I’ve talked before about how most financial advisors don’t actually do tax planning…
But what do I really mean by that?
Here’s a real example.
Let’s say you sold a stock, a piece of real estate, or some cryptocurrency near the end of the year.
The sale generated a large gain.
Maybe your advisor told you there wasn’t much you could do because the year was already over.
So you paid the tax.
If you’re in a higher tax bracket, that gain could be subject to a 20% federal capital gains tax, a 3.8% Medicare surtax, and potentially state taxes as well.
That’s a painful check to write.
But here’s the interesting part.
In some cases, there may have been planning opportunities available to reduce—or even eliminate—a significant portion of that federal tax burden.
The problem is that most advisors never look for them.
Because “that’s tax planning”.
Instead they simply see the gain, calculate the tax, and move on.
But a good advisor looks for strategies before, during, and after the transaction to potentially reduce the tax impact.
That’s the difference between preparing for taxes…
and simply paying them.
And that’s just one example.
Taxes are often the area where a good advisor can save you the most money.
To find out more, check out “The Tax Myth”.
You can download it HERE.