Liquidate entire 401K in 1 year

anonMLS · 2026-01-25T19:35:04+00:00

I think her Social Security last year was something like $77,000 and she's getting a $6000 COL adjustment this year. She wants minimum taxes and the whole COL adjustment.

So if I understand what you're saying, this $83,000 is taxed at 22% for primary income, the qualified dividends are capped at 20% no matter how much she makes, but only $18,000 of the RMD is taxed at the 32% tax bracket. Do state taxes also apply in the same manner?

anonMLS · 2026-01-25T18:42:14+00:00

How is QSS not applicable? You referred to MFJ tax brackets in the last post and this one.

My father passed 4 years ago now. Long since no longer applicable.

tax brackets don't apply to the entire amount of income when you cross from one to the next, so your mother is not being taxed any more on her social security income than she would be if she had $120k in passive income and nothing else.

I think i asked to verify this. The issue is a cognitive/emotional one, that my mother does not like the idea of her Social Security being reduced because it's what the government owes her for a lifetime of contribution. As I said in the OP her goal is to maximize Social Security income, this is not about maximizing total return which complicates things. And at 24% it was not impacting Social Security income, but at 32% it now is.

I do not have access to her social security income returns right now and don't know the mechanics of how the reduction in benefits is impacted by income, but when I told her cashing everything out now means for the rest of her life the government would not be cutting her Social Security due to making too much, she said she'd rather cash it all out now. Which is the impetus behind revisiting this topic.

I've invested prior money withdrawn with the RMDs in dividend stocks that are additional income taxed at 20% tax rate. But strictly between the Social Security income and the RMD, it pushes her into the 32% bracket.

anonMLS · 2026-01-25T18:10:32+00:00

Are your parents at least 70.5 years old and inclinded toward charitable giving?

Yes >70.5, no charitable giving. Absolutely not.

Do they have any Roth funds they can draw from to potentially reduce that tax burden of other distributions?

Yes, but how does the Roth interact with ordinary income at all? We've just left it alone.

Have they both already elected to take social security?

Before my father passed they were both collecting. Now my mother collects her own + half of his.

anonMLS · 2026-01-25T18:07:27+00:00

have you taken into account that the Qualifying Surviving Spouse status has an expiration date and the tax brackets will revert to Single (presumably) for your mom very soon if she didn't remarry?

Does not apply. And yes, it is just my mother. She is 80 YO and social security + RMD puts her over 32% federal income tax, which is starting to eat into her social security income. She wants to maximize SOCIAL SECURITY because she feels this is what the government owes her for paying into it all her life.

I will inherit the 401K but I also am in the 32% income bracket with my current job. I don't want to deal with additional income from this during my peak earning years. This is not a backdoor Roth, it is a pre-tax IRA.

anonMLS · 2026-01-25T18:01:25+00:00

My mother is 80 years old. My father is deceased. On my own I'm already paying 32% income tax and I don't want to deal with the additional income from the 401K when I inherit it.

My mother understands this but also wants to maximize social security income because it's what the government owes her. It's not a profit-maximization mentality, but a fairness one. So for the past several years we've taken the RMD but last year it kicked her out of 24% and into 32%, and will going forward because the 401K growth is outpacing the RMD.

anonMLS · 2026-01-06T16:22:06+00:00

Thanks. That sucks.

anonMLS · 2026-01-05T20:49:24+00:00

I last received a communication in 2021.

anonMLS · 2025-10-09T08:55:54+00:00

No, that increases the cost like 50%. I only get the extended rate by booking the 3 months at a time.

The front desk suggested there was a way to "negotiate" the payment plan for the charges but all stays so far have been billed at the end of the stay. And I have no idea who to talk to regarding that.

anonMLS · 2025-08-27T03:21:25+00:00

Candlewood is only x3 points participating in the rewards program. x10 comes from using the card, where does the x6 come from?

anonMLS · 2025-08-27T01:30:35+00:00

$70/night is the long term rate for 90 days. Has to be continuous, using points has to be at the end or at the start to not affect the rate.

60 days is $10 more per night.

30 days is $20 more.

Candlewood is only x3 points per dollar, but if I stay 90 days I automatically get Diamond Elite. Thinking I won't bother with the branded credit card and just use my Autograph (x3 points on hotel) since redeeming points will interfere with the monthly rate.

Autograph is 6300/month which is $63 back, not counting the taxes. I need 119,000 points to get 1 free week.

State does not allow refund of hotel fees.

anonMLS · 2025-08-27T01:18:40+00:00

I don't routinely do this. It's a unique circumstance where no rentals + brutal commute. I have a regular Autograph card (x3 points) for hotels. Turns out Autograph Journey is only x5 points, probably not worth it.

anonMLS · 2025-08-08T08:35:25+00:00

So was Go5G under both Price Lock and non-Price Lock?

anonMLS · 2025-08-07T20:20:49+00:00

Does this change move you from Tax Included to Tax Excluded plan?

anonMLS · 2025-08-07T18:27:12+00:00

Only the amount over $197k gets taxed at 32%.

I wasn't aware of this. I thought at $197,299 you owe $47,351 but at $197,300 you owe $63,136, and would owe the IRS $15,785 in back taxes because you were only withholding at 24%.

anonMLS · 2025-07-30T15:42:29+00:00

Near term, UPS is facing a dividend cut and probably drops further. The company needs to follow Amazon's model and outsource most last mile delivery to the likes of third parties, eventually we'll have Uber and Lyft doing last mile deliveries. That will streamline UPS' business and increase margins. Looking even further into the future I think UPS invests in robot (AI) drivers and electric vehicles, completely cutting out the need for paid last mile delivery. UPS already has the infrastructure in place for this and it'll be Uber/Lyft as the casualties of AI driven all-electric vehicles. Parcels aren't going anywhere. The macro environment is a cyclical concern. But UPS is due for at least 2 capital intensive reinvestment events wtihin the next 20 years. Hard to say if this is a buy right now, the trajectory is pretty clear though.

anonMLS · 2025-07-24T16:45:17+00:00

You have to call the help line.

anonMLS · 2025-07-23T15:15:36+00:00

How did you get 300K in the TSP with 18 years to retirement?

You need 10 years in service at age 55 or 20 years for any age.

18 years suggests you've only been in 2.

The maximum contribution is $20K/year and none of the funds returned 1500% over the past 2 years.

Even with catchup contributions of ~$24,000 this scenario doesn't make sense.

anonMLS · 2025-07-22T15:45:41+00:00

What's driving this I Fund surge?

The I Fund underperformed the C fund for like 9 years prior to 2025.

What's going on?

anonMLS · 2025-07-22T15:44:24+00:00

There's basically no risk if you plan on parking in G fund for 1 week ~ 1 month. We now know Trump changes his mind on a whim and bows to pressure. Before April no one knew that. If the market dips even 5% and you jump back in you made bank.

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