Considering the tax-law changes, I am wondering what experts here think about the advantages of rolling over IRAs/legacy 401ks into Roth-IRAs. Likelihood of legislative changes to bring the tax rates back up after 2-4 years seems high.

This article seems like a good 2018 read for market forecast returns:
Some sniglets:

Quote: I totally reject the notion that bonds have more risk than stocks. A broadly diversified stock fund has more risk in a day than a similarly diversified high-quality bond fund, such as iShares Aggregate Bond Fund (AGG), has in a year. Never forget that on Black Monday 1987, stocks lost over 20% in one day, which equates to six standard deviations (six sigma) of the AGG in one year, meaning it should happen no more often than once out of every 294,117 years.

seven-warning-signs-of-market-gurus-and-which-forecasts-you-can-trust

Well ... well ... well! What do we have here?
There are many ways to price the market. I can remember within the past couple of years Liz Ann Sonders of Charles Schwab use to tout the Rule of Twenty as being plenty. I have not heard her speak much on P/E Ratios recently.
Old_Skeet uses a blended P/E approach using both the TTM and FE. In this way credit is given for what stocks have done and are expected to produce. Then, I apply the Rule of Twenty as being plenty. My number computes to a P/E ratio of 20.7 as of market close 12/29/17. Still pricey at this number indicating the 500 Index is about 4% overvalued, by my p/e mythology.
The 500 Index Blended P/E ratio is one of the feeds I use in my market barometer.
And, so it goes ...

@davfor Thank you for your advice. As you manage your sister investment what is an average withdrawal rate to compensate expenses and to refill her emergency fund ? Does her portfolio balance gradually decrease and, if yes, how many years you plan to get income from the investment?

I made several moves today:
-Trimmed POAGX. I know that this is a violation of the rule of "let your winners run", but it hit the dollar threshold where my rules say to take some profit. Oh well...the proceeds go to this year's spend bucket.
-Established an initial position in ROSOX, a fund which has received some attention on this thread. I put this on my watch list ever since the fund holdings first came out last year and I saw with some surprise that a third of the holdings were in Japan. I hadn't given Japan any thought in years...but it turns out that this was a great call. This fund touches the bases where I need support, and fits in nicely with a combination of Matthews, Seafarer, Artisan, FMI and GP in my accounts to cover the breadth of foreign holdings, each with solid managers.
-I got tired of a large cash balance waiting for a consolidation, so I put a slug of cash to work in current holdings which I think are good for near term income and performance in spite of a future bump in rates...PIFZX, SSTHX, TGINX, and ZEOIX.

FYI: As the S&P 500 climbs higher and higher, its trailing 12-month P/E ratio continues to climb as well. And there won’t be much opportunity for multiple compression until the bulk of S&P 500 companies report Q4 numbers in late January.
As shown below, the S&P’s 12-month P/E is now at 22.88 — just a hair below 23.
Below is a chart showing the S&P’s P/E ratio going back to 1980. The line is red when the P/E ratio is above the level it’s at right now. As you can see, there have only been a few periods over the last 35+ years where the index’s P/E was higher. It didn’t once get above this level during the 2002-2007 bull market, but it was consistently above 23 during the final three years of the bull market that ended in early 2000. From 1998 to 2000, the S&P’s P/E expanded from 23 up to 30+ as the Dot Com bubble reached its zenith. Over this period, the S&P experienced a massive rally as the Tech sector soared. While valuations are indeed elevated right now, we always note that high valuations alone are not a catalyst for corrections or bear markets.
Regards,
Ted
https://www.bespokepremium.com/think-big-blog/sp-500-pe-ratio-approaching-23/

