https://www.morningstar.com/retirement/ed-slott-how-roth-iras-can-help-with-estate-planning?utm_source=eloqua&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=AdvisorDigest&utm_content=None_62149&utm_id=32158

Our portfolio leans somewhat towards the conservative side.  Our overall target allocation is 45% equities, 45% bonds, and 10% cash.
When it comes to the allocation within bonds I have not seen much in the way of literature that recommends an allocation regarding types of bonds/durations.
Our current allocation in specific funds as a percentage of our entire portfolio is: 15% short term, 8.5% short term tips, and 16.5% intermediate (the rest of the bonds are in a target date fund).

Connie and I were discussing a purchase. “That’s expensive,” she said.  I finally said, “I don’t care what they cost.” A moment of silence. “What happened to you that you don’t care what something cost?” she said. I thought a moment and then said, “I’m old.”
Actually that’s true. Within reason, I no longer care. I don’t look at prices in the supermarket- but I do load digital coupons on my phone. It’s also true I am old.

I have some active managed mutual funds(getting hammered by yearly tax distribution) in one of my brokerage accounts. I would like to know the best tax effective way to sell these funds?

I don’t believe I’ve ever enjoyed life more than I do now. What is there not to like about my life? I have my health, financial stability, plenty of free time to do the things I want, and I have a companion to share my journey with. I wish this stage of my life was never-ending.
But at age 73, I know my life could be turned upside down tomorrow. Lately, I’ve been thinking about what Rachel and I should do if we can’t take care of ourselves.

I recently wrote in a comment on HD that I think the most important, usable, and meaningful tax breaks go to average middle income Americans. Not being a tax expert, I did some digging to find them. 
Perhaps Rick Connor and others know of more I missed.  
Here is what I came up with. 
Child Tax Credit – helps families with qualifying children by reducing their tax liability.
Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) – the EITC can also provide significant benefits to those within the lower end of the middle-class income range,

RDQ’s recent post about seniors paying taxes reminded me that presently only 53% of Americans pay federal income tax.  Many of the remaining 47% are net recipients of money from the treasury.  We all know that everyone working pays payroll taxes, but should everyone pay income tax?
On the Yea side, having all citizens paying income tax would give everyone “skin in the game” when it comes to voting on tax policy and expenditures. 

Henry James is one of my favorite authors.  In the late 1880s He wrote a novel, Washington Square,  which was adapted into a play and an award winning movie, “The Heiress”.  Olivia dehavilland starred as Catherine Sloper, a shy, ordinary looking, socially awkward young woman, who stands to inherit a large fortune.
Montgomery Clift, was Morris Townsend, her handsome, charming but ne’er do well suitor—and a wonderful English actor, Ralph Richardson, as Dr. Austin Sloper, Catherine’s father.

Every day brings me another insurance offer. In today’s mail, I was invited to insure against identity theft for $34.99 a month.
Last week, I was sent a “final notice” to purchase a home warranty. In the same batch of mail, I was offered a $20,000 whole life insurance policy for $132 a month.
My most faithful correspondent is my water company. Every month it invites me to insure the water pipes under my lawn for about $1,000 a year.

There was a time when I probably did- that was many years ago when sailing around the Mediterranean in my luxury yacht was a fantasy. Once, decades ago, I actually explored the cost of renting such a yacht. Back then it was $200,000 a week, plus tips for the crew and the cost of the food you selected. I was afraid I couldn’t afford the tips- but I could bring eight friends to impress.
These days I don’t envy of the billionaires,

I just read about an excellent script to use when one gets a call purporting to be from a financial institution that is, “every time a financial institution calls: “Where are you calling from? Thank you. I’m going to hang up and call back.”
Then go find the institution’s phone number (from a statement, the back of the credit card, or by typing in the URL of the website itself and finding it on the website;

Here is the link to Christine Benz of Morningstar interviewing Ed Slott, who many consider THE expert in the country on the IRS’s interpretation of IRA laws/rules for 2025.
Ed is a gold mine of information as to how to decide on whether to convert traditional IRAs to Roths, and it’s effect on your beneficiaries.
https://app.mscomm.morningstar.com/e/er?utm_source=eloqua&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=MorningDigest&utm_content=None_62004&utm_id=32087&s=1258972516&lid=91893&elqTrackId=894e84e4e6dd4e4ea71a9bc97420afd2&elq=c1c50cb96d48485491b4d81fbe5a229d&elqaid=62004&elqat=1&elqak=8AF55770D8A5B2AC19A42DE86CB56351215EDD04764F052A1F72EA4FA79B9C459194

“I’m giving you a love that’s true
And gonna make you love me, too
So get ready, get ready
‘Cause here I come.”
adapted from “Get Ready”
The Temptations, 1966
 
The Motown rhythm and blues quartet may well have divined the arrival of actively managed exchange-traded funds (ETFs). Can’t stop them now, ladies and gentlemen—they’re already here.
Leave it to the frantic asset managers who brought you the load fund and then repackaged it as no load with hidden excessive fees to invent a product to compete with the fabulously successful passive (or index) ETF.

As I do my daily social media surfing I am finding a disturbing trend- anti tax sentiment and one group or another thinking they should be exempt from taxes. We Americans are not among the highest taxed countries and despite the rhetoric, the wealthy do pay the great bulk of taxes.
Seniors seem to be the most vocal looking for tax exemption. Many feel they should be exempt from property taxes and of course, paying taxes on Social Security benefits.

I recently viewed an interview by Christine Benz on YouTube with the finance writer for the Washington Post.
The topic was the difficulty transitioning from saving to using money for retirement income, a topic frequently discussed on HD. The writer said she was getting ready to retire and her husband was already retired. She went on about her own thinking regarding the difficulty of transitioning from saving to spending. 
After a few minutes of the discussion about withdrawal strategies,