If you're eligible to participate in your employer's 401(k)/403(b) plan, there's really no excuse for not doing so. At the very least, contribute a minimal amount--you can always increase your contributions at a later date.

In the worst of times, investing can be intimidating, but it doesn’t have to be. In the best of times, investing can be exciting, but it shouldn’t be. It’s when people get too excited, or too scared that they tend to make the biggest mistakes.

We often receive Roth conversion questions from clients and other people who visit our blog. Below are a few of the most common questions. As we see more questions, we will continue to update this page.

Retirement accounts can also be used to support charitable causes. Beginning at age 70 ½, anyone with a traditional IRA can donate up to $100,000 per year to a qualified charity. This is known as a qualified charitable distribution (QCD). A married couple can contribute $100,000 per year, per person. The benefit of doing this is that any QCD is made tax-free.

What is tax efficiency? Generally speaking, tax efficiency is being able to pay the lowest amount in taxes. Since most people think of taxes as an annual engagement, it might make sense to think tax efficiency means simply paying as little as possible year over year.

A Roth conversion strategy might take years to actually implement, particularly for people who have large IRAs they’re trying to convert. During this time, a lot of changes might happen which might impact the way you implement your strategy—or at least things might happen which might cause you to ask yourself, “Am I still doing the right thing here?”