Your Financial Year-End Playbook | Tips from Our Advisors
As 2025 winds down, it is a good time to pause and look at the big picture: how your money supported your life this year and what you want it to do for you in the next one. Use this checklist to reflect on progress, refine priorities, and tee up practical changes for 2026.
Review cash flow and savings habits
Rather than starting with investments, begin with how money moved in and out of your household this year.
- Compare your actual 2025 spending to what you expected and identify 2–3 categories where you want to be more intentional next year.
- Ensure your emergency fund is on track and create a plan to pay down high-interest debt, automating contributions or payments where possible.
Redefine goals
Shift your focus from retirement alone to your near- and mid-term priorities.
- List major goals such as a home purchase, career change, business launch, travel, education funding, or a sabbatical.
- Estimate timing and rough costs for each goal, then rank them by priority.
- Decide which goals need dedicated savings buckets (e.g., separate high-yield savings or brokerage accounts) and set up recurring contributions.
- Review your 2026 employer benefits: health plan, HSA/FSA, disability coverage, and retirement features, and make deliberate elections rather than letting last year’s choices carry over.
Clean up the behind-the-scenes essentials
Use year‑end to make sure your wishes are clearly documented, not just implied.
- Ensure your will, powers of attorney, health care directives, and beneficiary designations are up to date, and outline any non-financial instructions (digital assets, care preferences, legacy letters).
- Review automatic payments and subscriptions, cancel what no longer serves you, and organize logins for financial accounts with multifactor authentication.
- Make sure a trusted person knows how to access key financial information in an emergency.
RMDs and charitable giving
Individuals 73 and older must take annual required minimum distributions (RMDs) from most retirement accounts to avoid tax penalties. Those 70½ and older can satisfy part of their RMD by donating directly to charity through a Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD), up to $108,000 per year, which counts toward the RMD and is excluded from taxable income. Be sure to withdraw the correct RMD amount by December 31 (or by April 1 if you just turned 73) to stay compliant.
Consider tax law changes
It’s important to understand potential tax law changes from this year that could affect you going forward. In July of 2025, the One Big Beautiful Bill was signed into law, permanently extending many provisions of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA). Here are just a few of key changes we see:
- Additional senior deduction of $6,000 for taxpayers 65+ with phaseouts.
- Child Tax Credit increased from $2,000 to $2,200.
- Standard deduction increased for 2025: $15,750 (Single), $23,625 (Head of Household), $31,500 (Married Filing Jointly), with annual inflation adjustments.
If you are interested in a deeper dive into the One Big Beautiful Bill, check out a past blog where we summarized the most significant permanent and long-term provisions affecting individuals and business owners.
The One Big Beautiful Bill Blog
Treat this checklist as a starting point, not a rigid template. Be sure to work with your financial, tax, and legal professionals to tailor it to your situation.
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Sources:
- Ameriprise Financial. “Year-End Financial Checklist.” https://www.ameriprise.com/financial-goals-priorities/personal-finance/year-end-financial-checklist
- Fidelity Charitable. “Qualified Charitable Distribution.”
https://www.fidelitycharitable.org/guidance/philanthropy/qualified-charitable-distribution.html - TurboTax. “Taxes 2025‑2026: One Big Beautiful Bill Tax Law Changes and How That Impacts You.” https://turbotax.intuit.com/tax-tips/general/taxes-2021-7-upcoming-tax-law-changes/