Perspective Matters KEY TAKEWAYS A dead person can have a “life expectancy” — at least for IRS purposes. When an estate or other non-person inherits an IRA, the deceased owner’s own remaining single life expectancy is used to calculate required distributions — the so-called “ghost-life rule.” Which rule applies depends on timing, and Roth IRAs are always treated one way. If the owner died before their required beginning date, the 5-year rule applies; if on or after, the ghost-life rule...

Perspective Matters KEY TAKEWAYS The IRS just fixed a gift tax problem with new Trump accounts, days before they launch on July 4. Trump accounts count as retirement accounts under IRS rules — just like Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) — not simple brokerage accounts. Without this safe harbor, contributors could have faced surprise gift tax filing requirements (Form 709). New retirement account rules keep arriving faster than agencies can implement them — from SECURE 2.0 to the One Big...

Perspective Matters KEY TAKEWAYS A promising new option exists — but it comes with strings. The SECURE 2.0 Act allows excess 529 college savings dollars to be rolled into a Roth IRA, but the rules are specific: a $35,000 lifetime cap, annual contribution limits apply, and the 529 must have been open for at least 15 years. One critical question still has no answer. More than three years after the law was signed, the IRS has not clarified whether changing the beneficiary on a 529 account resets...