# Episode 232: Is 4.7% the New Safe Withdrawal Rate?

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/retire-with-style-5225834/episode-232-is-4-7-the-new-safe-withdrawal-rate
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/retire-with-style-5225834/episode-232-is-4-7-the-new-safe-withdrawal-rate.md
Podcast: [Retire With Style](https://stenobird.com/podcast/retire-with-style-5225834)
Published: 2026-06-09T16:20:45+00:00
Episode link: https://retirewithstyle.podbean.com/e/episode-232/
Audio file: https://op3.dev/e/mcdn.podbean.com/mf/web/cc6guxnf5aus77u3/Episode_232_Is_47_the_New_Safe_Withdrawal_Rate7zjpn.mp3
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JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/retire-with-style-5225834/episodes/episode-232-is-4-7-the-new-safe-withdrawal-rate
Duration seconds: 2046

## Resource

In Part 1 of this live Q&A episode of Retire With Style, Wade Pfau and Alex Murguia answer listener questions covering reverse mortgages, retirement withdrawal rates, Roth conversion strategies, tax-efficient retirement income planning, asset allocation decisions, and bond ladders. The discussion emphasizes that retirement planning rarely has one-size-fits-all answers, highlighting the importance of balancing taxes, investment risk, spending flexibility, and personal preferences. Wade also shares practical rules of thumb for effective marginal tax rates, explains why TIPS ladders can serve as a benchmark for safe withdrawal rates, and discusses how different portfolio allocations may lead to surprisingly similar retirement income outcomes despite varying levels of volatility. Listen now to learn more! Takeaways Paying down a reverse mortgage (HECM) is generally optional, but doing so can increase future borrowing capacity through a larger line of credit. Building retirement income ”buckets” does not necessarily require moving money out of a 401(k); short-, medium-, and long-term buckets can often be created within the account itself. Most retirees would not benefit from withdrawing money from a tax-deferred account simply to build a taxable account, as it usually creates unnecessary taxes. Tax planning is largely about smoothing taxable income over time rather than creating large swings in income from year to year. For many retirees with less than roughly $3 million in assets, targeting a 12% effective marginal tax rate can serve as a useful rule of thumb when evaluating Roth conversions. Based on current TIPS yields, a 30-year inflation-adjusted TIPS ladder could support an estimated safe withdrawal rate of about 4.7%. Spending flexibility can often support higher wit…

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## Transcript

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