High taxable distributions in 2014?

[David1961]

This has been discussed here on some threads, so I think my experiences are common, but wanted to ask. My actively managed mutual funds have had much higher taxable distributions in 2013 and 2014 (especially high in 2014). Some were 4-5 times higher in 2014 than the average the past 5 years before 2013. Has this been others' experiences also?

 

[utrecht]

That's because the stock market has been roaring the past few years and a lot of mutual funds sold stocks to take profits and rebalance into other stocks the past couple years.

 

[Cobra9777]

This is one of several reasons I prefer ETFs.

 

[MBAustin]

I thought 2013 was unusually high and then I got one in 2014 that was more than double the previous year. The bad news is that the cost basis for this account is so low, I don't want to pay the capital gains to sell it (most of the money has been in there more than 20 years). The good news is that the distribution is covering a good bit of our 2015 living expenses, so it's like getting a salary but only paying CG tax rates on it. Makes me happier to think about it this way.


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[MichaelB]

The distributions were high, always a surprise although they should be expected after such a long, strong run-up. I also saw a higher rate of non-QDI income than in previous years, so my taxes this year will be substantially higher than I expected.

It's painful, but I'd rather this than the tax loss harvesting that kept our taxes low in other years...