What a taxable index-fund account is actually worth after expense-ratio drag and after Missouri takes its share of the gain — which, in most states, is not at the federal preferential rate.
Missouri lets some or all of a long-term gain escape state tax, which is unusual and worth planning around. 100% OF CAPITAL GAINS ARE DEDUCTED FROM MISSOURI INCOME — short-term and long-term alike, with no dollar cap, no percentage cap, and no income phase-out. Mo. Rev. Stat. 143.121.3(14)(a), enacted by HB 594 (2025): 'For all tax years beginning on or after January 1, 2025, one hundred percent of all income reported as a capital gain for federal income tax purposes by an individual subject to tax pursuant to section 143.011'. No holding-period qualifier appears, and the Department operationalizes it at federal Form 1040 line 7a, the combined net figure that makes no short/long distinction. Two real constraints: a capital LOSS creates no subtraction (the instructions direct entering $0 rather than a negative), and the deduction is for INDIVIDUALS only — the Department has confirmed it does not reach fiduciaries, pass-through entities paying PTE tax, or corporations. The corporate version at 143.121.3(14)(b) switches on only once Missouri's top rate falls to 4.5% or below, which has not happened for 2026. Missouri is consequently one of the most favourable states in the country for realizing gains.
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.
A required minimum distribution is ordinary income, taxed at your top bracket and often pushing you into the next one. Here is the federal tax on RMDs from $20,000 to $75,000 at different income levels, why the default 10% withholding usually leaves a bill, how to avoid an underpayment penalty, and the three side effects that make the real rate higher than the bracket.
The required minimum distribution on every common balance at every age from 73 to 95, worked from the IRS table, plus what happens to the account over twenty years of withdrawals at 0%, 5% and 7% returns. The short version: the share you must take rises every year, and at good returns the dollar amount keeps rising with it.
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.