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  • I never considered this perspective. There are a lot of perspectives to consider though. I would think that with SS supplementing my income, then it shouldn't be TOO hard to power through the 15% bracket, but then a LOT can change in 30 years when I am looking of bowing out of the rat race. Who knows if we get a conservative revival and everybody pays a 20% flat tax, I could be paying a lot more in taxes relative to my smaller retirement income. Can't say it won't happen, I didn't think Trump would have been elected and Brexit would have passed. SS might not even be recognizable. Commented Dec 23, 2016 at 13:38
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    What about if you think taxes are going to increase by the time you retire? Specifically on retirement income itself. That is always my worry, hence I went with the Roth for mine - paying taxes now for the safety of knowing they are already paid. I for one don't see the US spending any less in the future or having less people to distribute benefits to. This money is going to come from somewhere. Commented Dec 23, 2016 at 13:44
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    @Ross - The "what ifs" can drive us mad. It's not a stretch to imagine that Roth withdrawals can trigger SS taxation. It's not a stretch to imagine we shift to a VAT, and my 401(k) withdrawals are no longer subject to tax. But all of our spending funds gov thru the VAT. And you've already prepaid a tax bill that went away for me. A VAT effectively taxes the entire underground economy. There's a solid case for this. Respectfully, my answers here need to stat within the current set of rules. Addressing an infinite number of hypothetical changes would be impossible. Commented Dec 23, 2016 at 13:52
  • That edit makes sense. Once you get to 55 like you said, it is more likely that you will have fine grained control over income you claim either through withdrawls or later conversions into a Roth that may only cost you 10-15% in taxes. That money can then be claimed from Roth in larger amounts without penalty or tax. I am starting to see the wisdom in your way of thinking. Plus you are right, conservative revival might even make 401k withdrawls tax free under certain scenarios. VAT or national sales tax might replace everything. Commented Dec 23, 2016 at 13:54
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    Re: hypothetical situations: it seems like it's a good idea to take advantage of any large tax deductions that are available now and to also have a pool of pre-tax and post-tax money available in the future so that you have some flexibility to work with the tax-code whatever it looks like in the future. The 15% rule is good, even if arbitrary, for that reason. Commented Dec 23, 2016 at 14:36