re: 1st 90 Days Retired - portfolio allocation question

53 is.middle of Gen X.
I'm also early retired (going on year 4) and I'm in youngest third.of Gen-X.

Millenials have had more access to low cost investments, tax advantaged accounts, and information than any generation in human history. Not to mention some of the highest returns.

Dont listen to the voices telling you there's no hope. It can be done just takes uncommon discipline and sacrifice.

Damnit I took the generational conflict bait!?

Well stated.

I regret having too much in bonds when I first retired. I had a similar breakdown as you based on traditional advice, but decided I didn't need as much in bonds. I now only keep enough for about 3-4 years of projected income needs. I also have a significant amount invested in real estate, so that factored in to my ratio decision. How often have we seen a market downturn that lasts more than 3 years? It is easy to forget about what % of our portfolio that we spend in a typical year or few years. This has caused me to keep less in bonds than traditional thinking. 3-4 years may be too short for you, but you might think of your breakdown from this perspective.

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LINK

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WSJ Article you may be interested in (hoping not paywall!).

Boomers vs. Millennials: Who Have it Harder?

Interesting read.

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The way I look at it, Roth conversions are really about tax arbitrage. If my marginal tax rate is already high today, there isn’t much opportunity to convert efficiently. And if I expect my future rates to be similar, there’s no real arbitrage to capture.

At that point, all I’d be doing is prepaying taxes and reducing the amount that stays invested, which gives up the benefit of compounding on a larger pre-tax balance. So unless I see a clear rate advantage—like a lower bracket or a temporary opportunity—I don’t see a strong case for converting.

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You should also consider the tax flexibility that a Roth conversion gives. If you have a big ticket expense in the future, like a new AC, roof, or car, if you can pull funds from Roth, in some situations you might get a benefit like not triggering IIRMA or a higher tax bracket. I think you should have some. I personally also think that any future tax increases will most likely affect the higher brackets and so much the lower, so the Roth could help to do some peak shaving.

All true, and I already have some funds in a Roth IRA but they weren't converted.

You sound like a good planner and will be fine. I decided to start using a loose dollar amount instead of percentages on my bond money. I want enough bond money to keep me from selling any equities at a time when I am not comfortable with the price if those equities. There are no guarantees on this, but can make the odds of this occurring very low.

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Downvoted out of jealousy.

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He'd probably rather be 30 years younger. Enjoy the ride.

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If you have wealth transfer plan, you may be transferring (tax deferred) at heirs highest tax brackets of their career.

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Perhaps. But given the combo of our current $30 million Estate Tax exemption, and step-up in basis, the wealth transfer would have to be pushing $40M to even warrant the calculation, wouldn't it?

I thought tax deferred wealth transfer triggered 10-year installment. No tax avoidance for those.

Speaking solely tax deferred accts in earlier post.

Correct me if I’m wrong, pls. I could be. Estate planning foothills for me so far. Not a SME on it.