Before the winter holidays are in full swing, it’s an ideal time to begin your year-end financial planning. Most people, including business owners, recognize the importance of a thoughtful and strategic approach to the end of the year, which can yield tax savings, investment opportunities, and an improved cash flow. And yet, few people do it right.

Why? There’s an emotional element to end-of-year planning: It can feel overwhelming or downright dreadful to carve out time in your busy schedule for what’s often a complicated task.

In reality, getting your end-of-the-year planning correct is easily within reach. Our team can work with you to make sure you can turn over the calendar with confidence, knowing your financial future has been shaped with your goals in mind.

How to think about year-end planning

Sure, there’s a lot of tax minutiae involved with year-end planning. But you should think about this moment as an opportunity to gain valuable insights: What did your money do for you over the past year? How can it function better to achieve your goals?

It’s often helpful to take a step back, even before analyzing the nitty-gritty numbers in your portfolio, and consider whether or not you and your business are turning over every stone.

Some of the questions people neglect to ask themselves include:

• Are you fully recognizing capital gains?
• Should you convert any traditional IRAs into Roths?
• Is your tax plan for the end of the year sufficient?

Recognizing capital gains

Often, reducing your tax liability is simply a matter of acting on the right information. If you know that you’ll be subject to higher taxes in the future, there are strategies you can deploy to take advantage of the lower rates in the meantime — such as timing the sale of your assets before the end of the year.

High-income earners with annual income over $200,000, in addition to owing taxes on long-term capital gains, must pay a 3.8 percent net investment income tax (NIIT), which can substantially increase their liability. If you know that you’ll trigger the NIIT in the future or will be elevated into a higher capital-gains tax bracket, you can execute certain investment strategies in the months before the change takes effect — reducing how much you’ll owe in the future.

Converting IRAs

Many high-income earners believe they are ineligible for the tax benefits of a Roth IRA due to the associated income limits. In 2025, individuals making more than $150,000, along with couples making more than $236,000 (based on their modified adjusted gross income), faced restrictions on how much they could contribute to a Roth account. However, there are more ways to invest than a standard deposit.

Roth conversions are especially popular among high-income earners. This refers to when an investor transfers the balance of a tax-deferred account, such as a traditional IRA, into a Roth IRA. Although you still need to pay income tax on the money that ends up in your Roth, you can reap the benefits of tax-free withdrawals down the road — effectively, getting around the income limits. And because investors can stretch out the conversion over the course of up to five years, it’s possible to spread the tax impact over time.

Tax planning and deductions

In order to close out the year on a financial high note, you’ll want to embrace every tax deduction at your disposal. Especially after the passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), it’s imperative that businesses and high-net-worth individuals properly account for this new landscape in the tax code.

In tandem with your advisor, consider some of the following end-of-year strategies that might benefit your bottom line:

• SALT deductions: The OBBBA expanded and enhanced the SALT deduction cap, which is designed to lower the state and local tax burden on high-income earners.
• Bonus Depreciation: Businesses are eligible for a 100% bonus depreciation on capital expenses, including equipment, technology, and some property costs.
• Bunching Charitable Donations: High-net-worth individuals can pool or “bunch” multiple years of charitable contributions into a single year, which offers several tax and financial benefits.

These, along with many more strategies, are best explored with a fiduciary or advisor.

Incorporating charitable giving into your planning

High-net-worth individuals now have access to a range of investment vehicles for philanthropic giving. While end-of-year donations in the form of a check may still make sense for some people, a trusted advisor can help you explore additional options that become increasingly relevant at the end of the year, such as:

• Donor-Advised Funds (DAFs): Similar to a charitable investment account, a DAF is a strategy for long-term giving without the hassle of managing a foundation. You can contribute cash, securities, and other assets into a DAF, realize the tax benefits, and then later decide which organizations you’d like to support.
• Charitable Remainder Trusts: This vehicle is a trust designed to benefit a charity while also allowing certain beneficiaries, for a set period of time, to receive income from the trust’s assets.
• Foundations: If you, your family, or your business has a clear vision for the causes that matter to you the most, it might be time to set up a foundation, which is managed by a board of directors, often including family members, in perpetuity.

A new year always brings changes to tax rates and annual exclusions. Here are a few of the changes to keep in mind for 2026:

• Annual gift exclusion: Remains steady at $19,000
• Lifetime estate exclusion: $15 million, up from $13,990,000 for 2025
• Standard deduction: $16,100 for single filers; $32,200 for married couples

Take the next step

With an experienced advisor by your side, year-end planning can be a breeze. At Peak, we specialize in guiding high-net-worth clients through all of their options, turning planning into action. Now is the ideal time to develop a strategy that aligns with your long-term goals and fosters a lasting legacy for your family.

Let’s have a conversation about how we can set you up for success in 2026 — and beyond. Reach out today to schedule a meeting.