The $250,000 Mistake Most Retirees Never Know They Made

Pre-order Tyler's book, Real Wealth, at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠tyler.gardner.com/book⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and be eligible for all monthly incentives between now and December 1st! And as always, a MASSIVE thank you to this week's sponsors: Gelt → ⁠⁠joingelt.com/tyler⁠ because Q3 is where strategic businesses make game-changing tax moves. If you're a business owner or a high-net worth individual, time to make moves! Facet → ⁠⁠⁠facet.com/tyler⁠⁠ for an exclusive $550 kickstart offer! Schedule your intro call today! Fabric → ⁠⁠meetfabric.com/tyler⁠⁠ because if someone depends on your income, term life insurance is the next item on your financial agenda! ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Thrive Market⁠ → ⁠⁠thrivemarket.com/tyler⁠ for $20 off your first three orders plus you’ll get a FREE $60 gift! And On To the Show Notes! A traditional IRA can look like your money. But part of it belongs to the IRS. In Part 3 of the Art of Decumulation series, Tyler tackles three of the most important—and expensive—pieces of retirement tax planning: Roth conversions, RMDs, and IRMAA. Because the goal isn’t to avoid taxes entirely. It’s to control when you pay them and at what rate. In this episode, Tyler covers: Why the years between retirement and RMDs can be your biggest tax-planning opportunity How Roth conversions work—and when they can save significant money Why filling lower tax brackets deliberately can matter more than minimizing income How required minimum distributions (RMDs) can push retirees into higher brackets later Why IRMAA is a cliff, not a normal marginal tax bracket The importance of planning for the widow’s penalty Why retirement tax planning should become an annual practice, not a one-time decision The core idea: Your traditional IRA is a future tax bill. The question is whether you choose when to pay it—or let the IRS choose for you. This is Part 3 of the Art of Decumulation series. Next week: market downturns, sequence-of-returns risk, and when to actually change the plan. If the show’s been helpful, leaving a quick review on Apple or Spotify genuinely helps. Hope this gives you something to think about this week.