TAX PLANNING SERVICES FOR HIGH-NET-WORTH WOMEN · FEE-ONLY · CFP®
Know next April’s tax bill now, and the ones after it.
Align works as your tax strategist. We find the tax planning opportunities in your situation, build the strategy across the next 10 years, and coordinate with your CPA, who prepares and files the return.
Tax preparation records what already happened. Tax planning changes what happens next. For a woman with significant assets, most of the savings come from decisions made before December 31, not from the return filed in April.
What is tax planning?
Tax planning is deciding, before the year ends, which income to recognize, which accounts to draw from, which conversions to make, and which gifts to give, so that the return in April reflects a plan instead of defaults. At this asset level it runs 10 years at a time, because the largest bills are set years in advance, such as required minimum distributions, Medicare surcharges, and the single-filer brackets a surviving spouse inherits.
The moves that decide the bill
The Roth conversion window
The years between the last paycheck and the first required distribution are the cheapest years to move money out of pre-tax accounts. The Roth conversion window explains how to size it.
The order you spend from
Taxable, pre-tax, and Roth accounts are drawn in a sequence that keeps you under the bracket and IRMAA lines. A $3 million pre-tax 401(k) shows what the default order costs.
Medicare’s 2-year lookback
Income at 63 sets the Part B premium at 65. The 2026 IRMAA tiers are the lines to plan around.
Withholding on vests and estimated payments
Equity is withheld at 22% federal, and a 35% bracket has to make up the difference. Estimated tax payments on RSUs walks through it.
The state you retire in
New Jersey, New York, and California each tax retirement income differently, and New Jersey’s retirement income exclusion has a cliff at $150,000. Retiring in a high-tax state compares the three.
The widow’s penalty
The same income is taxed harder on single brackets, often for decades. Why taxes rise after losing a spouse and the qualifying surviving spouse rules cover the years that follow.
Which shares to give
Appreciated stock given to charity skips the capital gain. Giving stock to charity shows how to choose the lots.
The plan behind each move
Every one of these decisions changes the answer to the others. The projection shows the reasoning, so each move is part of a strategy rather than isolated advice.
What is included in tax planning
When you onboard, we build an initial plan, the Wealth Blueprint™. Tax planning runs through every part of it, because the tax bill changes the answer to the retirement date, the investment mix, and the estate plan. These are the pieces that belong to the tax work.
A 10-year tax projection
Your return rebuilt in planning software, then projected forward 10 years with your salary, equity, pensions, Social Security, and required distributions on the calendar. The projection shows which years are cheap and which are expensive before they arrive.
The Roth conversion schedule
How much to convert each year, to which bracket line, and in which years, with the IRMAA and capital gains thresholds checked at the same time. The schedule is rerun every fall with the actual numbers before the December deadline.
Withholding and estimated payments
W-4 settings, IRA withholding, vest withholding, and quarterly estimates set to the bracket you are actually in, so April brings neither a penalty nor a refund that was really an interest-free loan.
Account order and asset location
Which accounts pay for which years, and which investments sit in taxable, pre-tax, and Roth accounts so the growth lands where it is taxed least. The order is written down and reviewed when income or the law changes.
Charitable, state, and estate coordination
Which lots to give, how a move between states changes the plan, and how the tax plan fits the beneficiary forms and the estate documents, all worked through with your CPA and estate attorney so no one is planning in a separate room.
Align Financial Solutions does not provide tax or legal advice. Please consult your CPA or attorney regarding your specific situation.
How the financial planning process works
The analysis is built in RightCapital and Holistiplan, then translated into plain language so you can see the trade-offs before you decide.
1. Organize and Align
- A first conversation about what you are trying to decide and what a good outcome looks like
- Statements, tax returns, benefits and equity documents, and estate papers gathered once, into one place
- Your one-page money map: where every dollar sits today and the job it has
2. Analyze and Collaborate
- Scenarios modeled side by side: retire at 58 against 62, convert this year against next, keep the stock against selling it
- A multi-year tax projection with the Roth window and the Medicare thresholds drawn on it
- A working session where you see the trade-offs in numbers and we say where the outcome is uncertain
3. Recommend and Implement
- Your Wealth Blueprint™ in writing: findings, recommendations in plain language, and the reasoning behind each one
- A prioritized action list that says who does what, and a table showing how long the money lasts under each path
- A short list of what we need from you, and what goes to your CPA or attorney
Align’s commitment to your financial freedom
Fee-only fiduciary
We work only for you: never for commissions or product sales. This means our advice is always aligned with your best interests, without conflicts of interest or hidden agendas.
Women-focused approach
We understand the unique financial challenges and opportunities women face. Our process is designed to address these realities while building your financial confidence and knowledge.
Emotional intelligence
Money decisions aren’t just about numbers: they involve emotions, values, and relationships. We create space for these important dimensions, helping you work through both the financial and personal aspects of money management.
Is Align the right tax strategist for you?
Our work fits women whose tax bill is decided by choices, not by a paycheck alone. You may be:
- Holding $1 million or more in pre-tax retirement accounts with required distributions ahead
- Vesting equity or taking a bonus that pushes the year into a higher bracket
- Planning to retire in New Jersey, New York, or California, or thinking about leaving one
- Recently widowed and facing single-filer brackets on the same income
- Giving to charity and wanting the gifts to come from the right shares
If your situation is simpler than that, we will tell you so on the call and point you toward better-fitting resources. If you want to see the whole method first, the Retirement Tax Playbook is the place to start, and our financial planning services cover the rest of the plan.
Tax planning guides and tools
The tax decisions we plan around are written up in detail on the blog, with the 2026 numbers and worked examples.
Tax planning vs tax filingThe Roth conversion windowIs a Roth conversion right for youIRMAA 2026The RMD tax bill on a $3M 401(k)Estimated taxes on RSUsNJ retirement income exclusionRetiring in a high-tax stateThe widow’s penaltyQualifying surviving spouseInherited IRA 10-year ruleGiving stock to charityRetirement Tax Playbook
Tax planning: questions, answered
What is the difference between tax planning and tax preparation?
Tax preparation reports the year that already happened and files the return. Tax planning happens before the year ends and decides what that return will say. It chooses which income to recognize, which accounts to draw from, which conversions to make, and which shares to give. Preparation is required every year. Planning is where the savings come from.
Do you prepare tax returns?
No. We do tax planning. We look for the tax planning opportunities in your situation and build the strategy, while your CPA prepares and files the return.
Should I convert to a Roth before required minimum distributions start?
It depends on your bracket today, the brackets you expect later, and what a conversion does to Medicare premiums and capital gains rates along the way. For some women the years between the last paycheck and the first required distribution are the best window they will ever have. For others a conversion adds tax now with little benefit later. The projection answers it for your numbers, and the answer comes with the reasoning behind it.
How does tax planning work with my CPA?
We share the projection and the plan with your CPA, confirm the numbers before year-end, and hand over a clean record of conversions, gifts, and estimated payments at filing time. If you do not have a CPA, we can suggest the kind of preparer your situation needs.
How much does tax planning cost at Align?
Align is fee-only: you pay us directly and no one else pays us, so there are no commissions anywhere in the relationship. The fee for your engagement is quoted in writing before you sign, and the full schedule is in our Form ADV Part 2A. We walk through it on the first call.
Do you work with women outside New Jersey?
Yes. We are based in Hoboken, New Jersey, but we work with clients across the country virtually, and most of our client meetings happen online.
Start with this year’s return
You do not need to organize anything first. Bring last year’s return to a free 15-minute Align Call, and we will tell you what we see and whether Align is the right advice team for you.