Welcome to your daily briefing on finance developments in Iowa. Today we're covering 4 key stories including updates on iowa finance headlines, background & context. Let's dive in.
1 story
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3 stories
Missing a required minimum distribution from a tax-advantaged account historically triggered a 50% excise tax on the missed amount. SECURE 2.0 reduced this to 25% (or 10% with timely correction). The penalty has not gone away — it has just become survivable with prompt action.
Even at 25%, the penalty on a missed RMD is far larger than the income-tax hit on the distribution itself. Detection often happens at year-end review, sometimes years later.
Property held jointly with right of survivorship between spouses gets a full step-up in community-property states and a half step-up in common-law states. The same property held as community property (where available) gets a full step-up regardless. The titling distinction can change the surviving spouse's basis by hundreds of thousands.
Re-titling between spouses is typically straightforward during life; impossible after one spouse's death. The decision has to happen while both are living.
The mega-backdoor Roth strategy requires a 401(k) plan that allows after-tax contributions AND in-service distributions or in-plan Roth conversions. Without both features, the strategy is unavailable regardless of income. Many plans permit one but not the other.
Highly compensated participants who plan around mega-backdoor savings need to confirm both plan features at the start of the year, not when contributions are due. The planning window is the calendar year.
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