# Retired Couples Can Harvest $98,900 Tax-Free Gains

> Retired couples can sell $98,900 of gains tax-free this year using three specific ETFs.
- Title: Retired Couples Can Harvest $98,900 Tax-Free Gains | Shortify
- Summary: Retired couples can sell $98,900 of gains tax-free this year using three specific ETFs. Retired couples can sell up to $98,900 of long-term capital gains at…
- Keywords: retired couple, capital gains tax, 0% tax bracket, vanguard total stock market etf, schwab us large-cap growth etf, invesco nasdaq 100 etf, cost basis reset, federal tax code, Retired, Couples, Harvest, 900
- Source: 24/7 Wall St. — https://247wallst.com/investing/etf/2026/09/22/a-retired-couple-can-sell-98900-of-gains-this-year-and-owe-the-irs-nothing-these-3-etfs-are-built-for-the-0-bracket
- Author: Ryne Mauck
- Published: 2026-09-22T21:10:41+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: retired couple, capital gains tax, 0% tax bracket, vanguard total stock market etf, schwab us large-cap growth etf, invesco nasdaq 100 etf, cost basis reset, federal tax code
## Tax-Free Gains for Retired Couples
A married-filing-jointly couple can realize up to $98,900 of long-term capital gains at 0% federal tax rate in 2026.
## How the 0% Bracket Works
Taxable income is calculated after deductions, allowing couples to sit on over $130,000 of gross income without owing federal tax on gains.
## Three ETFs for 0% Bracket
Vanguard Total Stock Market ETF (VTI), Schwab U.S. Large-Cap Growth ETF (SCHG), and Invesco NASDAQ 100 ETF (QQQM) are designed for tax-free gain harvesting.
## VTI: Market Coverage
VTI tracks the CRSP US Total Market Index, holding thousands of stocks across all sectors, with shares trading at $381 and up 16% over the past year.
## SCHG: Growth Focus
SCHG tracks the Dow Jones U.S. Large-Cap Growth index, with shares up 93.09% over five years and minimal dividends to preserve tax-free gains.
## QQQM: Tech Concentration
QQQM tracks the Nasdaq-100, with shares up 20.97% year-to-date and a trailing twelve-month distribution of $1.3053 per share.
## Trade-Offs for Tax-Free Gains
Realizing gains increases provisional income for Social Security and Medicare premiums, requiring careful modeling before selling.
## Tax Strategy Benefits
Done deliberately, this strategy lets retired couples compound market gains, reset cost basis yearly, and avoid federal tax on long-term capital gains.
## Key takeaway

Retired couples can sell up to $98,900 of long-term capital gains at 0% federal tax rate by resetting cost basis with these three ETFs.