement. In other words, if you earn a lot of money now, pay a lot of taxes, can open a standard Roth IRA, and take the full deduction when you contribute then this account may be good for you.
This is especially true if you anticipate low income in your retirement years such that you will also be in a lower tax bracket..
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Dr. Scott Brown, Ph.D., the Wallet Doctor, is a successful investor. Dr. Brown holds a Ph.D. in finance. The Wallet Doctor is sought after for investment advice and coaching. For more information visit Dr. Brown?s site at www.BonanzaBase.com or sign up for his investment tips at www.WalletDoctor.comEarly Distributions From Retirement Plans
An early distribution from an Individual Retirement Arrangement (IRA) or a qualified retirement plan need not be a "taxing" experience. Fortunately, there are exceptions to early distributions. Any payment that you receive from your IRA or qualified retirement plan before you reach age 59? is normally called an "early" or "premature" distribution. As such, these funds are subject to an additional 10 percent tax. But there are a number of exceptions to the age 59? rule that you should investigate if you make such a withdrawal.
Some of these exceptions apply only to IRAs, some only to qualified retirement plans, and some to both. IRS Publications 575, Pensions and Annuities, and 590, Individual Retirement Arrangements (IRAs), have details.In addition to the 10 percent tax on early distributions, you will add to your regular taxable income any distributions attributable to "elective deferrals" that you contributed from your pay, your employer's contribution and any income earned...
Early Distributions From Retirement Plans
Ira > Early Distributions From Retirement Plans
Could a Roth IRA be Better Than a 401(k)?
Very few people whom I know are familiar with the benefits of the Roth IRA. It was named for the late Senator William Roth of Rhode Island, who proposed it. It is similar to a traditional IRA except contributions are never tax-deductible. Contributions to traditional IRAs are sometimes deductible or partially deductible, depending on your income and whether or not you have a retirement plan like a 401(k) at work. With Roth IRAs, individuals are limited to incomes of $95,000 ($150,000 for couples) to be eligible for full contribution amounts.
However, unlike the traditional IRA, you can withdraw your contributions from a Roth IRA at any time, at any age without penalty. Earnings are not taxed if you wait until at least age 59 1/2 to begin withdrawing them and have held your Roth IRA for at least five years. With a Roth IRA, the contributions are taxed without any deferment, but they grow tax-free and the gains are never taxed (see above). With a 401(k), contributions are tax-deferred,...
Could a Roth IRA be Better Than a 401(k)?
Ira > Could a Roth IRA be Better Than a 401(k)?
Deadline Near For Taxpayers with an Extension to File
(ContentDesk) August 12, 2004 -- For the almost 8.5 million taxpayers who opted in April to get an automatic extension of time to file their 2003 federal income tax return, the deadline to file those tax returns is August 16, 2004.Those who cannot meet the August 16th deadline can apply for an additional two-month extension, which would give them until October 15th.
However, there's no guarantee that the IRS will grant them an additional extension. If an application for an additional extension is not approved, an individual must file his or her tax return by August 16, or face paying a late filing penalty of 5 percent per month on the unpaid tax.Individuals who own a business have until their tax filing deadline to save on 2003 taxes by contributing to a SEP-IRA retirement plan, says Daniel Lamaute, retirement specialist at Lamaute Capital InvestSafe.com.
The SEP IRA contribution limit for 2003 is $40,000 or 25% of compensation, whichever is less.
A free application...
Ira > Deadline Near For Taxpayers with an Extension to File
Roth IRA secrets - 7 reasons why a Roth IRA trumps a Traditional IRA
TAX-FREE COMPOUNDINGContributions inside a Roth IRA can grow and compound each year in your investment portfolio on a tax-free basis. This cannot be said for investments within a 401k plan or traditional IRA, which only experience tax-deferred growth compounding. At some point in time the investments held within 401k and IRA plans will have to pay the tax man.TAX-FREE EARNINGSAccumulated wealth inside a Roth IRA is 100% tax-free and will not be taxed at the time of withdrawal. The power of this benefit is truly realized when there are significant capital gains within the portfolio, or in investments with longer time horizons (which allows greater time for compounding growth and magnification of your portfolio size).TRUE CAPITAL GAINSThe Roth IRA is the only investment plan that truly lets you capture 100% of capital gains on a tax-free basis. If these same capital gains where made inside a 401k or traditional IRA plan, at the time of withdrawal they are CONVERTED to ordinary income at...
Roth IRA secrets - 7 reasons why a Roth IRA trumps a Traditional IRA
Ira > Roth IRA secrets - 7 reasons why a Roth IRA trumps a Traditional IRA
Rules of Simple IRA Your Business Needs to Know
A Savings Incentive Match Plan for Employees plan, better known as a SIMPLE plan, is an IRA-based retirement plan available to employers with fewer than 100 employees. Under a SIMPLE IRA plan, an employee can contribute a portion of his pay to his SIMPLE IRA account. An employee can make a maximum contribution of $9,000, ($10,500 if age 50 and over), to his SIMPLE IRA account for 2004. You, the employer, are required to make a contribution for every worker who receives $5,000 or more in compensation. You can match up to 3% of the salary for the employees who contribute to their SIMPLE IRA account.
You only have to match for those employees who contribute to the plan. In any 2 years out of a 5 year period, after notification to the employees, you may elect a lower matching contribution percentage but not less than 1% of salary. Your business also has the option to select a "non-elective" mandatory company match of 2% of annual salary for every employee. Under the "non-elective...
Rules of Simple IRA Your Business Needs to Know
Ira > Rules of Simple IRA Your Business Needs to Know