An Introduction

Hi. Welcome to BourGroup and my blog. Phil

Phil Bour is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER(tm) professional since 2004, a Magna Cum Laude college graduate and an accounting professional for over 35+ years. I love numbers, statistics and economic history.

I am also an Enrolled Agent (EA) to represent taxpayers before the Internal Revenue Service and to prepare tax returns.

"Phil"osophy: I believe that you can manage your money on your own (not necessarily through individual stock selection but through mutual funds, ETF's and other solutions) once you receive some one-time, professional guidance. Why pay annual fees when there may be little added value? For additional information, first read the "An Introduction" label at the left. Then move on to others.

Friday, February 28, 2014

Retirement Withdrawal Strategy


Converting Traditional IRA's and 401k's to a ROTH IRA may make sense from a perspective that is often not considered.

If married, there is a likelihood that one spouse may not survive the other leaving the survivor with a "single status" tax bracket someday. Since the single tax bracket rate is higher, there is a possibility that the survivor will be paying more in taxes - even if on less income.

It may also mean that ROTH conversions that would have been advantageous when married no longer make sense. Staying in the 15% tax bracket if married is easier than trying to stay in the 15% bracket as a single filer.