FWIW
I have been handling the brokerage investment account for a disabled sister for almost 20 years. Periodic withdrawals from that account together with SS (previously SSDI) have been her only source of income since her husband passed away several years ago. (By income, I mean dollars available to pay for living expenses. This could include some withdrawals of principal as I think on a total return basis.)
My first thought is there needs to be a set-aside of CASH. At minimum, I would suggest a 1 year set-aside, significantly more if rapidly increasing medical expenses are a significant concern. That set-aside provides a cushion for emergencies and also helps you to roll with the punches through the decades as the markets churn.
The comments @bee made about VWINX make sense to me. That fund has been around since the mid-1970's and has successfully navigated both rising and falling interest rate environments as well as both bear and bull stock markets. The comments @LewisBraham made about the challenging current market environment also make sense to me. So, going 100% into VWINX does not currently seem advisable to me. My SWAG suggestion would be putting maybe 35% of the assets available for investment into VWINX.
The general idea behind the suggestions @LewisBraham make for an investment mix also makes sense to me -- for the remaining 65% of the assets available for investment. My sister's account has included both RPAGX and ZEOIX since January 2016 (January is when most portfolio changes for the year are made).
VWAHX makes sense to me with maybe a little VWEHX mixed in if medical expenses will keep taxes from being an issue. Taxes might not be an issue anyway given the new personal exemption limits. That's something to look into.
Including a multi-sector bond fund in the mix also makes sense to to me - @Mark suggested PONDX. That fund has significantly outperformed VWINX when viewed since inception in 2007 due to its relatively strong performance during the bear stock market. But, can it continue to perform that well? Perhaps mixing it 50/50 with PTIAX in this component of the portfolio would make sense. Lumping GTEYX into your thinking about multi-sector bonds might also make sense.
If rapidly rising medical expenses are a potential concern, including a conservative bond fund such as DLSNX also makes sense to me. Holding a fund like this can also be a comfort when the markets turn against the portfolio.
A final thought. There needs to be some flexibility to decrease the withdrawal rate in the years following a major market decline unless STRICT NECESSITY does not permit this to happen. Otherwise, accepting the strong possibility/probability of the portfolio being exhausted as some point in the future is necessary.
I hope these general comments are helpful.....

Creative thinking is necessary.

I don't have any reason to doubt what DavidV or this person suggested but I'd look hard at the budget. A 4.8% consistent real return gets easier if you're able to reduce the costs in the beginning and allow the assets to do more work for you, especially while inflation is still relatively low.
It may not be possible or palatable but if this person lives in a high cost of living place it might be worth considering relocation as a way of reducing costs.
And if there's any possibility to work, even at a low wage job, increasing income reduces the burden on those assets, helps even with boredom and feeling productive, and provides an opportunity to build a slightly bigger nest egg for the future.
The most important years are those at the beginning because the impact gets compounded for many years to come.

What would you recommend to maximize his investment income?

The investment should be safe as there is no other money to live on.

I think this is the crux of the problem when trying to give advice on this. These 2 "wants" are contradictions. Old_Joe made this point a couple times. Basically expecting to withdraw $24k and increasing each year for inflation and wanting it to last 45+ years has little probability of succeeding with any 60:40 or even 80:20 portfolio for that matter. The 4% rule I believe is based on a 25 or 30 year life span. Bee spelled it out in her post. Hate to be a wet blanket, but anything less than 100% equities probably can't last.
Maybe it is more realistic to plan 20 years and reevaluate circumstances periodically.
P.S., here is where Monte Carlo would be helpful at least for a realistic view of expectations.

I've posted this article in the past, but seemed worth re-posting:
From Article:

Criteria:
The Retirement Income withdrawal will be 4% of the beginning investment value with each successive year's withdrawal increasing by 3% to allow for inflation. Any dividends collected in excess of this will be accumulated in a money market account (MMA) until the year the mutual fund produces less in dividend income than is required and the difference between the next year's household income need and the dividend collected is taken from the MMF. I'm assuming the interest rate on the MMA is zero. If the collective cash reserve is not sufficient…or non-existent…and the dividend collected that year is not sufficient to meet household income need, then sufficient shares will be sold at the end of the year to provide the required cash. This is repeated each December at the end of the month (last trading day).
VWINX is the clear winner. Providing 25 years of inflation adjusted 4% annual distributions with a residual value over 89% greater than its beginning value.

Article:
long-term-growing-income-open-end-mutual-fund-possible

If you want stability, income and some consistency, I would examine how funds performed in 2008 and other volatile years. For a pure fund portfolio I would recommend a combination of the following funds:
GTEYX
ZEOIX
VWAHX
SGHIX or RPGAX
Maybe 20% or 25% in each. You probably could get a fairly stable 4% annualized out of that. Maybe more, although I haven't run the combined numbers. For a little extra oomph you could add a small weighting to some less volatile emerging market fund.

