A Roth conversion strategy moves money from a traditional 401(k) or IRA into a Roth account over several years, paying tax now at a chosen rate instead of a forced rate later, so the money grows and comes out tax-free.
Why this matters two to eight years from retirement
The years after your last paycheck and before Social Security and RMDs begin are often the lowest-income years of your adult life. No salary. No forced withdrawals, since the IRS does not require distributions from traditional retirement accounts until 73, or 75 if you were born in 1960 or later. That gap is a window where you can convert at 12% or 22% federal brackets that will not stay open once RMDs and Social Security stack on top of each other. Wait past that window and the conversion still works, but at a higher price, since you are now converting on top of income you cannot turn off.
What this looks like for one couple
A couple retires at 60 with $1.6M in a traditional IRA and no income besides dividends from a small taxable account. For the next several years, before Social Security starts, they have room to convert roughly $80,000 to $100,000 a year and stay inside the 12% bracket, at 2026 rates for a joint return. Left unconverted, that same balance could grow past $2.5M by the time RMDs begin at 75, the RMD age for anyone born in 1960 or later, forcing distributions taxed at whatever bracket that balance lands in, likely 22% or higher. These numbers are illustrative. The right amount to convert in any single year depends on the full tax return, not a percentage rule. A conversion plan only works if it accounts for IRMAA and provisional income at the same time.
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If the decisions on this page are ahead of you, the two of you can work through them with Robert Boeck before any of them becomes permanent.
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