{"id":803,"date":"2016-02-25T15:07:09","date_gmt":"2016-02-25T20:07:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.etax.com\/blog\/?p=803"},"modified":"2016-02-22T15:07:58","modified_gmt":"2016-02-22T20:07:58","slug":"ira-individual-retirement-account","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.etax.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/25\/ira-individual-retirement-account\/","title":{"rendered":"IRA: Individual Retirement Account"},"content":{"rendered":"

A traditional IRA<\/a> is an account for retirement savings that can proved favorable at tax time. If your work doesn\u2019t offer a retirement plan, or your income is below a specific threshold, then money contributed to a traditional IRA can be deducted at tax time. For 2015, the maximum amount of contributions for the year is $5,500, or 100% of your compensation, depending on which is the lesser amount. This limit applies regardless of whether the deposits are deductible or not. Taxpayers over age 50 are eligible for an additional $1,000 in contributions, increasing the limit to $6,500. If your spouse does not work, you are allowed to contribute part of your salary to your IRA for your spouse.<\/p>\n

Taxes are not assessed to earnings saved in an IRA until the funds are withdrawn. If you receive funds from an IRA before you are 59 \u00bd years old, you likely will be penalized. Also, the ability to deduct contributions made to an IRA begins to phase out for taxpayers at higher income levels, and those covered by a plan at work. In 2015, the phase out is as follows:<\/p>\n