When to start 72T

L1: When to start 72TIs there any advantage or disadvantage of starting a 72T, on December 15 2007 versus waiting until January 15 2008. (recordkeeping,stub year problems,easier lookback for plan value asof December 31 2007)
Any thoughts?
I will be 54.5 years old this December 2007.
Thanks2007-03-29 12:26, By: retiredguy, IP: [69.133.11.60]

L2: When to start 72TI assume you are planning on using monthly distributions. You can start distributions at any time, but if youplan towait until mid-December of this year, then wait a few more weeks and start in January of 2008. We”ve seen too many problems of late or missed distributions when mid to late December is the distribution date. Then go for distributions between the 5th and 10th of the month.
By waiting till January you will have the benefit of seeing the 12-31-xx account value for basing things like recalculation and change to RMD method shouldany of thiscome into play for your situation. While it”s not critical, having everything running on a pure calendar year basis will make bookkeeping less cumbersom and easier to comprehend since we humans tend to “put mental-fences around” our financial affairs.
Hope this helps.
Jim2007-03-29 12:50, By: Jim, IP: [24.252.195.14]

L2: When to start 72TWhen I started my SEPP in March 2005, I elected quarterly SEPP payments because the 1st quarter of 2005 had not yet elapsed and I didn”t want to hassle with the already missed Jan and Feb payments. I”ve heard that it is possible to take make up payments in a case like this as long as the annual payment amount is the correctly calculated amount but didn”t want to add any complications that I didn”t have to add. My payments started on 3/15, with additional quarterly payments coming on 6/15, 9/15, and 12/15. I understand that a problem with the December payment MUST be resolved quickly so that resolution of the problem occurs in that same year. So far, so good. There have been no problems with any of the quarterly payments but I watch them closely in case any problems show up. My main concern is to make sure that the payments are the exact same amount as was calculated duringmy SEPP set up. If there is a problem with any of these payments and especially the one in December, I will be on the phone with the custodian immediately to effect a correction. Therewould still be 2 weeks in which to achieve this, if needed, but the sooner problems are resolved, the better.
Ed
2007-03-29 16:26, By: Ed_B, IP: [67.170.159.37]

L2: When to start 72TWhile this is not a major issue either way, I think I would wait until about September to start thinking about the incremental variables regarding this decision:
1) Which way are interest rates heading? They may be heading down, and therefore you might want to start earlier to get a larger payment per $ of value in SEPP universe.
2) How has your account balance changed in total or in respect to partitioning your account prior to starting the 72t? Has the market advanced or had a major correction? You really have a lot of flexibility with selection of an account balance date. Just don”t go back more than 6 months.
3) If you want the initial distribution in December, will it be for just a month or the entire annual amount? And will having the taxable income in 2007 be good or bad?
4) I don”t see that it matters if your modification date is based on 5 years or 59.5 – either way.2007-03-29 18:28, By: Alan S., IP: [24.116.66.98]