MORE ON IRAs

Larry, my mom and I have a joint IRA. She is 73 years old and I am 45 years old. How do we figure out how much of it is taxable to each of us?

Helen

Helen, there is a problem here. There is no such thing as a joint IRA. You need to call up your financial advisor and find out more about the account. It is possible that you’re the beneficiary of your mom’s IRA – that’s a whole other matter. If that is the case, it’s taxable to your mom during her lifetime and then it passes to you at her death. But you can’t own an IRA together during her lifetime.

Larry Kopsa CPA