There’s a tax most retirees don’t even know exists, until it quietly chips away at their wealth for years.
We’re talking about the tax traps hidden in your taxable brokerage account. Not your IRA. Not your 401(k). The one you may think is working just fine while it’s costing you tens or even hundreds of thousands over your retirement.
Many people assume tax planning ends when they stop working. But in reality, retirement is when the most expensive tax mistakes begin.
In our latest video, we walk through three of the most common—and costly—mistakes we see retirees make with their brokerage accounts. Here’s a quick preview of what we cover:
Mistake #1: Investing the Wrong Way in Brokerage
The first mistake is all about what you invest in.
Too often, retirees hold bonds in brokerage accounts instead of stocks. But here’s the problem: bond income is taxed at your ordinary income rate—one of the highest rates in the tax code. Stocks, on the other hand, often produce qualified dividends and long-term gains taxed at much lower rates.
In other words: you’re paying more tax and earning less. That’s a lose-lose.
Mistake #2: Putting Municipal Bonds in the Wrong Place
Municipal bonds might seem tax-friendly—they’re often marketed that way. But in a brokerage account, they can actually underperform after taxes.
Why? Because their “tax-free” benefit is already priced in. In many cases, you’d be better off holding them in an IRA and leaving more efficient assets in brokerage.
It’s not about what an investment earns before tax. It’s about what you keep after tax.
Mistake #3: Misunderstanding Tax-Loss Harvesting
This one surprises people the most—because they think they’re doing it right.
Tax-loss harvesting can be a powerful strategy: you sell investments at a loss, then reinvest to capture the loss without losing market exposure. But the real value comes from how you use those losses.
In a brokerage account, losses can offset ordinary income up to $3,000/year and capital gains beyond that. Used strategically, this can lower your lifetime tax bill significantly.
But when misunderstood, it can backfire—or go entirely unused.
Don’t Let Taxes Eat Your Retirement
These are just a few of the hidden tax traps we break down in our new video. Whether you manage your own accounts or work with an advisor, understanding how your brokerage account is taxed—and how to plan around it—can make a dramatic difference in what you keep.
[Watch the full video now] to learn how to avoid these costly mistakes and build a more tax-efficient retirement.
Because in retirement, it’s not just about what you earn. It’s about what you keep.
