💥 Newsletter Update: Should You Convert Your Retirement Account to a Roth?


An update to “Maximizing Your Retirement Fund: A U.S. Guide” – same brain, smarter math.


Hey again, friends!

After the buzz from my last piece — “Maximizing Your Retirement Fund: A U.S. Guide” — I’ve gotten tons of great questions like:

“Should I convert my 401(k) or Traditional IRA to a Roth?”
“What if I’m in a low tax bracket this year?”
“How do I not let Uncle Sam crash my retirement party?”

So here’s your update. And spoiler: there’s a hidden partner in your retirement account — and his name is IRS 😬.


🎭 Meet Your “Silent” Retirement Partner: Uncle IRS

If you’re holding a Traditional IRA or 401(k), congrats! But here’s the plot twist…
Not all that money is yours. Nope. The IRS has a slice of your pie 🥧. Every dollar in those accounts is tax-deferred, not tax-free.

When RMDs (Required Minimum Distributions) hit at age 73, the IRS decides how much you withdraw — and they collect tax whether you need the money or not.

The bigger your account grows, the bigger their slice.

💥 BUT… there’s a sweet window before 2026 where tax brackets are still low.
That’s why I’ve been digging deep into Roth conversions. Same dollars. New strategy. Less IRS drama.


🔁 Wait, Did I Just Change My Tune?

Not exactly. My original advice was:
✔️ Max out your 401(k)
✔️ Take that employer match
✔️ Add a Roth IRA for tax-free growth

That’s still solid advice. But here's the upgrade:
🧠 If you're in a low tax year, or recently retired, or gasp temporarily unemployed (thanks, tech layoffs), this may be your golden moment to buy out Uncle Sam early — and cheap.

By strategically converting to a Roth while you’re in a lower tax bracket, you pay less tax now, and enjoy tax-free growth forever.

TL;DR:
✅ Same strategy, now with laser-guided tax optimization.


🧠 FREE AI TOOL: ChatGPT Roth Conversion Prompt (Simplified for Beginners)

Build a tax-free retirement with help from ChatGPT—no coding or finance degree needed!


📘 What This Is

This is a simple prompt you can copy and paste into ChatGPT (GPT-4) to help you analyze whether converting your Traditional IRA or 401(k) to a Roth IRA makes sense—based on your actual numbers.

You'll get a year-by-year breakdown that shows:

  • How much to convert annually
  • What tax bracket it uses
  • How much tax you’d pay
  • How much you save long-term
  • How your Roth IRA grows tax-free

🚀 How ChatGPT Helped Me Model It

I stumbled upon this brilliant Roth conversion prompt (credit: Jerry Romine – guy lives abroad and uses AI to reduce taxes like a ninja 🥷). I adapted it and ran fictious numbers through ChatGPT.

📈 Example Output You’ll Get:

✅ How much to convert each year
✅ How much tax you’ll pay each year
✅ Projected Roth IRA growth
✅ How much tax you save vs. waiting
✅ Why this strategy may (or may not) work for you

🤯 I saw how $150K in conversions over 6 years could save me nearly $100K in future taxes — and avoid a forced RMD explosion later. That’s like paying $0.60 today to avoid paying $1.00 later.


👥 Who Is This For?

  • You have a Traditional IRA or 401(k)
  • You’re in a low tax year, or early retirement
  • You want to pay less tax now to avoid paying more later
  • You’re interested in tax-free retirement income
  • You love seeing numbers and strategies backed by real math

⚠️ Final Tip

👉 Run this prompt before 2026, when current tax brackets expire and may reset higher under new law.
The earlier you start converting, the more years your Roth IRA has to compound tax-free.


🛠️ Want To Try It?

I turned that Roth strategy into a simple, beginner-friendly ChatGPT prompt.
📥 Paste it in, answer 5 questions, and boom—your Roth plan pops out faster than you can say “Form 8606.”

Want it? It’s right here

🟣 COPY & PASTE THIS PROMPT INTO CHATGPT (GPT-4):

You are a tax-smart retirement planner. I want your help in figuring out how much of my Traditional IRA or 401(k) I should convert to a Roth IRA each year to legally pay less in taxes and grow my wealth tax-free.

I'll give you:
- My age
- My tax filing status (single, married, etc.)
- My income for this year
- My Traditional IRA and 401(k) balances
- My expected investment return (e.g. 6–8%)
- The year I plan to retire

Your job is to:
- Suggest how much I can convert each year without jumping to a higher tax bracket
- Prioritize filling the 12%, 22%, and 24% tax brackets
- Estimate the tax I’d pay and the tax I’d save by converting now vs. waiting
- Show how my Roth IRA would grow tax-free until retirement
- Compare that to what I’d lose if I leave the money in my Traditional account and get hit with Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs) later
- Use realistic mid-year compounding and current U.S. tax brackets

Please format your answer with clear tables, dollar figures, and a simple explanation for beginners. Be specific — I want real math, not just general advice.

At the end, summarize:
- Total Roth balance at retirement
- Total taxes paid on conversions
- Total future tax savings
- Whether this strategy makes sense based on my info

✨ How Wealth Builder Can Help Solve This Mess

If tax talk gives you brain fog 🧠☁️ or makes you want to lie down in traffic, you’re not alone. That’s why I created the Wealth Builder newsletter series — to break down tricky money stuff with clarity, wit, and the occasional ninja analogy.

👉 Whether it’s optimizing pension plans, building passive income, or using AI to run your retirement game plan, each edition tackles a problem like this Roth dilemma with easy, actionable solutions.

No jargon. Just money moves.

💰 Want smarter ways to beat taxes, grow wealth, and laugh while doing it?
👉 Check out my newsletter here


🔥 Hashtags (Because We’re Fancy Now)

#TaxSmartMoves #RothConversion #AIForFinance #WealthBuilder #RetireLikeABoss #FireUncleSam #PassiveIncomeHacks #ChatGPTMoneyMagic


🎤 Final Punchline:

Convert. Compound. Chill.


🔍 Notes & Sources:

  • “The Hidden Partner in Your Retirement Account,” Jerry Romine via YouTube, 2024
  • IRS RMD rules, updated for SECURE Act 2.0
  • Roth Conversion Prompt courtesy of Jerry Romine (used with adaptation)
  • U.S. Tax Brackets: IRS.gov, 2025 Projections

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