Is Your Retirement Built on Income—or “If-Come”?

On this week's episode of Safe Money Radio, host Brett A. Blake sits down with David Duston, founder of Money Works Group in North Texas, to talk about the tax side of retirement income. The short version: taxes can touch your Social Security, your required minimum distributions, and even your Medicare premiums, and a good time to learn how is before you retire.

Who Is David Duston?

David Duston moved to Texas in 2007 and built Money Works Group over the years that followed. The firm started as MoneyWorks DFW. In early 2020, a caller from Lubbock told him the name made her think he only served the Dallas-Fort Worth area, and he changed it within weeks. He also hosts The MoneyWorks Show on KRLD in Dallas. An Eagle Scout, he says his goal is to leave people better off than he found them, no matter how large or small the balance.

Start Early: Retirement Taxes in Your 40s and 50s

Duston calls the working years the hamster wheel of life. People in their 40s and 50s are often at their highest earning level, busy with work and family, and taxes sit out of sight and out of mind. He encourages people at that stage to talk with a qualified professional about how their savings are taxed and what tools exist for building money that may be taxed differently later. Many people tell him they wish they had met him 10, 15, or 20 years sooner. He adds that business owners may have more room to plan, including for their children.

Is Social Security Taxable?

Brett raised a common belief: that retirement means a break from taxes. Duston said the picture can look different. Social Security benefits are taxable for many retirees. Up to 85% of benefits can be included in taxable income, depending on your combined income, and Duston noted that the age you claim can affect how much is taxed.

He also mentioned legislation that suggests Social Security might become tax-free. Based on the sources available at the time of writing, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act did not end federal income tax on Social Security benefits. It added a temporary extra deduction of $6,000 for people age 65 and older, covering tax years 2025 through 2028, and $12,000 for a qualifying married couple. The IRS says the deduction phases out above modified adjusted gross income of $75,000 for single filers and $150,000 for joint filers. Because it is a deduction, it can lower the income you are taxed on. It does not change the formula that decides how much of your benefit is taxable. Tax law changes, so confirm current rules with a CPA or tax professional.

RMDs and Medicare Premiums

Brett asked what RMDs stand for. Required minimum distributions are the yearly withdrawals generally required from traditional IRAs and workplace retirement plans once you reach a certain age. The starting age depends on your birth year. It is 73 for people born between 1951 and 1958 and 75 for people born in 1960 or later. Duston summarized the line as before and after 1960, so check your own birth year. Those born in 1959 landed in a drafting gap in the law, and IRS proposed rules point to 73. A tax professional can confirm your date.

Why it matters: a required withdrawal adds to your taxable income. Duston said that can raise your tax bracket for the year and, in turn, your Medicare premiums. Medicare adds an income-related monthly adjustment amount, known as IRMAA, for higher earners. For 2026, it applies when modified adjusted gross income is above $109,000 for a single filer or $218,000 for a joint filer. The standard Part B premium is $202.90 a month in 2026, and total Part B premiums for people above the thresholds range from $284.10 to $689.90. The premium also looks at income from two years earlier, so 2026 premiums are based on 2024 income. A large withdrawal in one year can therefore show up in Medicare costs later. Medicare figures reset each year, so check the current numbers.

Roth IRA Basics

Duston explained the difference in plain terms. Contributions to a 401(k) or a SEP IRA are typically pre-tax. A Roth IRA takes after-tax contributions, requires earned income in the year you contribute, and offers a way to convert money from an IRA later. He stressed that the mechanics matter and that timing is personal. A Roth withdrawal is tax-free when it is a qualified distribution, which generally means you are 59 and a half or older and have held the account for five years. His example is close to home: his two young sons work in the business, so they have earned income and can hold Roth IRAs.

Brett added a broader point. Many people traded pensions for 401(k)s and enjoyed the upfront tax break, but the tax bill is deferred, and it may arrive when a person is in a higher bracket. Duston agreed that required distributions are one reason the bill can be larger than people expect.

