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Taking Advantage of the Roth Conversion WindowTaking Advantage of the Roth Conversion Window

Consider the benefits and tradeoffs.

Bruce D. Steiner, Attorney

May 21, 2024

6 Min Read
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There are many benefits to Roth conversions.1 Here are some of the principal ones.

Additional Contributions

To the extent an individual retirement account owner can pay the tax on the conversion out of other money, the conversion has the effect of making a substantial additional contribution to the IRA.  

Example: Amy has a $100 traditional IRA and $25 in a taxable account. She’s in a 25% tax bracket. If she converts, she’ll have a $100 Roth IRA. Over some period, it will grow to $200, all of which she or her beneficiaries can withdraw tax-free. If she doesn’t convert, her $100 traditional IRA will grow to $200, or $150 after taxes. But her $25 taxable account won’t grow to $50 because its income and gains will be taxable each year.

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About the Author

Bruce D. Steiner

Attorney, Kleinberg, Kaplan, Wolff & Cohen P.C.

Bruce Steiner has over 35 years of experience in the areas of taxation, estate planning, business succession planning and estate and trust administration. He is a frequent lecturer at continuing education programs for bar associations, CPAs and other professionals. He is a commentator for Leimberg Information Services, Inc., is a member of the editorial advisory board of Trusts & Estates, is a technical advisor for Ed Slott’s IRA Advisor, and has written numerous articles for Estate Planning, BNA Tax Management’s Estates, Gifts & Trusts Journal, Trusts & Estates, the Journal of Taxation, Probate & Property, TAXES, the CPA Journal, the CLU Journal and other professional journals. Bruce has been quoted in various publications including Forbes, The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Daily Tax Report, Lawyers Weekly, Bloomberg’s Wealth Manager, Financial Planning, Kiplinger’s Retirement Report, Newsday, the New York Post, the Naples Daily News, Individual Investor, TheStreet.com, and Dow Jones (formerly CBS) Market Watch. Bruce has served on the professional advisory boards of several major charitable organizations and was named a New York Super Lawyer in 2010, 2011 and 2012.