That is, they completely ignore the alternative uses for that money; they just assume that it magically appears.


People do gloss over the fact that the money has to come from somewhere. Back when I was young and money was tight, it was easier to put more money into a regular 401K since you didn't pay taxes on it, while a Roth you did have to pay taxes on it and that either would reduce my contribution or have to come from somewhere and in those days there was "nowhere" it was coming from. Of course my earliest years, the Roth option wasn't available.

I've been paying taxes now rather than later with my inherited account since the "later" there does have an ending point and that falls when I'll be collecting social security (and so will my wife) so income now is more controllable than later.

I also have pondered whether to make Roth conversions up to the top of the 24% bracket but I do like the idea of putting it off since I may not be around to deal with it later although I kind of think the tax rates now are the lowest they will be for much of my future.

Lots of options in investing. Some people know that annuities (SPIA/Immediate) may not be the best investment in terms of returns but just don't want to worry about the stock market and managing money they will need for daily living.

Rich