Have you ever felt like your retirement plan was more of a "hope for the best" strategy than a clear roadmap? You aren’t alone. Between navigating a 401(k), managing a defined benefit plan, or making sense of the Thrift Savings Plan (TSP), the sheer number of choices can feel like a second job.

I often tell my clients that the goal isn't just to reach retirement; it’s to reach it with a sense of certainty. This starts with bringing clarity to those complex choices, maximizing your tax advantages, and ensuring your plan actually delivers when you need it most. After all, you’ve worked too hard to leave your future to chance.

For many the biggest financial threat in retirement isn’t market volatility—it’s the cost of long-term care.

With nursing home care averaging over $8,000 per month and home care costs steadily rising, preparing for this possibility has become a core part of financial planning. Yet traditional long-term care (LTC) insurance often falls short—offering limited flexibility, rising premiums, and the risk of unused benefits.

Let’s be honest: December is chaotic. Between holiday shopping, travel plans, and trying to wrap up work before the New Year, sitting down to look at your finances probably feels like the last thing you want to do.

But here’s a behavioral finance truth: Clarity cures anxiety.

Taking just 20 minutes now to run through a simple checklist can save you money on taxes, keep your portfolio healthy, and let you enjoy the holidays with true peace of mind. Think of this not as "homework," but as a gift to your future self.

Here are the essential moves to consider before the ball drops on New Year’s Eve.

Let’s be honest: running a small business involves enough red tape without adding complex retirement plan testing to the mix. Many business owners find themselves frustrated by "top-heavy" tests that limit how much they can contribute to their own retirement. Or worse, they are missing out on significant tax savings.

If this sounds familiar, a Safe Harbor 401(k) might be the strategic solution you’ve been looking for to reduce headaches and maximize savings.

Estate planning is an important process that helps individuals organize their financial and personal affairs for the future. A well-structured plan can help clarify how assets should be handled and distributed while addressing key considerations such as healthcare decisions and legal documents. Taking time to create or update an estate plan can help align arrangements with personal preferences and family needs. Below, we’ll discuss estate planning essentials to help you build a comprehensive plan.

We all have deadlines. Some are small, like remembering to take the trash out. Others are huge, like filing your taxes.

In retirement, there’s a new deadline that joins the "huge" list: The Required Minimum Distribution, or RMD.

It sounds complicated, but the idea is simple. If you have a traditional retirement account (like a 401(k) or traditional IRA), you’ve been letting that money grow without paying taxes on it. The RMD is just the government's way of saying, "Alright, time to start paying the taxes you owe."

It can feel strange. After decades of saving, being forced to take money out can make anyone feel a little anxious. But RMDs are a normal part of the financial journey, and they are nothing to fear when you have a plan.

Year-end tax strategy or unnecessary shuffle? Let’s take a closer look.

As the calendar year winds down, many investors start thinking about ways to reduce their tax liability. One strategy that often comes up is tax-loss harvesting—selling investments at a loss to offset gains realized elsewhere in your portfolio.

But like most tax strategies, the right move depends on your specific situation.

At Stahlnecker Wealth Management Group, we encourage clients to consider the whole picture before making any moves. Here’s what you should know.

What Is Tax-Loss Harvesting?

Tax-loss harvesting is the process of selling investments that are currently worth less than what you paid for them—realizing a loss that can be used to offset capital gains elsewhere in your portfolio.

What if the most important part of your financial plan isn’t a number—but a conversation?

When people think about financial planning, they often picture spreadsheets, retirement accounts, or estate documents. But behind every plan is a family. And behind every family is a story—one that can be either united by communication or divided by silence.

At Stahlnecker Wealth Management Group, we believe there’s one conversation that can change everything: The Family Financial Summit.

It’s Not Just Procrastination—It’s Human Nature

We know we need to do it. We understand it’s important. And yet, estate planning is one of the most delayed and avoided financial decisions among adults of every age group.

It’s not because people are careless. It’s because they’re human.

At Stahlnecker Wealth Management Group, we’ve found that the reasons people delay estate planning are deeply behavioral—rooted in psychology, emotion, and avoidance patterns that are incredibly common… but also incredibly costly.

Understanding why we delay is the first step to doing something about it.

Facing Our Own Mortality

Let’s name the elephant in the room: estate planning makes us confront death—our own, and the possibility of loved ones navigating life without us.

That kind of reflection doesn’t come easy. So, we:

• Delay the conversation

• Push the paperwork

• Tell ourselves we’ll “get to it next year”

But death is not a risk—it’s a certainty. The question isn’t if your estate plan will matter. It’s when.

As the end of the year approaches, most people think about charitable contributions, RMDs, or harvesting tax losses. But there’s another often-overlooked strategy that can reduce your taxable income if you own a business, rental property, or regularly invest in physical assets:

Tangible Property Regulations (TPRs)

These IRS guidelines govern how you treat purchases and improvements of things like equipment, buildings, and repairs. And when understood correctly, they can offer immediate tax deductions instead of long-term depreciation schedules—freeing up cash flow and reducing taxable income right when you need it.