Turning Savings Into Income

Duston described a common retirement moment. After years on the income train, a retiree is handed a large balance and a rule of thumb: take 3 or 4 percent a year, maybe 5. He said there is more to it than that. He pointed to income built to arrive on a schedule, which some annuity contracts may offer. A guarantee in an annuity is backed by the claims-paying ability of the issuing insurance company. It is not government-backed, and annuities may not be suitable for everyone.

He also called annuities part of a trillion-dollar industry. For context, LIMRA reported $464.1 billion in U.S. annuity sales in 2025, a record. Brett asked why the drawing-down side of retirement gets so little airtime compared with saving, and Duston agreed it is a gap. Duston shared that a student intern told him he had not heard these topics in four years of business school.

Who Should Be at the Table?

Duston recommends a professional who reviews your current tax picture. He suggests a simple test: ask your retirement professional how the last conversation with your CPA went. If the answer is silence, that is worth noticing. He describes the tax code as thousands of pages long and encourages people to work with a CPA who stays current. For people who only earn W-2 income, he suggested looking at small-business options as one way to learn how deductions work. Brett framed the target as the red zone, the 10 years before and after retirement.

Leave a Plan for Your Family

Near the end, Duston raised a point many savers miss. Money left to children in an IRA may affect their own tax situation later, so it can be worth asking about the tax side of what you leave behind. His closing advice was to pay attention to the details.

FAQ

Is Social Security taxable?

It can be. Up to 85% of benefits may be included in taxable income, depending on your combined income. The 2025 tax law added a temporary $6,000 deduction for people 65 and older through 2028 but did not end taxation of benefits.

When do required minimum distributions start?

At 73 for people born between 1951 and 1958, and at 75 for people born in 1960 or later. Births in 1959 fall in a gap in the statute, and IRS proposed rules point to 73. Confirm your date with a tax professional.

Can RMDs affect Medicare premiums?

They may. RMDs add to taxable income, and Medicare looks at income from two years earlier when it sets IRMAA surcharges. For 2026, surcharges begin above $109,000 (single) or $218,000 (joint).

What makes a Roth IRA withdrawal tax-free?

A qualified distribution, which generally requires age 59 and a half and five years since your first Roth contribution. Other exceptions exist, so ask a tax professional about your case.

Where To Start

Want to take the next step? Run your own numbers with the free WIYN calculator at brettblake.annuity.com, which takes about three minutes. Ready to talk it through? Book a Retirement Clarity Session with Brett. No obligation, no pressure. Brett is a licensed insurance agent and may recommend an annuity if it fits.

For decades, Americans learned how to fill the bucket. Learning how to turn on the tap, and how taxes shape what comes out, is a newer conversation, and it is a good one to start before the paychecks stop.

Worry Less. Live Longer.

About the host

Brett A. Blake hosts Safe Money Radio and is the CEO of Annuity.com. He is 58, a Harvard MBA who will tell you the degree taught him almost nothing about retirement income. Before Annuity.com, he built a nearly $1B business, starting near $50M. He lives in Gilbert, Arizona with his wife Erin, and asks the questions retirees would ask if they had access to the right rooms. Brett is a licensed insurance agent, not a CPA or tax attorney.

About the guest

David Duston is the founder of Money Works Group in North Texas and the host of The MoneyWorks Show on KRLD in Dallas. He moved to Texas in 2007 and renamed his firm Money Works Group in 2020. An Eagle Scout and a licensed insurance agent in Texas, he teaches retirement income and tax concepts to people in the 10 years before and after retirement. He is not a CPA or tax attorney.

Follow David Duston (Founder, Money Works Group): Website: moneyworksgroup.com | Email: david@moneyworksgroup.com | Phone: 972-327-3737 | Radio: The MoneyWorks Show on KRLD | LinkedIn: @davidduston

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