BiggerPockets Money Podcast · Friday, July 3, 2026
Mindy Jensen outlined a traditional withdrawal order of operations: after-tax cash flow, after-tax brokerage, pre-tax accounts, HSA reimbursements, and finally Roth accounts. She cautioned that listeners with significant gains in after-tax portfolios should consider all available accounts before making decisions, as this can impact subsidies.
“So the typical withdrawal rules of thumb are the orders in which you are de-cumulating. So number one is your after-tax cash flow. Your interest, dividends, pensions, social security, rental cash flow. These are kind of the passive income that's already coming in. Spend that first.”
“Now, Scott, this is all well and good for most of our listeners. But I want to caution people who have huge gains in their after-tax portfolio to look at every bucket available before making any moves.”
“For a listener in a similar position, this could throw them off the subsidy cliff.”