Customer Reviews

The Retirement Savings Time Bomb . . . and How to Defuse It: A Five-Step Action Plan for Protecting Your IRAs, 401(k)s, and Other RetirementPlans from Near Annihilation by the Taxman

5 star:		(33)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

This book ought to be required reading for everyone who has a retirement plan. While many books and magazines cover how to build wealth, you can never really do that without considering taxes which are the ultimate bottom line. Mr. Slott deftly handles the subject of preserving wealth in a straightforward and quick witted style. Just as the vagaries of the IRS rules have you almost dozing off, Slott's sharp sense of humor snaps you back to the reality that hey-- it's your money, no one should, or will care more about it than you! If you're happy to see more of it go to the IRS rather than to yourself or to your heirs, then the IRS will be happy to accommodate you! Mr. Slott's five step plan is an alternative to that, which I'm sure most people would prefer. I feel so strongly about the value of this book, I bought extra copies to give to family members and friends. (I'm not parting with mine!)
Thank you, Mr. Slott.

Despite grand claims, most business books do not really provide specific plans for saving or making money. In contrast, Ed Slott recommends five tactics that could save you thousands of dollars. Even better, he shows you how to use a "stretch IRA" to create a financial legacy, so your heirs in future generations can gain a financial benefit from their inheritance. He defines key concepts in estate planning and offers great advice about the benefits of Roth IRAs. Even though this book is not light reading, we highly recommend it to sophisticated investors and any American taxpayer who is serious about keeping a large percentage of his or her estate from the clutches of Uncle Sam. One caveat: verify his advice with your tax professional. Slott published this book in 2003, and some tax laws have changed since then.

No one on the planet knows IRAs better than Ed Slott. Congress has made the rules so complicated, that IRA owner ARE sitting on a Time Bomb -- a tax bomb.

Without the proper tax planning, your heirs could stand to lose 70% due to the combined income and estate taxes. If you are fortunate enough that the annual minimum required IRA distributions are not your only source of income, hence you are leaving a bulk of the account intact each year for future growth, you could be doing a disservice to your children or grandchildren. Read Ed Slot's book.

Even your favorite charity could receive less than you expected. Read Ed Slott's book.

And by the way, whether your hard earned retirement savings is in an IRA, 401K or other similar deferred account, you should be reading Ed Slott's book.

I am a practicing CPA and I have read Ed Slott's book.

I'm an historian and archivist with a "humanities mind," whereas my wife is a mathematician with a knack for anything financial. Our arrangement has long been that she keeps track of our investments (also those of her parents and most of her siblings), works out what to do about them, and then explains it all to me (and them). But she still insists that I make an attempt to understand what's going on, and to that end she hands me books like this one. I have to say that, except for a sense of humor that tries too hard, Slott is better at providing a clear explanation of tax law and financial decision-making than many similar books I've waded through. His specialty is IRAs and similar retirement arrangements, and since I've just turned sixty, I'm paying attention to this stuff. After an introductory section explaining the jargon and describing the theory behind traditional and Roth IRAs, he launches into the details of his "Five Easy Steps": Timing (when and how much to take out of your IRA, including both the legal requirements and your own strategic needs), life insurance (to cover the taxes your beneficiaries will have to pay when they inherit your IRA), stretching the payout period (selecting a child as a beneficiary can keep the distributions going for decades after you're gone, allowing your bequest to keep growing), converting to a Roth IRA if possible (a great tax deal, especially for the beneficiaries), and avoiding estate taxes. Although he calls it "death taxes," a partisan pejorative term I despise; there's far too much concentration of wealth in this country already. He also waxes on about the unfairness of the IRS and the tax code, forgetting the basic principal: Taxes aren't intended to be "fair," they're intended to raise money for the government. Anyway, he does a good job of explaining the options the retiree faces at each step and in each new or variant situation, and he does it with resorting (much) to unexplained bizspeak, which certainly increases its accessibility for most of us. I'm told the regulars on Morningstar's Vanguard discussion board -- a group which has included John Bogle, Larry Swedroe, Rick Ferri, and other Big Names -- think highly of Slott's take on things, and you probably can't do badly if you follow their advice.

Teaching the reader how to keep the IRS from taking almost all of his reirement savings. That is the goal of this important book. This danger is no idle threat, as Ed Slott provides the scary story of what can happen when people do not adequately prepare to fend off the goverment tax collectors. Almost all of us need the advice offered, but there are two main problems: Most are not aware of the dangers. Many would deny that need, claiming they have already been careful in providing for their heirs.

By carelully explaing the pitfalls that lie in wait, the author gives us the simple steps to take to make certain that it is our heirs, and not the IRS, who collect the money we have carefully saved for so long. He breaks his advice into 5 strategies and tells the reader how to accomplish the desired goal of salvaging his nest egg. Slott is a big fan of the Roth IRA, calling it the best gift the government has ever given to taxpayers.

Protect your assets and read this book. It is appropriate for all ages, and not just those nearing retirement. Early planning is the best strategy of all.

"If you have an IRA, 401k, or 403b, read this book to protect yourself from making unnecessary tax mistakes," says Julie Jason, JD, LLM, financial columnist and author of You & Your 401(k), The 401(k) Plan Handbook, and Strategic Investing After 50.

"The Retirement Savings Time Bomb does two things: 1) it teaches you the essentials you need to know about how taxes affect your retirement plans. 2) It tells you what to do through a simple five step plan. A clever way to cover a complex subject."

I have read most of Ed Slott's books. Mr Slott understands, not only the basics, but also the nuances of retirement planning thru IRAs.

This book does a wonderful job explaining the jungle associated with most Government controlled programs. Making changes to your IRA without an understanding of the rules is like playing the game of baseball without not knowing rules. The game may seem intuitive, but the details are in the rules. A simple mistake, even by an estate lawyer who is an expert is estate law, can cost you and your beneficiaries big bucks in taxes.

If you want a basic understanding of the differences between a 401K, 403B, 457, IRA, Roth IRA, Roth 401K, this is your book. If you want to know how to maximize the money you give to your kids thru inheritance from your financial plans like IRAs and 401Ks, this is your book. If you want to know how to minimize the tax dollars the government bites out of your estate, this is your book.

The cost of this book could be the best gift you can read for your future beneficiares... JAS

This book is an absolute must for anyone who has an IRA. Not only is it very understandable but it actually saved me thousands upon thousands of dollars. Ed Slott mentioned a deduction that many accountants miss re: IRA beneficiaries ( page 246). In a nutshell, it explained that if a beneficiary IRA was taxed as part of the estate you are entitled to a deduction on your tax return every year for the beneficiary IRA since you cant be taxed twice. Sure enough my acccountant (who is excellent) had missed this deduction which turned out the be worth thousands of dollars over a lifetime for each of four children. This book is worth its weight in gold. I cant recommend it too highly.

If you are an investor and have money in an IRA or your company retirement plan, Ed Slott's book should be required reading. Ed gives practical, easy to understand, and priceless advice on how to maximize the value of your retirement savings and minimize the bite Uncle Sam will eventually take from it. Once you read this book, you'll know more than 90% of financial advisors.

This was the First book I read that made cents out of what you should do with an IRA. I have done most of what Slott teaches, but I also was close to making some errors. I have made adjustments. When I talked to my Investment Advisor he told me Ed Slott was "one of two" individuals who "are the real experts in IRAs". Recommend the book to anyone who has an IRA.