Financial Planning "Wins"

While financial planning isn't usually "sexy" or fun, as my wife likes to say, it's probably the most useful thing I do (please withhold your jokes).  Why?  Let's take a look at just a small part of a recent financial plan I wrote for a couple with two young children.  Reviewing the couple's financial documents, I noted (among other things):

• The couple's new baby had been omitted from the prior year's tax return.  Whether this omission was an oversight of the CPA preparing the return, or the couple had simply forgotten to provide notification of the new addition, the exclusion meant $2,000 in the form of an unclaimed child tax credit had been left on the table. 

• The couple was also unaware that the state of Colorado offered something called the "First Step" program - a program that provides a $118 gift to any Colorado resident opening a 529 account for a child born or adopted on or after January 1, 2020.  More importantly, the program also allows for a matching gift of up to $500/yr for five years for additional contributions to that 529 plan.  For this couple, the First Step program will mean $5236 in "free money" for college (Note: this program is set to change 12/31/25).

These two "catches" alone meant a guaranteed $7,236 in benefit to the couple - not a bad return for a financial plan that cost them $4,000.  What's more, there were 21 other recommendations included in the plan!  Now that's what I call financial planning for the win :)

Indeed, while investments are the "sizzle" the steak is, and probably always will be, financial planning.  And you can be assured that as the calendar page turns to 2026,  I'll continue working to make sure we recognize and take advantage of every financial planning opportunity my clients have.