Craig Wear, CFP, explains why Roth conversions aren't always the win people think they are. Converting only to the top of your tax bracket can sometimes cost you more in lifetime taxes than taking RMDs and paying ordinary tax. Your age, expenses, and other income sources all matter.
I have seen many, many cases where just converting to the top of your tax bracket will actually cause you to pay more taxes over your lifetime than if you'd have just done nothing and paid taxes on the rmd. So again, I can't give you rules of thumb because we've just watched, we've seen so many different things. A lot of it has to do with age, what your lifestyle expenses are, what your other sources of income are. It just requires a lot of diligence in really figuring out what's best for you.
