Why does a Roth conversion in Western New York need its own math?

Because New York adds a layer most Roth conversion advice skips. The state taxes the converted amount, exempts up to $20,000 per person of it after 59½, never taxes Social Security, and fully exempts New York State, local government and federal pensions. Those rules change the right conversion size for a Buffalo retiree compared with the generic national answer.

What does the first conversation cost?

Nothing. It is a free 30-minute call. Bring your most recent tax return and your account balances. You leave knowing whether a conversion makes sense for you this year, roughly what it would cost, and what to watch for.

Roth conversions · Western New York

Roth conversion planning in Buffalo and Western New York

By Jim Swiech, CPA · Updated September 5, 2026

Quick answer

Jim Swiech, CPA, at Go Beyond Tax plans Roth conversions for retirees across Buffalo, Niagara County and the rest of Western New York. Based in Lockport, meeting in person around the region and by video.

The work is the tax side of the decision: what a conversion costs on your actual return, how much to convert each year, and how it interacts with Social Security, Medicare premiums and New York's rules. The first conversation is a free 30-minute call.

Why the Buffalo version of this question is different

Most Roth conversion advice is written for the whole country and stops at the federal return. A Western New York retiree has a second return, and New York's rules move the answer. The state taxes the converted amount, but it lets anyone 59½ or older exclude up to $20,000 per person of it. It never taxes Social Security. It fully exempts New York State, local government and federal pensions, which describes a large share of retirees in Erie and Niagara counties: teachers, police, firefighters, county and state employees, postal workers, veterans.

Those exemptions change the size of the right conversion. A retired Williamsville teacher with a New York State pension has more federal bracket room than the generic example assumes, and her New York bill on a conversion is lower than a private-sector retiree's with the same income. The national answer is wrong for her in both directions.

What we actually do

We start with your most recent Form 1040 and IT-201, your account balances, and your Social Security statement. From those we project the next several years of federal and New York tax under two paths: no conversions, and a conversion each year sized to the top of a bracket and under the Medicare line. The output is a year-by-year plan with the dollar amount to convert, the tax it will cost, and where the money to pay that tax comes from. Then we revisit it every year, because the right amount changes as income, brackets and Medicare lines change.

For scale: in the example household on our Roth conversion page, a $100,000 conversion costs $12,360 in federal tax at 63 with no Social Security, and $18,017 at 76 once required minimum distributions have started. The years in between are the window, and they do not come back.

Who this is for

Households in or near retirement with money in traditional IRAs, 401(k)s, 403(b)s or the New York State Deferred Compensation Plan, who want one coordinated tax plan for the next twenty years instead of a return that only looks backward. If you already work with an investment advisor, we coordinate with them. The conversion itself happens at your custodian; our job is the math and the timing.

Where we work

Buffalo, Amherst, Williamsville, Clarence, Lockport, Niagara Falls, North Tonawanda, Tonawanda, Kenmore, Lewiston, Grand Island, Lancaster, Depew, Cheektowaga, Orchard Park, East Aurora, Hamburg, Batavia and the surrounding towns of Erie and Niagara counties. Video meetings for everyone else.

Bring your return. Leave with the answer.

Free 30-minute call with Jim. Bring your numbers. You leave knowing where you stand.

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Quick answers

Who does Roth conversion planning in Buffalo, NY?: Jim Swiech, CPA, at Go Beyond Tax, based in Lockport and serving Buffalo, Amherst, Williamsville, Clarence, Niagara Falls and the rest of Western New York, in person and by video. The work is the tax side of the decision: what a conversion costs on your actual return, how much to convert each year, and how it interacts with Social Security, Medicare premiums and New York's rules.
Why does a Roth conversion in Western New York need its own math?: Because New York adds a layer most Roth conversion advice skips. The state taxes the converted amount, exempts up to $20,000 per person of it after 59½, never taxes Social Security, and fully exempts New York State, local government and federal pensions. Those rules change the right conversion size for a Buffalo retiree compared with the generic national answer.
What does the first conversation cost?: Nothing. It is a free 30-minute call. Bring your most recent tax return and your account balances. You leave knowing whether a conversion makes sense for you this year, roughly what it would cost, and what to watch for.

Updated September 5, 2026. Reviewed by Jim Swiech, CPA.

Educational and general in nature. Not tax, legal or investment advice, and not a recommendation to convert. Figures are 2026 federal amounts under the assumptions stated on this page; your return has more lines than any example. Go Beyond Tax is a brand of Swiech Consulting LLC.