Year end financial planning doesn’t have to be a scramble
By Whittier Trust
The end of a calendar year comes packed with holidays, family gatherings, and important financial deadlines. It also presents opportunities to coordinate and possibly revise decisions about taxes, investments, and estate planning before the new year begins.
“As a team of advisors whose job it is to vigilantly manage all aspects of our clients’ financial landscapes, we’re not just thinking about year end wealth planning,” says Whittier Trust Senior Vice President, Client Advisor Edward Troy. “We help families identify the financial decisions worth addressing before the year closes, from tax and investment considerations to estate plans, trusts, charitable intentions, and major life changes. We review these areas together throughout the year, so that year end decisions support the family’s broader financial strategy.”
The close of the calendar is a great time to consider a renewed look at year end wealth and tax planning for high net worth individuals and families. Here are some of the key things to consider with the help of your advisors.
1. Start early and get the right people in the room
The end of the year can feel hectic, so financial matters are best reviewed in advance of the holiday rush and before deadlines start to become urgent. Throughout the year, Whittier Trust advisors have continuous dialogue and coordinate with clients’ accountants, estate attorneys, insurance professionals, and any outside advisors to help identify opportunities and priorities that should be addressed. “The earlier we coordinate with the key outside advisors, the more time we have to execute on our goals and accomplish them in a timely manner,” Troy notes. “These important financial decisions and actions should never feel like a fire drill at the end of the year.”
2. Review gains and losses in your portfolio
When clients have significant capital gains from profitable investments, one way to offset the tax burden is to employ a tax-loss harvesting strategy. Tax loss harvesting involves selling investments in a taxable account at a loss and using those losses to offset realized capital gains. The proceeds can then be reinvested in a similar but not substantially identical investment so the portfolio remains invested while complying with the IRS wash sale rule. If losses exceed gains, up to $3,000 of net capital losses may generally be used to offset taxable income, with any remaining losses carried forward to future tax years. Used thoughtfully, tax loss harvesting can reduce current taxes and improve after tax investment results over time. “While many people tend to focus on tax loss harvesting towards the end of the year, here at Whittier Trust, we are actively monitoring our clients portfolio throughout the year and implementing this strategy whenever appropriate,” Troy says.
3. Check retirement distributions and how you’ll use them
Required minimum distributions, or RMDs, generally begin at age 73, but if you were born in 1960 or later they start at age 75. RMDs are the amount you’re legally required to withdraw each year from certain tax-deferred retirement accounts such as traditional IRAs, SEP IRAs, SIMPLE IRAs and certain workplace retirement accounts, although eligible employees may be able to postpone RMDs until retirement.
Most annual RMDs are due by December 31st. However, a first RMD can generally be delayed until April 1st of the following year, potentially requiring two distributions in that year. “I always like to bring this up to clients who are approaching taking their first RMD, and run them through various scenarios to help determine if it makes sense to take two distributions in one year or not,” Troy says.
It’s important to consider how these withdrawals fit into their spending and possible charitable plans. For those 70 ½ or older, a qualified charitable distribution (QCD) made directly from an eligible IRA to an eligible charity can count towards an RMD and exclude the qualifying amount from income. For 2026, the QCD limit is $111,000 per individual. This is particularly valuable in 2026 and onward, since the One Big Beautiful Bill partially limits charitable contribution deductions for taxpayers who itemize deductions and are in the highest marginal tax bracket. It’s important to note that donor-advised funds are not eligible recipients.
4. Make sure your portfolio still matches your risk tolerance and goals
After a decades-long bull run, many portfolios may look different than when they were originally constructed. Market gains can shift a portfolio away from its target allocation, increasing risk without any deliberate change in strategy. Now is a great time to revisit your investment policy statement and portfolio with your advisor to determine whether the portfolio still reflects your risk tolerance, liquidity needs, and long term objectives.
“You might have much more equity exposure than you realize,” Troy explains. “For example, a portfolio that began with 70% in equities and 30% in fixed income could have drifted to 77% equities and 23% fixed income, given how much growth there’s been in equities over the last few years. At Whittier, we regularly review the investment policy statement to make sure the allocation remains consistent with the client’s objectives.”
5. Plan for the Opportunity Zone tax deadlines
Investors with gains deferred under the original Opportunity Zone rules face a fixed deadline in 2026. As a reminder, the Opportunity Zone program was created by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Acts of 2017. It incentivized investors to invest in funds designated to stimulate development and job growth in low-income communities nationwide by offering significant federal capital gains tax deferral. Any remaining deferred gain from the original program needs to be recognized on December 31, 2026, unless an earlier inclusion event applies. For calendar year individuals, that gain is reported on their 2026 federal income tax return, generally filed in 2027. “Advisors should be coordinating with clients and their accountants to determine estimated payments, liquidity needs and how the recognized gains affect their overall tax picture,” Troy says. “The last thing you want is to start the new year with an unexpected tax bill.”
6. Review estate plans, beneficiaries, and family changes
Major life events, including marriages, births, divorces, and deaths are a reason to revisit estate plans and beneficiary designations. Clients should review those named to serve as trustees, guardians, and executors, and to confirm that the account titles and beneficiary forms reflect the intended plan. “Any major life event, not only for you and your partner, but also for those around you, can impact the way you’ll want to structure your estate. That’s why at Whittier Trust, we like to present clients with their estate diagrams for them to review and make sure no changes need to be made in coordination with their estate attorney,” says Troy.
7. Match goals with a charitable giving strategy
The end of the year is a prime time for thinking about charitable giving, but it doesn’t need to be consigned to one season. Charitable planning should reflect both the causes a family cares about and the tax consequences of how and when gifts are made. “Step one is recognizing that you want to be charitable or philanthropic. The second step is where we come in,” Troy says. Whittier Trust’s philanthropy team helps families evaluate gifts of cash or appreciated securities and giving structures such as donor advised funds and private foundations, while coordinating eligible IRA distributions with the broader charitable plan.
Beginning in 2026, individuals who itemize generally may deduct charitable contributions only to the extent they exceed 0.5% of their adjusted gross income, subject to other applicable limits. “This makes it especially important for us to coordinate gift timing, asset selection, and appropriate documentation with our clients to help both maximize clients’ impact and minimize their tax burden,” Troy explains.
No matter the season, Whittier Trust clients don’t have to go it alone. Our dedicated team of advisors has an ongoing dialogue with individual clients and families, staying vigilant about milestone birthdays, ongoing goals, shifting priorities, and much more.
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Edward Troy is a Senior Vice President, Client Advisor in Whittier Trust’s Pasadena office. He brings nearly two decades of experience to his mission of building and maintaining relationships with clients and their networks of professional advisors to deliver cohesive, bespoke guidance on complex financial matters to high-net-worth individuals and families.