What Are Tangible Property Regulations?

In simple terms, TPRs help determine whether a purchase or repair should be capitalized (added to the balance sheet and depreciated over years) or expensed (deducted immediately).

This matters because immediate expensing lowers your current tax bill. And year-end is the perfect time to take stock of purchases, repairs, and improvements to see where opportunities exist.

When it comes to protecting your family and your wealth, the conversation often begins with investments. But even the best investment plan can run into unexpected roadblocks if your estate plan isn’t aligned. The way your accounts are titled—and whether or not you have proper wills and trusts in place—can make the difference between a smooth transfer of assets and a costly, time-consuming probate process.

Why Probate Matters

Probate is the legal process of settling an estate after death. While it serves an important function, probate is often public, expensive, and slow. Assets may be tied up for months—or even years—before beneficiaries receive them. For families, this delay often creates unnecessary stress during an already difficult time.

The good news: with proper planning, much of probate can be avoided

When most people hear the phrase estate planning, they picture multimillionaires with vacation homes, business holdings, and complicated tax strategies. But that misconception keeps too many families from putting a plan in place—and that mistake can be costly.

Here’s the truth: if you care about what happens to your money, your family, or your healthcare decisions, you need an estate plan. Full stop.

It’s About Control—Not Just Assets

Estate planning isn’t just about how much you have. It’s about making sure what you do have is handled according to your wishes.

• Who would make medical decisions for you if you couldn’t?

• Who gets access to your accounts—or your online records?

• What happens to your home, your retirement accounts, or your business?

Without a plan, state law—not your loved ones—makes those decisions. And the results are often slow, public, and painful.

When Life Changes, So Should Your Protection

Insurance is one of those things most people set up and rarely revisit—until they file a claim and realize the coverage isn’t what they thought it was.

But here’s the truth: risk isn’t static. It evolves as your life, income, assets, and responsibilities grow. The coverage you set up five, ten, or twenty years ago might not reflect your current reality—or the risks you’re actually facing today.

That’s why reviewing your insurance isn’t about fear. It’s about alignment.

Healthcare Isn’t Just a Medical Issue—It’s a Financial One

You can be doing everything right—saving diligently, investing wisely, planning for retirement—and still feel blindsided by one of the most persistent financial threats facing families today: rising healthcare costs.

Whether it’s unexpected surgery, long-term prescriptions, or the mounting cost of care as we age, the numbers don’t lie—healthcare is getting more expensive, faster than most people realize.

The question isn’t if this will impact your financial plan. It’s how prepared are you when it does?

In Today’s Climate, Protection Isn’t Paranoia—It’s Wisdom

We live in a world where lawsuits are more common than ever. Whether it’s a car accident, a business dispute, or an unexpected liability tied to rental property or professional services, your assets—what you’ve spent a lifetime building—can be vulnerable.

That’s where asset protection comes in. It’s not about hiding wealth or gaming the system. It’s about proactive stewardship—putting thoughtful structures in place so that your financial future is secure, regardless of what the world throws your way.

Here’s what every family should understand about protecting their wealth in a litigious world.

More Than a Payout: Using Insurance to Shape What You Leave Behind

When most people think of life insurance, they think of it as a simple death benefit: money that goes to loved ones when they pass. But in the context of legacy planning, insurance does far more than just replace income. It becomes a tool for intention—a way to shape how you're remembered, support causes that matter to you, and provide a financial structure that brings clarity instead of chaos.

Here’s how insurance can play a meaningful, strategic role in your legacy plan.

Why Midlife Is the Perfect Time for a Coverage Check

In your 40s and 50s, life is in full motion—career responsibilities, growing kids, aging parents, homeownership, and the early contours of retirement. With all of this in play, it’s easy to assume your insurance is still “good enough.” Often, it isn’t.

A midlife insurance checkup isn’t just a precaution—it’s a practical step to protect what you’ve built and what you’re still building.

Because Life Changes—And So Should Your Coverage

Insurance is something most people file away and forget—until they need it. But an outdated or incomplete policy can lead to stress, delays, or even denied claims when it matters most.

That’s why an annual insurance checkup is so important. It’s not just about premiums or paperwork—it’s about making sure your coverage still reflects your life, your needs, and your goals.

Here’s what you should review each year to ensure your insurance strategy is keeping pace.

We all know the conversation is coming—but we tend to delay it as long as we can.

Talking about aging, illness, and the possibility of needing care someday often stirs something deep in us. It’s not just about logistics or finances—it’s about vulnerability, loss of control, and the fear of becoming a burden.

This is what behavioral psychologists call “avoidance coping.” We put off thinking about hard things because they make us uncomfortable. But the irony is that avoiding these conversations often leads to even more stress down the line—especially for the people we love.

The Hidden Cost of Aging

As we plan for retirement, we often focus on building savings, managing investments, and securing our homes and families. But one critical area frequently overlooked is the potential need for long-term care. Whether due to aging, illness, or injury, needing assistance with daily activities is a reality for many—and the costs can be staggering.