Retirement. Built around the 2026 reality.

Two conditions both need to be true: (1) you’re age 50 or older in 2026, and (2) your FICA wages in 2025 exceeded $145,000. Your 2025 FICA wages are reported in Box 3 of your 2025 W-2 — that’s the precise figure used (not your total compensation, not your salary).

If both conditions are met, all of your 401(k), 403(b), or 457 catch-up contributions in 2026 must be designated as Roth — meaning they’re contributed after-tax. Your regular employee deferral up to $24,500 can still be pre-tax — the rule only applies to the catch-up portion. If you’d prefer to keep your full contribution pre-tax, you can opt out of the catch-up entirely.

Yes — but not for 2026. The RMD starting age is 73 for anyone born between 1951 and 1959. If you were born in 1960 or later, your RMD age will be 75, but that change doesn’t kick in until 2033 (the earliest year someone born in 1960 reaches 73).

SECURE 2.0 also reduced the penalty for missing an RMD from 50% to 25% — or 10% if corrected within two years through a process the IRS calls “self-correction.” If you miss an RMD, the path is usually: take the missed distribution immediately, then file Form 5329 with a reasonable-cause statement requesting penalty waiver.

The “Social Security might run out” narrative is misleading. The Trust Fund is projected to be depleted around 2034 — but that doesn’t mean benefits stop. Without congressional action, benefits would be reduced to about 80% of scheduled amounts (the portion fundable by ongoing payroll taxes). Congress has never let benefits be cut for current beneficiaries, and the political cost of doing so would be enormous.

From a pure expected-value standpoint, claiming at 62 to “get yours before it’s cut” almost always loses against delaying. A 30% permanent benefit reduction from claiming at 62 is much larger than any plausible benefit cut from Trust Fund issues. If you have other assets to live on, delaying past FRA is almost always the better risk-adjusted choice.

Yes. The backdoor Roth IRA — contributing to a Traditional IRA (non-deductible) and immediately converting to Roth — remains a legal strategy in 2026. Despite multiple congressional proposals to close the loophole, none have passed. OBBBA didn’t address it, and SECURE 2.0 didn’t either.

The main constraint that trips people up is the pro-rata rule. If you have any other Traditional IRA balances (including from rollovers from a 401(k)), the conversion is taxed proportionally on the entire IRA balance — not just on the non-deductible contribution. To do a clean backdoor Roth, you generally need a $0 balance in all Traditional, SEP, and SIMPLE IRAs as of December 31 of the conversion year.

The conventional order for most workers, in priority order:

1. 401(k) up to the employer match — free money. 2. HSA if you have a high-deductible health plan — triple-tax-advantaged. 3. Roth IRA up to the limit, if your income allows direct contributions. 4. 401(k) up to the full $24,500 limit. 5. Backdoor Roth IRA if direct Roth is phased out. 6. Taxable brokerage for anything beyond.

The exceptions: very high earners may prefer mega-backdoor Roth (#5–6 swap if available); self-employed people add Solo 401(k) or SEP-IRA in the mix; and someone in a low current bracket may prefer Roth contributions even over traditional. See the account priority guide for the decision tree.

The classic 4% rule (Bengen, 1994; Trinity Study, 1998) is static: you withdraw 4% of your starting portfolio in year 1, then that same dollar amount (inflation-adjusted) every year regardless of market conditions. Simple, but doesn’t adapt to good or bad market years.

Guyton-Klinger guardrails add dynamic adjustment rules: cut withdrawals after very bad years, increase them after very good years, with explicit thresholds (typically ±20% bands). This often supports an initial withdrawal rate of 5%+ rather than 4% — though the trade-off is that some years you cut spending. The safe withdrawal rate guide walks through both with example portfolios.

IRMAA is the Income-Related Monthly Adjustment Amount — Medicare surcharges on Part B and Part D premiums for higher-income retirees. The surcharges are based on your MAGI from two years prior. So your 2026 Medicare premium is based on your 2024 MAGI, your 2027 premium on your 2025 MAGI, etc.

The “surprise” usually comes from cliff effects. IRMAA tiers are bracket-style: a single dollar over a threshold can cost an additional $800+/year per spouse in higher premiums. Common triggers: a one-time Roth conversion, an inheritance year with a large IRA distribution, the year of selling a long-held investment. Careful income management two years ahead of Medicare can avoid these — the trick is to model it before the income hits, not after.