For high earners with a large pre-tax 401(k) or IRA, and years to go before Medicare

A seven-figure pre-tax 401(k) is a tax bill
waiting at 73. One move can shrink it.

One household — modeled with the same analysis our advisors run — found a single move worth six figures in lifetime tax. Answer three questions to see whether their example is relevant to your own situation.

Education First · Figures Only If It Fits 3 Questions A Modeled Case Study

Mistake #1

An all-pre-tax 401(k) becomes a forced withdrawal at 73 — often taxed at the highest rate of your life, on a schedule you do not set.

Mistake #2

Those forced withdrawals pull your Medicare premiums up with them, because the surcharge is set by the income you reported two years earlier.

Mistake #3

The years between retiring and starting Medicare are usually your lowest-income years — the best window to convert at a low rate. It closes on its own.

How much is in pre-tax retirement accounts?

Roughly — your 401(k) and traditional IRA balances (not Roth).

$

Total pre-tax retirement balance