[dropcap]Y[/dropcap]ou may spend decades contributing to your IRA and 401(k). But, eventually, you’ll need to use this money. Before that day arrives, you’ll want to be familiar with the rules governing withdrawals – and you’ll want to know just how much you should take out.
To begin with, withdrawals from traditional employer-sponsored retirement plans like these fall under the Internal Revenue Service’s “required minimum distributions” (RMD) guidelines. (You aren’t required to take these distributions from a Roth IRA.) Here are some of the key RMD points to keep in mind:
You need to take distributions by age 70-1/2. You generally should begin taking RMDs in the year in which you turn 70-1/2. If you don’t take your first RMD during that year, you must take it no later than April 1 of the following year. If you do put it off until April 1, you must take two distributions in one year.