I was asked to help building investment portfolio for a single disable person of 40 years old, having $500K in savings. The person does not own property, most likely, will not be able to work in the future, and his only income will be social security disability insurance benefits (about $1000/month) and income from investment. What would you recommend to maximize his investment income?

I bought CNRYX in part because of its nearly perfect tax efficiency in all previous years. But this year it distributed about 7%...

Another goal is to get even more fit and healthy. I don’t see the point of accumulating wealth if you can’t enjoy it by being both physically and mentally active. At my age I could go at anytime so want to hike and explore as much as possible while I am still here and able. Good luck to all in 2018!

Great stuff @Junkster. Fitness has been a daily habit of mine for several years now. Actually resumed bicycling at 68 or 69 and love it. My passion has always been “going somewhere” by plane since I first flew in 1974. So as long as I can walk, crawl or hobble out to an aircraft I’ll keep going. To the Keys in March. Afraid they’ll look a lot different after Irma.
Like you, I’ll eventually consolidate my fund investments. T. Rowe will be the place.
Regards

FYI: While index funds have had their share of critics, they could always rely on academia to defend them. Until now.
A small but growing number of academics are arguing that index funds are “evil” and “strangling the economy.” (These quotations are from the headline of a September article in the Atlantic magazine.)
If such attacks widen, index funds could face significantly higher costs in coming years even if they successfully fend off the legal challenges spawned by those academic naysayers.
Regards,
Ted
https://www.marketwatch.com/story/look-whos-attacking-index-funds-now-2018-01-02/print

At years end I sold a lot of TIBIX and divided it between the Rondure funds ROSOX and RNWOX. Frankly it's primarily a play on the management and ownership.

@Mark, I like it. Why both Rondure funds though? I've been 'pondering' a switch from SGENX to RNWOX myself. Just a thought right now.

At years end I sold a lot of TIBIX and divided it between the Rondure funds ROSOX and RNWOX. Frankly it's primarily a play on the management and ownership.
Trying to decide what to do with M now that the holiday shopping season is over. Otherwise just sitting on my hands.

Hi guys!
Hope all is well with all of you. I know it's been good here.....too much food followed by too many longnecks with family and friends. Moe and Larry were over.....big pow wow again. We all agree. We believe we're going higher this year. Just to catch up: opened positions in FLPSX and MAPIX. My midcaps were expensive on PE and book. FLPSX, not so, plus it had cash, so how could I not. MAPIX has very little Asia except Japan. Got lots there, so I needed this.
Anyways, back to the pow wow. We were kicking around some small funds. The Dukester really liked PREOX. Why? It's small......real small. We believe things will be getting better this year. So I can see his point. Small is good right now. Me? I like PVIVX. Why? It's concentrated and it's got some girls running it.....think diversification.....yee haw!!!! Moe and Larry? They like WAMVX. Can't blame them for that. It's the safe buy.
Talked to Santa after Duke cornered him....short chat, but we told Santa we believe. He just smiled, so I think he does, too. So, even though I don't make millions of dollars, my call: higher boys! Also, if you're thinking about Latin America this year, more elections there than in the last 10 years. Just saying......
Also, watch Italy this year if you own GLFOX. Elections also there.
Also, the slowest 3 months for imports are coming: January, February, March. We will now see what the weather did in 2017.
Also, the Dukester told me we did not wish anyone on the board a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! As punishment for this, I will penalize myself 1 (one) longneck every day for the rest of the week, and.....say Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all!
God bless
the Pudd

I just checked BEARX for comparison. Somewhat worse than HSGFX - down about 15% yearly for 5 years. There’s a lesson here. Damn tough trying to call the markets.
Best lesson for me was buying 1 K’s worth of gold coins in the late 70s during all the hype. And than adding to that as the metal slowly declined from $800 to $400-$500 over the next decade. Just when you thought it couldn’t possibly go any lower it would fall again. Cost me a bit, but one of the best investing lessons I ever had.
I don’t see that experience as limited to gold. Any market can blindside & confound you. They can absolutely defy every ounce of logic you possess.

"FYI: Investors weren't challenged to make money in 2017. It was almost impossible to lose it."
Nevertheless, HSGFX persisted in keeping their losing streak alive. What is that like 8-9 years running now? Rockstar!