Financial News and Updates Articles by Charles W. Rawl

How the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” May Affect Your Retirement Income Planning

Impact of this Law on Your Retirement The "One Big Beautiful Bill Act" (OBBBA) was signed into law on July 4, 2025. Many provisions take effect immediately, while others will take effect in 2026. Expanded state and local tax (SALT) limits, bonus depreciation renewals, $6,000 tax deduction for seniors 65 and older¹, and the overtime/tip deduction apply to the 2025 tax year, affecting filings in 2026. Other changes, such as the elimination of the religious exemption and the elevated estate/gift tax thresholds, take effect for the 2026 [...]

By cwrawl|July 21, 2025|Categories: News, Smart Investing|Tags: Income Maximized, Risk Managed, Tax Savvy|

Three Retirement Account Takeaways from OBBBA

By Sarah Brenner, JD Director of Retirement Education On July 4, 2025, President Trump signed into law the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” (OBBBA). This mammoth domestic policy and tax law is hundreds of pages long and will impact many people in all kinds of ways. What does it mean for your retirement account? Here are three takeaways from the “Big Beautiful Bill”: 1. Rothification will continue. While OBBBA does not include any new Roth account provisions, it is likely that in its wake the trend of “Rothification” will [...]

By cwrawl|July 14, 2025|Categories: IRA Best Practices|Tags: IRAs, Roth IRA, Tax Savvy|

When You Should Name a Trust as IRA Beneficiary

By Sarah Brenner, JD Director of Retirement Education We hear many stories about trusts being named as IRA beneficiaries and the problems that follow. Often, there seems to be no purpose for naming the trust and it brings unnecessary complications. Trusts won’t help with income taxes. In fact, they can increase the tax hit because IRA funds may be subject to high trust tax rates. Naming a trust is not something that should be done without a clear purpose. Here are six good reasons to name a trust as [...]

By cwrawl|June 11, 2025|Categories: IRA Best Practices|Tags: Estate Planning, IRAs, Tax Savvy, Trusts|

Real-World Dilemmas Confront Ethics Theory in University of Houston Business Course

“Business Ethics for Accountants” course at University of Houston, Bauer College of Business brings real-world ethical dilemmas into the classroom. Charles W. Rawl, widely known for being one of the whistleblowers in the local Houston $7 Billion Stanford Financial Ponzi scheme, shared his personal experience with this year’s class in Dr. Michael Newman’s 2025 “Business Ethics for Accountants” course on Monday, May 12 at the Bauer College of Business, University of Houston. Charlie Rawl has become a touchstone for Dr. Newman’s ethics course over the last decade, recounting [...]

By cwrawl|May 12, 2025|Categories: Articles|Tags: Stanford Financial, Whistleblower|

Why You Should Take Your 2025 RMD Now

There are good reasons why you should take your RMD now instead of waiting. By Sarah Brenner, JD Director of Retirement Education Ed Slott and Company The deadline for most retirement account owners to take their 2025 required minimum distribution (RMD) is December 31, 2025. However, there are good reasons why you should take your RMD now instead of waiting. You are doing a rollover. Maybe you are retiring this year, and you are now moving your employer plan funds to an IRA, or maybe you are tapping [...]

By cwrawl|April 4, 2025|Categories: IRA Best Practices|Tags: IRAs, RMDs, Taxes|

How Roth IRA Distributions Are Taxed

Roth IRAs are a beneficial asset for many retirees. But how are they taxed? By Sarah Brenner, JD Director of Retirement Education Do you have a Roth IRA? If you do, there will very likely come a time when you want to take a distribution from that account. The distribution rules for taxation of Roth IRA distributions can be complicated, but if they are followed, the reward is tax-free withdrawals in retirement. Here is what you need to know: Aggregation Things can get a little confusing if you [...]

By cwrawl|March 10, 2025|Categories: Articles, IRA Best Practices|Tags: Roth IRA, Taxes|

Identifying New Risks is Key to Achieving a Fully Risk Managed Retirement Plan

It’s all about preserving and protecting what you’ve worked a lifetime to build You’ve worked your entire life managing a myriad of risks in all areas of life. In the working years, we are exposed to risks quite different from retirement risks. Before retirement, we are confronted with the risks of redundancy and downsizing, businesses failing, economies collapsing, mortgages being put under pressure or stress, and quite a few more. Entering retirement means facing a whole new set of risks. Becoming risk managed in retirement is all about [...]

By cwrawl|November 15, 2024|Categories: Articles, Smart Investing|Tags: Retirement Planning, Risk Managed|

New Rule: All IRA RMDs Must Be Satisfied Prior to Doing a Roth Conversion

By Andy Ives, CFP®, AIF® IRA Analyst Yes, you read that title correctly. This rule was confirmed in the 2024 final SECURE Act regulations, released this past July. If a person has multiple IRAs, even if they are held at different custodians, the total aggregated IRA required minimum distribution (RMD) must be withdrawn before any Roth IRA conversion (or 60-day rollover) can be completed. [This does NOT include RMDs from work plans like a 401(k).] Aggregation rules tell us that RMDs for each IRA must be calculated separately, but [...]

By cwrawl|November 4, 2024|Categories: IRA Best Practices|Tags: IRAs, RMDs, Roth IRA|

Diversification of Income Streams is Key to Achieving an Income Maximized Retirement Plan

Tailored strategies create income streams from multiple, diversified sources One critical outcome in your retirement income plan is to become income maximized. This may seem obvious, but not so easily achieved. We can’t snap our fingers and immediately turn a portfolio that’s been accumulation-focused for years into an income maximized portfolio designed to provide a lifelong retirement income stream. Becoming income maximized helps you do more than “only making your money last up to your finish line.” It helps you get past your finish line and allows the [...]

By cwrawl|November 1, 2024|Categories: Articles, Smart Investing|Tags: Income Maximized, Retirement Planning|

Tax Diversification is Key to Achieving a Tax Savvy Retirement Income Plan

A tax-savvy plan contains money in three tax buckets One critical outcome in your retirement income financial planning – on the journey toward a Wonderfully Rich Retirement – is for your plan to become tax savvy. It’s important to manage your taxes each year, and even more important to manage your lifelong taxes. A tax savvy retirement income plan means managing both annual and lifelong tax obligations. It contains money in each of three tax buckets: pre-tax income, such as from your 401(k) account or IRA; after-tax income, [...]

By cwrawl|October 11, 2024|Categories: Smart Investing|Tags: feature, Retirement Planning, Tax Savvy|

Charlie Rawl is keenly focused on helping his clients work toward their retirement dreams through a comprehensive financial strategy. He has distinguished himself throughout his career as a troubleshooter and problem-solver, designing and implementing creative solutions to often-complex challenges.

He has three decades of experience in financial services, encompassing commercial banking, insurance and investment management. This diverse experience gives him an invaluable perspective in conducting detailed analyses and creating state-of-the-art wealth management and retirement income solutions.