If you have a large traditional IRA or 401(k), here’s the uncomfortable truth:

Every dollar in that pre‑tax account is NOT really yours.

You have a silent partner — the IRS — and you won’t know exactly how big their share is until you start taking withdrawals and Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs).

In this episode of The Retirement Income Lab with Patrick Huey, CFP®, we put that relationship under the microscope and answer a key question:

“How much of your IRA really belongs to you… and how much belongs to the IRS?”

You’ll learn:

• Why your traditional IRA or 401(k) balance is a BEFORE‑tax number, not a spendable number

• How a $1,000,000 IRA might really be a 78/22 “partnership” between you and the IRS

• The difference between pre‑tax, Roth, and taxable accounts — and how each is taxed in retirement

• How two households with the same $1M balance can have very different after‑tax outcomes

• The hidden danger of ignoring your IRA taxes until RMDs hit in your 70s

• How RMDs can push you into higher tax brackets, increase taxes on Social Security, and raise Medicare premiums

• Practical strategies to reduce the IRS’s share over time: – Roth conversions in your 60s

– Smarter withdrawal order from pre‑tax, Roth, and taxable accounts

– Using Qualified Charitable Distributions (QCDs) if you give to charity

– Coordinating Social Security timing with RMDs

If you’re a high‑saving professional within about 5 years of retirement (or just into it), this episode will help you see your IRA the way the IRS does — so you can plan before the tax bill shows up.

👨‍💼 About The Retirement Income Lab

I’m Patrick Huey, CFP®, CAP®, MBA and owner of Victory Independent Planning. I work with high‑saving professionals nationwide who are close to or recently in retirement, helping them turn portfolios into paychecks they can actually live on.

🔎 Want to stress‑test your own IRA and RMDs?

Schedule a Retirement Income Lab Assessment:

https://victoryindependentplanning.com/contact

In your Assessment, we’ll help you:

• Map your accounts by tax type: pre‑tax, Roth, and taxable

• Estimate how much of your IRA is effectively pledged to future taxes

• Project your required minimum distributions (RMDs)

• Explore Roth conversions, withdrawal sequencing, and charitable tools to improve your after‑tax income

⏱ Timestamps

00:00 – The “silent partner” in your IRA: the IRS

01:15 – Why your IRA balance is not all yours

02:40 – Example: $1,000,000 IRA and the IRS’s share

04:00 – Pre‑tax vs Roth vs taxable: how each is taxed

06:10 – Two $1M households, very different after‑tax realities

08:30 – The danger of waiting until RMDs to think about taxes

10:30 – How RMDs can raise your tax bracket & Medicare premiums

12:00 – Strategies to reduce the IRS’s share (Roth conversions, QCDs, withdrawal order)

17:30 – Key questions to ask about your IRA and taxes

19:00 – How to get your own Retirement Income Lab Assessment

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