The Art of Asset Location

Asset location is a part of the investing strategy that involves deciding which investments to hold in which accounts, and taxes play an important role in this decision. Here are a few basic guidelines.

Hold in Your Tax-Sheltered Accounts: Assets With High Tax Costs. In general, government or corporate bonds and bond funds may be a better fit for tax-sheltered accounts (like IRAs and 401(k)s) than for taxable accounts because their payouts are taxed at an investor’s ordinary income tax rate. If you need to hold bonds in your taxable accounts, a municipal bond or municipal bond fund might offer you a better after-tax yield than a taxable bond investment, because income from munis is exempt of federal income taxes.

Hold in Your Taxable Accounts: Assets With Low Tax Costs. By contrast, stocks and stock funds may generally be a better bet for taxable accounts. Long-term capital gains, which is what you have when you sell a stock that you’ve held for at least a year, are taxed at a much lower rate than bond income (however, these favorable tax rates are set to expire at the end of 2012).

Stocks are not guaranteed and have been more volatile than the other asset classes. Dividends are not guaranteed. Bonds are subject to credit/default risk and interest-rate risk. Municipal bonds may be subject to the alternative minimum tax (AMT) and state and local taxes, and federal taxes apply to any capital gains distributions. Retirement accounts are tax-deferred vehicles designed for retirement savings. Any withdrawals of earnings will be subject to ordinary income tax and, if taken prior to age 59½, may be subject to a 10% federal tax penalty. This should not be considered tax or financial planning advice. Please consult with an FPC advisor for advice specific to your individual circumstances.