What a taxable index-fund account is actually worth after expense-ratio drag and after Louisiana takes its share of the gain — which, in most states, is not at the federal preferential rate.
There is no state equivalent of the federal preferential rate here — a long-term gain is charged at Louisiana's normal income brackets, exactly like wages. This is the common case, and it surprises people who assume the federal 15% carries over. Long-term capital gains are taxed as ordinary income at the flat 3%. Louisiana begins from federal adjusted gross income, which includes net capital gain in full, and provides no preferential rate, no holding-period discount and no general exclusion; the federal preferential long-term rate does not carry over. THE LOUISIANA-BUSINESS CAPITAL GAINS DEDUCTION HAS BEEN REPEALED - DO NOT APPLY IT. Act 11 of the 2024 Third Extraordinary Session repealed La. R.S. 47:293(9)(a)(xvii), the net capital gain deduction, and it cannot be claimed for sales occurring on or after January 1, 2025. A NARROW GRANDFATHER SURVIVES AND IS THE ONLY REASON THE CODE STILL APPEARS ON THE FORM: installments recognised after January 1, 2025 remain eligible where the SALE ITSELF was executed before January 1, 2025, which is why Schedule E code 20E is still printed with the limitation that the deduction is available only to those with installment and perfected sales prior to January 1, 2025. For reference, the repealed provision covered net capital gains from the sale or exchange of an equity interest in, or substantially all the assets of, a non-publicly traded corporation, partnership, LLC or other organisation commercially domiciled in Louisiana and held at least five years. For any 2026 sale, it is simply gone.
What your state actually takes from a 401(k) withdrawal, a pension, and Social Security — in dollars, not a yes/no list.
2026 limits, employer match, the 60-63 super catch-up, and whether the Roth catch-up mandate applies to you.
When your RMDs start under SECURE 2.0, how much this year's is, and what missing it costs.
What retiring actually costs across all fifty states in 2026 — the three lines that decide it, why ranking states by income tax gets the answer wrong, the federal rules that follow you everywhere, and the decisions that are worth real money before you move.
Louisiana charges $1,084 in state income tax on a typical retirement income, $1,432 in property tax on its median home and $5,937 in insurance — $8,453 together, which is 32nd of 50.
What moving actually saves, on your own income mix rather than a headline rate — and how to establish domicile so the state you left cannot follow you.
Which account to draw first, priced. The three cliffs a withdrawal can cross without warning, the conversion window almost nobody uses, and why the order is the last big decision you can still change.