How much tax advantaged space available?

[letsgobobby]

I am curious how much tax advantaged space you have newly available to you each year.

By you I mean you, and your spouse if legally married.

By tax advantaged I mean any and all tax advantaged accounts that offer tax benefits for contributions, tax deferred growth, and/or tax free or advantaged withdrawals.

Include company matches, even if not immediately vested. However, do not include a defined benefit pension.

Include all space that you (and your married spouse, if applicable) are eligible to utilize, even if you do not use all that space.

Please use tax year 2012, even if, for example, you are making a 2012 tax year IRA contribution in 2013.

You may include 529s but only to the extent your state offers a tax credit or deduction. For example if there is a 10% credit for the first $5000 of contributions per beneficiary, and you have three children, then that is $15,000 for the purposes of this poll.

Exclude I and EE bonds, since those are equally available to everyone with a social security number.

Exclude municipal bonds, since those have no upper limit.

Exclude life insurance products, so we can avoid debating them and also because there is no theoretical limit to how much one can place in such a policy. This means no variable annuities, for example.

Examples for the purposes of this poll:

401k, including after tax contributions
403b
401a
457b
457f
Roth IRA
IRA
HSA
SEP IRA
Simple IRA
Small business 401k
Etc

Sometimes posters ask what to do when they've filled all their tax advantaged space. Maybe sometimes they forget all the different avenues they have available. Sometimes it is helpful to add up the different options to be reminded of the total advantaged space one has, so as not to feel short changed. And in addition to all the above, there are:

I bonds ($10k per SSN, $5k per tax return)
EE bonds ($10k per SSN)
Municipal bonds (unlimited)
529 contributions above the state tax benefit (variable, but as much as $70k per beneficiary in a single year with no tax consequence)
variable annuities, other life insurance products (unlimited)

Thanks!

[ofcmetz]

Answer: More than I use.

Him 403B: $17,500
Him 457B: $17,500
His ROTH: $5,500
Her 401K and 403B: $17,500
Her 401K match: $1650
Her ROTH: $5,500
529 plan: $4,800 (can be deducted from state income tax $2400 per kid)

Total: $69,950

Estimated we will use $38,000 or 54% of this space in 2013.

[BuckyBadger]

This is what we have (including company match). We use it all.

His 401k = 17,500
His company match = 7,000
Her 403b = 17,500
Her company match = 15,000
His backdoor Roth = 5,500
Her backdoor Roth = 5,500
HSA = 6250

Equals $74,250

And I try to add $6,000 to taxable investing because I like to be able to tell myself that we added at least $80k in contributions.

[Juniormint]

I'm single.

Her 403b = 17500
Her 457b = 17500
Her 401k = Company match of roughly 2000
Her Roth = 5500
Her FSA = 2500

So $45,000 worth.

[DAK]

My 401k 17500
My Match 27000 (match + profit share)
Wife starts working sole proprietor this year, her 401K 17500 (wont work enough for profit share I suspect)
HSA 6,450
Backdoor Roth x2 11,000
Total above for retirement is 79,450 and plan to use all...wife may fall a little short in 401K is only ?


We dont do 529s yet but our state deduction is minimal, a few hundred bucks--not worth it---will use Nevada Plan, plan to open 2 accts this year
Last year we did Dependent Care FSA to 4000 but can do up to 5000, this year we are NOT doing this FSA
Unused total about 5,300---out of a total of 84,750

[Dario33]

48k (401k, company match & Roth) His/Her

[nirvines88]

SIMPLE IRA: $12,000
SIMPLE IRA match: $120 (1% this year..2% next year..3% the years after that..)
Roth IRA: $5,500

Total: $17,620 (use all)

[letsgobobby]

Bump.

[TheEternalVortex]

I only have a 401k + Roth, which is $23k. I usually max it by March...

[interplanetjanet]

$29k (401k and Roth IRA, single)

I can't make 529s or HSAs make sense for me at this point. I do max out FSAs for an immediate tax benefit, though.

[Userdc]

401k $17.5k
401k match $10k
401k after tax -> Roth $23.5k

401k $17.5k
401k match $6k

529 $10k state tax deductible
HSA $3250 (one parent and kids on non-hdhp)

IRA $5500
IRA $5500

Total: $98,750

[skylar]

My 403b - $17500
My 457 - $17500
Wife's 401k - $14414 (the limit for this one is odd, it's a long story)
HSA - $6450

Total - $55864

We do our best to fill that up every year.

EDIT: And in my pre-coffee state, I managed to totally forget our Roth IRAs. Bump that up another $11000 for this year.

[jriding]

With a Colorado 529 for each of my two kids, I can contribute up to $700,000 maximum ($350k each). I don't think there's an annual contribution limit, but could be wrong. EDIT: Colorado 529 contributions are deductible from state income taxes.

So my tax advantaged space for the 529 alone could be way above $200,000 for a few years, and than go to zero for the 529.

I'll assume 529 contributions are spread out in equal annual payments until the max is reached the year they go to college (fingers crossed), starting at my kids current age and accounting for their existing account balances.

529: $78,000
His 401(k): $17,500 + $6,500 match **
Her 403(b): $17,500
Her DCP: $8,500
Her 457: $17,500
Roth (backdoor): $10,000
HSA: $6,250

TOTAL: $161,750

Using about $67,000 of that starting in 2013.

Pretty enlightening exercise, thanks letsgobobby!

**The IRS limit on 401(k) contributions, including after-tax, is $50,000, but other thread respondents have ignored the added after-tax potential so I am too. Perhaps some 401(k) plans don't have the after-tax option???

[letsgobobby]

Jriding, many plans don't offer post-tax contributions, I am glad yours does.

The rules for this poll indicate that 529 space should only be counted inasmuch as your state offers a tax credit or deduction for contributions.

[boknows]

My 401k - $17500
My 401k Match - $7140
Her 401k - $17500
Her 401k Match - $1500
My Roth IRA - $5500
Her Roth IRA - $5500
529 - $5000

Total - $59640. We should be utilizing 100% of this in 2013 which will be equal to ~1/3 our gross income.

[archbish99]

Somewhere around $40k, though we certainly don't contribute that much....

• My 401k: $17,500 + $4k match (neglecting after-tax contribution option, since I don't have in-service rollover)
• Wife's Traditional IRA: $5500
• HSA: $6450
• My Roth IRA: $5500
• Hypothetical Solo 401k for wife: ~$4k (i.e. all of her SE earnings)

If we ever reach the point where we needed the Solo 401k space, I'd be thrilled, but so far I'm not seeing it. (Until the house is paid off, of course, but that'll be a decade or two.)

[kenyan]

Well, OP stated to use 2012, but everyone is using 2013 limits so I will as well.

His 403b: 17,500
His 401a: ~4,000
His Roth IRA: 5,500
Her SIMPLE IRA: 12,000 + 900
Her Roth IRA: 5,500

If we count FSA, that adds an additional 7,500 (Dependent Care + Medical)

Still have room to grow before we utilize it all, and we haven't been buying I-bonds either. Need more income first!

[learning_head]

Good poll but I think it would be even more useful if it were per-person. Otherwise, couples will have much more space than singles and we are comparing apples and oranges...

For a single, I have 401k (17.5k+match), Roth IRA (everyone employed has this), and an HSA for a total of ~26k