Your Taxes Are Probably Your Biggest Lifetime Expense. Let's Do Something About It.
Most financial advisors manage your investments and hand you off to a CPA in April. At Westhollow, tax strategy is built into your financial plan from day one — not added on later, not outsourced, and never treated as an afterthought. We work alongside your CPA so that every major financial decision you make is filtered through the question: what does this cost in taxes, and how do we reduce that number?
Most Advisors Don't Look at Your Tax Return. We Make It Part of the Plan.
For high earners in Milton, Alpharetta, and across North Atlanta, the gap between a good financial plan and a great one often comes down to one thing: how aggressively your advisor is working to reduce your lifetime tax burden. Georgia's state income tax rate sits at 5.49% in 2024, and while the state exempts Social Security income from taxation, most other retirement income is still on the table. That means the decisions you make now — about Roth conversions, account structure, charitable giving, and distribution timing — can shift tens of thousands of dollars over the course of your retirement.
The Retirement Tax Problem Most People Don't See Coming
If you've spent your career maxing out a 401(k) or traditional IRA, you've built a significant asset — and a future tax liability. Every dollar in a pre-tax account will eventually be taxed as ordinary income, either when you withdraw it or when the IRS forces you to through required minimum distributions. For high earners who've saved well, that can mean a substantial jump in taxable income right at the point in life when you were expecting your tax bill to go down.
The solution isn't to stop saving in pre-tax accounts. It's to build a tax-diversification strategy that gives you flexibility in retirement — a mix of taxable, tax-deferred, and tax-free assets that lets you control your income and your tax bracket year by year. Roth conversion analysis is a core part of how we build that flexibility, particularly during the years between retirement and the start of Social Security and RMDs, when the conversion window is often most favorable.
A Lifetime Tax Strategy, Not a One-Year Plan
Tax planning done well isn't about this April. It's about building a multi-year roadmap that optimizes your tax position across every stage of your financial life — peak earning years, the transition into retirement, the RMD years, and the estate transfer at the end. That kind of planning requires someone who knows your full financial picture and is thinking several years ahead at all times.
We use multi-year tax projections to identify the optimal path for your specific situation — when to convert, how much to convert, when to harvest losses, how to structure charitable giving, and how to sequence your income sources in retirement to minimize what you owe. The best time to have started this was a decade ago. The second best time is now.
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Helpful answers for people preparing for what’s next.
Does Westhollow prepare my tax returns?
No. Westhollow is a financial planning and investment management firm, not a CPA firm. We do not prepare tax returns. Our role is to build your tax strategy, review your return annually for planning opportunities, and coordinate with your CPA on implementation. If you don't have a CPA, we can help connect you with one.What is a Roth conversion and why does it matter?
A Roth conversion is the process of moving money from a pre-tax account — like a traditional IRA or 401(k) — into a Roth IRA, paying income tax on the converted amount now in exchange for tax-free growth and withdrawals later. For clients with large pre-tax balances, converting strategically during lower-income years (often between retirement and the start of RMDs) can significantly reduce lifetime taxes and give you more control over your income in retirement.What is tax loss harvesting and how does it work?
Tax loss harvesting is the practice of selling investments that have declined in value to realize a loss that can offset taxable gains elsewhere in your portfolio. At Westhollow, we monitor client accounts throughout the year — not just in December — for harvesting opportunities. Over time, this ongoing process can meaningfully improve your after-tax investment returns.What is a Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD)?
A QCD allows individuals who are 70½ or older to transfer up to $105,000 per year directly from an IRA to a qualified charity. The distribution counts toward your required minimum distribution but does not appear as taxable income — making it significantly more efficient than taking the RMD, paying taxes on it, and then donating. For charitably inclined clients in the right situation, it's one of the most effective tax strategies available.How does Westhollow approach tax strategy for high earners who are still working?
For clients in peak earning years, we focus on contribution optimization, bracket management, and building the tax diversification that will give you flexibility in retirement. That means coordinating across 401(k), Roth, HSA, and taxable accounts — and in some cases, exploring backdoor Roth contributions or after-tax 401(k) conversions. We also review your return annually to identify deduction opportunities and flag decisions that could be made differently before the next filing year.