Re:Investing for Geeks
by infinite8s on Friday September 16, 2016 @02:25PM
(#12516122)
One issue with the Roth is the amount you can contribute phases out with increasing income, to the point that you can't contribute if you file single and your income exceeds $132k (or $194k for joint filings).
[ Parent
| on HN ]
That must be a nice problem to have. Realistically this probably doesn't hit many people, and the ones it does hit already afford accountants who conjure up ways to minimize their taxes. Yea, I know, this is HN, where everyone knows that buddy who's cousin's roommate makes $400K at Google. The average geek doesn't have to worry about this.
The Roth phaseout starts at $117k for single earners. That is a lot of money, more than most people in the US, let alone the world, make, but it is not a princely sum for most technologists, especially not ones on HN.
FWIW, Fidelity makes it very easy to make a "back door" Roth contribution, but only if you don't have a Traditional/Rollover IRA. You make a taxable contribution to a zero-balance Traditional, and then transfer it to the Roth. There aren't income limits on Roth transfers.