{"id":10314,"date":"2025-09-20T18:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-09-20T18:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/riverbend.objectivebrand.com\/?p=10314"},"modified":"2025-09-18T16:47:57","modified_gmt":"2025-09-18T16:47:57","slug":"timing-your-rmd-matters","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/riverbend.objectivebrand.com\/?p=10314","title":{"rendered":"Why Timing Your RMD Matters More Than You Think"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\u201cPatience is bitter, but its fruit is sweet.\u201d \n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\u2013 Aristotle<\/cite>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/path><\/svg>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tTweet<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/blockquote>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

Each year, retirees who are age 73 (or 75, depending on birth year) must take their Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs) from their pretax retirement accounts. Many people check the box quickly in January, just to get it done. But sometimes, doing it early could actually cost you.<\/p>

Here\u2019s why:<\/h3>
  1. Early RMDs Close the Door on QCDs<\/strong>
    A Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD) lets you give directly to charity from your IRA once you\u2019re 70\u00bd. That gift reduces your taxable income dollar for dollar.<\/em> But if you\u2019ve already satisfied your RMD in January, the chance to apply a QCD toward that year\u2019s required withdrawal is gone. The IRS won\u2019t let you retroactively count it.<\/li>
  2. Income Planning Is a Moving Target<\/strong>
    Life changes, tax laws change, and your income picture shifts through the year. Maybe you sell stock, downsize your home, or earn unexpected dividends. If you\u2019ve already pulled out your full RMD, you\u2019ve got less flexibility to offset that new income with QCDs.<\/li>
  3. IRMAA Surcharges Can Sting<\/strong>
    Medicare\u2019s Income-Related Monthly Adjustment Amount (IRMAA) is a stealth tax for high-income retirees. Go just one dollar over the income thresholds, and your premiums can jump by thousands a year. A well-timed QCD can help keep you under those thresholds\u2014if you haven\u2019t locked yourself out by taking your RMD too early.<\/li>
  4. Mid-Year Checkups Help<\/strong>
    Instead of rushing, consider waiting until later in the year\u2014after you have a clearer picture of income, charitable goals, and potential tax surprises. This gives you time to align your RMD strategy with your tax plan.<\/li>
  5. Flexibility Beats Finality<\/strong>
    Think of it like golf: you wouldn\u2019t tee off without first checking the wind. In retirement, rushing your RMD is like hitting the ball blind. By pacing yourself, you keep options open, improve tax efficiency, and may save thousands over time.<\/li><\/ol>

    Lesson: RMDs are mandatory, but when<\/em> you take them matters. Don\u2019t let haste in January cost you options in December.<\/p>

    \"Timing<\/a><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    \u201cPatience is bitter, but its fruit is sweet.\u201d \u2013 Aristotle Tweet Each year, retirees who are age 73 (or 75, depending on birth year) must take their Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs) from their pretax retirement… Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":10316,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[86],"class_list":{"0":"post-10314","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-finger-financial-five","8":"tag-retirement","9":"entry"},"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/riverbend.objectivebrand.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10314","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/riverbend.objectivebrand.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/riverbend.objectivebrand.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/riverbend.objectivebrand.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/riverbend.objectivebrand.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=10314"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/riverbend.objectivebrand.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10314\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10322,"href":"https:\/\/riverbend.objectivebrand.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10314\/revisions\/10322"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/riverbend.objectivebrand.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/10316"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/riverbend.objectivebrand.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=10314"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/riverbend.objectivebrand.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=10314"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/riverbend.objectivebrand.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=10314"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}