My wife and I are expecting our third child later this year. When a client is expecting, I generally advise them to start thinking about their baby’s financial future right away.
Trump Accounts allow parents to open an investment account on behalf of any children under age 18 who are U.S. citizens. If the child is born from 2025 through 2028, the government will deposit $1,000 into the account for your child.
Thanks to philanthropic donations, an extra $250 will be deposited into the account if you live in a ZIP code with a median income below $150,000.
Sign up for Kiplinger’s Free Newsletters
Profit and prosper with the best of expert advice on investing, taxes, retirement, personal finance and more – straight to your e-mail.
Profit and prosper with the best of expert advice – straight to your e-mail.
If your child qualifies for that deposit, opening a Trump Account is a no-brainer; it’s free money!
Where things get less clear is when considering whether you should contribute your own money to the accounts. As a financial adviser at Burns Estate Planning & Wealth Advisors and an expectant father considering the best path forward for my own child, I see both pros and cons.
What are the benefits of contributing to a Trump Account?
Contributing to a Trump Account can significantly increase your child’s nest egg. The federal government estimates that if you simply take the $1,000 deposit from the government, that deposit will turn into $6,000 by the time your child is 18.
By contributing just $250 per year, your child would have an estimated $19,000. Clearly, contributing to the Trump Account — even a small amount — will have a significant impact on the amount of money your child ends up with.
While the Trump Account is touted as a retirement account for your kid, your child can also make withdrawals without penalty much earlier for qualifying reasons, such as paying for college or buying their first home.
Those withdrawals could be subject to restrictions and would be taxed at ordinary income tax rates.
Employers can make contributions up to $2,500 per year into the account as well, making it a potentially attractive employee benefit.
What are the downsides of contributing to a Trump Account?
If you’re considering making contributions to a Trump Account for education for your child, you should first ask yourself: Why would you use a Trump Account for education when a 529 plan grows tax-free and is tax-free on withdrawal?
The nest egg your child has after 18 years of contributions to a Trump Account could be significant. However, that’s not due to any special property of the Trump Account itself; it’s simply the result of compound interest over time, which you would also enjoy with other investment accounts like a 529.
Unlike with a 529, your children will have to pay taxes on the growth of money in a Trump Account when they withdraw it. I often recommend that my clients convert their IRA to a Roth IRA because, while you pay taxes on the contributions or conversions to a Roth, you don’t pay taxes when you withdraw the money.
Trump Account contributions are non-tax-deductible, like a Roth IRA, but the entire amount is taxable upon distribution, like a traditional IRA. That double taxation is not as tax-efficient as other options.
When my baby is born later this year, I’ll definitely open a Trump Account to take advantage of the $1,000 free deposit, but I’ll also open a 529 account and contribute my own money to that, because withdrawals will be more tax-advantaged for my child.
That isn’t to say this is the right move for everyone with a newborn. A Trump Account is a tool, but, as with any other investment, it’s not a one-size-fits-all solution.
If the goal is to save for higher education, it may make more sense to use a 529 plan, based on the tax laws that apply to distributions compared to a Trump Account.
It will likely be less common to use a Trump Account to save for your children’s retirement, as most children are beneficiaries of their parents’ estate to begin with.
However, if getting a jump-start on your children’s retirement accounts is the goal, a Trump Account would likely make more sense.
It’s important to work with your financial adviser for advice that takes into account your unique circumstances before deciding how to set your children up for a strong financial future.
