Bogleheads.org

K.B., are you saying p'ship might not count because there are other partners who'd need to get a contribution? If the p'ship business and the 'pure self employment business' are in a controlled group or affiliated service group relationship with each other, then the SEP would be required to conside...

One more aside if the OP doesn't mind. I've been statements like this about solo 401(k)'s: "A plan participant must formally elect to make an employee deferral contribution by Dec. 31." If you are a sole prop, who are you making this formal election to? Or does this not apply to sole props?

Thanks guys, I appreciate the help. Just discovered one potential pitfall this afternoon. My income is split down the middle between distributions from a partnership (taxed as a partnership, files 1065) and pure self-employment income. It appears that the partnership income would not qualify for the...

Hey guys, just wanted to bring this to the top for one more attempt at an answer before proceeding. The question is whether or not I can: 1) create a SEP-IRA with Fidelity (this takes seconds) 2) fund the SEP-IRA with my 2012 contribution before the tax deadline 3) establish a solo 401(k) with Fidel...

Yes it appears I can both open and fund a SEP-IRA any time before the tax deadline. A solo 401(k) needs to be opened during the tax year but can be funded any time before the tax deadline.

I just wanted to make sure that there are no holes in my logic.

In 2012 I created a solo 401(k) with TD Ameritrade. I have not funded this account yet but based on my 2012 earnings, I can fund it with the max contribution. But I've had some issues with TD and my plan is to create a solo 401(k) with Fidelity for future contributions. My 2012 earnings also qualify...

This is all assuming Fidelity allows all of this. I think what I'm mostly unsure of is whether or not the $5000 2012 contribution can be converted since it was made before the old IRAs were rolled over into the solo 401(k). Yes you can do all that, in the exact order you specified. While you are at...

I think I understand everything you are saying. The intent is not to contribute 2012 pre-tax dollars to the solo 401(k) established this year. The intent of setting up the solo 401(k) is 2-fold: 1) she can contribute new 2013 pre-tax dollars into it and 2) it will shelter her current tax deferred IR...

My wife and I are new to retirement planning and we've not taken advantage of many great opportunities over the past few years. I'm trying to make the best out of 2012 while I still have time. Wife has: 1) Tax-deferred IRA with Vanguard. The money was rolled into this account in mid-2012 from a form...

I've struggled with injuries from free weight training for the past few years and I'm only 33 and certainly no bodybuilder. Mostly issues related to strained tendons and ligaments, etc. Had to give up on free weights for the most part because every time I approached a new max lift I'd end up with so...

I'm 33, and I'd probably stop right now with $3,000,000 assuming a yearly withdraw of about $70,000/yr pre-tax with half of that being spent on housing. Wife and I have no expensive tastes outside of the everyday housing cost involved with living near the beach. That said, it provides us with the ty...

Great post MnD. I had to share it with my wife. :sharebeer Funny, I also shared it with my wife immediately upon reading it. And shared a promise that we'd never let this happen to us. Not to criticize the OP or her particular situation, but I sincerely hope I'd be willing to cut the cord much soon...

This always makes me feel better. Go to Google Finance, create a portfolio. We'll use the Vanguard Total Market ETF (VTI) for this example. Find an arbitrary market "top" day, for this scenario let's use May 1, 2012. You are going all in at the close of the day. Yahoo Finance's history say...

I see a few posts talking about how this is a great time to be investing, but using the experience of investing during the 2008-09 downturn as an example of these great times. That time has past - much more interesting to look at this from the perspective of someone who is starting to invest today w...

I am 57 and would like to retire. I have about a $6.4 mill net worth and we spend $70,000 per year. That does not include health insurance costs in retirement. I am struggling with whether to work another 2 to 3 years just to make sure I have enough. Personally I would be hesitant to retire that yo...

Have you thought about building your own ladder treasuries so you can skip paying the fees? You can buy new issues from some brokers like Fidelity and Schwab without paying a commission or spread. I have thought of this. Probably something I should research further. You can use the (optimal) durati...

Hoping someone can tell me if my bond math is correct and whether or not I make any sense in trying to construct a bond portfolio across tax advantaged and taxable space. Let's say I'm risk-averse and want to adhere to the following: Annette Thau on page 408 wrote: If you are risk-averse, for most o...

I guess this may be the wrong forum to talk like this, but if you need $100k of today's dollars for every year you live in your 80s and 90s (we're talking $300+k nominal dollars per year in your 80s assuming 3% annual inflation), good for you and I applaud your future health and vigor. Question I ha...

Here is the real rub of the whole thing.... I only have about $1.5M currently. The other $2.5-$3M (after tax) would come from the sale of my business. I could sell it easily and get that amount right now. It has grown every year for 10 years and based on current conditions I don't see the growth st...

$100k/yr includes all expenses - what will that be when the house is paid off? That's a factor to consider as well.

Thanks Dave. Tax policy changes unfavorable to munis concern me more than defaults. That's probably a stretch though. I'll do some searches around here to see how long munis typically need to be held at what tax bracket to recognize the tax advantage over the higher return of nominal bonds. Regardle...

Hey guys, Looking for a little advice. I'm 33, married, live in a no income tax state, and could fall into the 28-35% tax bracket in 2013. I'm self-employed and income varies quite a bit. My asset allocation is 50/40/10: 10% large value 10% large growth 15% small value 7.5% int. developed 7.5% emerg...

What do you have in your tax deferred accounts? What percentage of your bond allocation and total portfolio would these municipal bonds comprise? If you have a $10M+ portfolio this is fairy dust (that's why I'm asking the questions). I would want some bond diversification in my total portfolio. I w...

In a nutshell, my IPS calls for a high-mid 6-figure investment into intermediate term bonds into taxable space. I figure I have three options: 1) intermediate term t-bills 2) total bond market fund 3) intermediate term munis I live in a state with no income tax. Depending on legislation and my rathe...

Homer, you make a good point. I think for many of us, the REAL goal isn't just SWR, but SWR without a declining balance! Surviving 30 years is no fun if your nest egg keeps dwindling. I'm not sure that it's realistic to expect a 2-3% withdrawal rate AND an increasing balance, but that's what I hope...

Hello everyone! I'm very torn on how to approach investing $1.7ish million cash that I accumulated as a result of business activity over the past few years. Assume 100% of this money will be going into a taxable account. Sadly, I have no nontaxable investments whatsoever as a result of being flat ou...

Stay away from Regus for your purposes. Extremely expensive, no online interface, and the service varies widely depending on the location you choose. And they require long contracts and there's no breaking them. Just stay away, trust me. Mailboxforwarding has a very functional and easy-to-use web in...

Is anyone else weirded out by the comments regarding the "success" of the OP and the "privilege" of being in his company? OP didn't say how he got the money - he could have inherited it or won the lottery. He may have earned it through business or professional athleticism, and t...

Congratulations on your success! Hope you don't mind me posting in your thread, but I'm in a somewhat similar situation (although not as good!) and thought I'd hijack some of the advice being posted here. I'm in my early-30s and this year sold a business netting me $1,750,000 after taxes. I'm now to...