Here's the situation I need your help with. My grandmother passed away last summer and left all her assets to her children, including a traditional IRA. I believe she had already started taking RMDs before her death. During the few months it took to sort out and transfer her assets, my mother became terminally ill and passed away in November. "Rough year" would be an understatement.
My mother's portion of that inherited IRA has now been transferred into separate accounts for my sister and me. What's not clear is whether that portion of the original IRA was first transferred to my mother and then to my sister and me, or whether it was transferred directly to my sister and me. I should be able to get an answer from the investment firm, but I don't know the answer at the moment (or whether it actually matters).
From what I understand about beneficiary IRA accounts, the order of transfer might matter because the first beneficiary starts making RMDs based on their projected lifespan or that of the original owner, whichever is longer. However the next generation of beneficiaries must continue that choice until the account is exhausted. In our case, my mother died before she was ever required to make RMDs and as mentioned earlier, it's not clear whether she was ever a beneficiary owner in the interim.
So my questions for you are:
1) What schedule for RMDs am I required to follow, and are there options? 2) Does this depend upon whether the transfer went through my mothers beneficiary account? I.e., do I need to follow up to find out the details of the transfer(s)?Thank you for your help, Pedro