Here’s how to avoid a 50% haircut on your retirement savings

Even if you think you have that number nailed down, it can help to strategize with an advisor. If you don’t need the full distribution, for example, you might be able to re-invest the funds or make a charitable donation directly from your account.

You’ll also want to make sure you’re following the rules.

“There are different rules for the different types of accounts,” Cassidy said.

IRAs are aggregated, she said — whether you have one IRA or six, your required withdrawal is based on the total across all the accounts, and you can pull from one or more to hit that number. (If you’re married, though, you can’t take an RMD on behalf of one spouse from the other’s account.)

RMDs from employer-sponsored accounts like a 401(k), on the other hand, are specific to the account. So if you have three plans from different former employers, you’ll have three separate RMDs, one for each.

Retirees facing the RMD for the first time may also have a little more leeway to procrastinate. The first year you’re subject to RMD rules, you can take a qualified withdrawal by April 1 of the following year, Cassidy said.

If you turned 70½ in October 2016, for example, you’ll need to make that first withdrawal by April 1, 2017. But taking advantage of the grace period is not a recommended strategy, she said. You’d still need an RMD for 2017, and double withdrawals that year could have a significant tax impact.

If you do forget, the IRS may not hit you with that 50 percent penalty. Take the RMD as soon as you realize the error, Cassidy said. Then file a Form 5329 with your next tax return along with a letter explaining whatever it was that led to the misstep — you were wrapped up in the medical care of a spouse, for example, misunderstood the rules, or simply forgot.

“In the past, they have been pretty forgiving,” she said.