It really just depends. If you're in a low tax bracket while working, a Roth is probably usually better. In a high tax bracket, it could swing the other way.
OT: MS Financial Advisors
- Thread starter jwtorch
- Start date
Thanks for all the replies. Going to talk to a guy in Huntsville next month. Also have a guy in Grenada (MSU grad) that works for Raymond James. I might just end up trying to manage it myself. If I can just make a few % each year I ought to be able to make do until the Lord calls me home.
This thread in general assumes everyone is in a similar position (savings wise), when in fact, it's probably a diverse group of people. I traveled and wanted someone looking at my investments all the time.
In retirement, I knew I wanted to totally redo my investments. I no longer wanted to invest in "growth" investments, but rather I wanted income and switched to high dividend investments.
Living in Memphis, I do business with Stephens, Inc. John Kimbrough, a Bulldog is in that office. There is also an office in Jackson.
Best of luck in retirement, and happy investing...
In retirement, I knew I wanted to totally redo my investments. I no longer wanted to invest in "growth" investments, but rather I wanted income and switched to high dividend investments.
Living in Memphis, I do business with Stephens, Inc. John Kimbrough, a Bulldog is in that office. There is also an office in Jackson.
Best of luck in retirement, and happy investing...
It really is that simple. But there is a whole industry devoted to telling you it isn't
Have you had a good experience with the Vanguard digital advisor? I'm thinking of possibly using it.I'd be interested in the name of the Huntsville advisor, since I'm retiring soon as well (and staying in Huntsville) I'm planning to evaluate Vanguard and Boldin (since I already use their Retirement Planner)
When I have more time after retiring in November, I plan to investigate their personal advisor service to get everything set up properly for post-retirement withdrawals. I normally wouldn't pay that much for investment advice, but I want to guard against sequence of returns issues the first few years of retirement.
If I can find this thread later on, I'll report back.
If you’re happy paying 40% combined Fed & state taxes before putting money in to avoid 22% Fed + 0 state taxes on distributions, by all means go right ahead.
Tax planning is something that is definitely worth paying for, and I would do that on an hourly basis with a CFP that is not captive. As you get into your 50s, I think it's important to balance tax-deferred investment with after-tax investment to make sure that you don't overinvest in "retirement" savings you can't access without penalty until 73.
There is nobody on this board that can tell you what that mix is for you. For example, you may be way ahead on tax-deferred savings and looking at a gap before your 70s and want to retire earlier than that. In that case, a Roth may be more important to you.
Also, you are talking about investing in the stock market/equities only, but a good planner can advise on diversification beyond that in things like real estate/real estate trusts, etc. I can tell you from experience over the last 20 years that I've been glad to own real estate during the downturns in the market. They've given much needed balance to my portfolio.
As far as investing goes, I have an old, smaller Edward Jones IRA that I've never rolled over and I have my primary traditional IRA that I "manage" myself. The EJ IRA is up 27% this year, and the one that I manage is up 39%. Both of them are basically in index funds, but I take more risks with the one I manage with some individual equities and timed entry/exit. The EJ one is underperforming most indices this year. Also, I have a smaller account that I use for trading on margin. It's more fun than sports-gambling to me, but basically the same thing in my mind.
There is nobody on this board that can tell you what that mix is for you. For example, you may be way ahead on tax-deferred savings and looking at a gap before your 70s and want to retire earlier than that. In that case, a Roth may be more important to you.
Also, you are talking about investing in the stock market/equities only, but a good planner can advise on diversification beyond that in things like real estate/real estate trusts, etc. I can tell you from experience over the last 20 years that I've been glad to own real estate during the downturns in the market. They've given much needed balance to my portfolio.
As far as investing goes, I have an old, smaller Edward Jones IRA that I've never rolled over and I have my primary traditional IRA that I "manage" myself. The EJ IRA is up 27% this year, and the one that I manage is up 39%. Both of them are basically in index funds, but I take more risks with the one I manage with some individual equities and timed entry/exit. The EJ one is underperforming most indices this year. Also, I have a smaller account that I use for trading on margin. It's more fun than sports-gambling to me, but basically the same thing in my mind.
Working with a number of family members who are numbers challenged, I can assure you (although you don't seem very amenable to changing your mind) that it's really not that simple for a whole lotta folks.