Projects a married household year by year — from today through the second spouse's death — and compares conversions that fill the 12% / 22% / 24% brackets plus a swept optimal ceiling. It models RMDs (per spouse, by birth year), Social Security (estimated, with the survivor keeping the larger check), the widow's-penalty switch to single-filer brackets, IRMAA, federal + state + capital-gains/NIIT tax, and a spending waterfall. Each strategy is scored by the after-tax legacy at the second death — the leftover IRA net of the heirs' income tax.
For illustrative purposes only. A simplified model using 2026 federal, capital-gains/NIIT and IRMAA figures (state brackets remain 2025 estimates) indexed forward at your inflation rate. It approximates Social Security and its taxability, applies state tax to ordinary income excluding SS, assumes constant returns, and ignores ACA subsidies, the 5-year Roth rule, QCDs, state-specific retirement-income rules, and estate tax. Not investment, tax, or legal advice — consult a qualified professional. All math runs in your browser; nothing is saved or transmitted.