Preparing for Year-End Financial Moves: Last-Minute Tax & Retirement Opportunities

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As the calendar turns to October, the race is on. With the end of the year approaching, savvy individuals know this is the prime window to evaluate year-end financial moves—especially in tax and retirement planning. It’s not too late, but the clock is ticking.

At Goldstone Financial Group, we understand the urgency and the opportunity. Our approach helps ensure every strategy is tailored to your goals, from retirement income planning to tax-efficient wealth building. Let’s explore the key actions you can take now to make the closing quarter work harder for you.

Max Out Retirement Contributions

Boosting contributions to 401(k)s or individual retirement accounts (IRAs) is one of the most straightforward year-end moves—and it offers a powerful tax benefit. For example, in 2025, the limits are $23,500 for 401(k)s and $7,000 for IRAs.

Traditional IRAs / 401(k)s: Contribute pre-tax dollars to lower your current taxable income.
SEP IRAs / SIMPLE IRAs: Especially beneficial for business owners and self-employed individuals whose contributions might be deductible right now.

These moves reduce your taxable income today and fuel your long-term retirement savings.

Leverage Health Savings Accounts (HSAs)

For those with a high-deductible health insurance plan, HSAs are a triple-tax-advantaged tool: contributions are tax-deductible, grow tax-free, and withdrawals for qualified medical expenses are tax-free.

Action Now: Fund your HSA before year-end—in many cases contributions are allowed up to April next year for the prior year.
Long-term benefit: HSAs can be a retirement healthcare asset—especially after age 65, when withdrawals for non-medical costs are taxed like ordinary income but penalties don’t apply.

Strategic Tax-Loss Harvesting

Offset capital gains by selling underperforming investments while considering the tax implications. Losses can offset up to $3,000 of ordinary income per year—with the rest carried forward.

Beware wash-sale rules: Avoid repurchasing the same or substantially identical security within 30 days.
Opportunity: Use harvested losses to smooth your tax liability and rebalance your portfolio.

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Consider Roth IRA Conversions

With possible tax rate changes on the horizon (note: many provisions from the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act expire in 2025), converting a Traditional IRA to Roth may make sense. You pay taxes now when rates may be lower—and enjoy tax-free growth later.

Partial conversions: Manage the impact on your tax bracket.
Timing: Execute in October to avoid surprises at year-end.

Take Advantage of Charitable Giving

If you’re 70½ or older and facing RMDs (Required Minimum Distributions), a Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD) allows up to $100,000 to go direct from your IRA to a charity—counts toward your RMD, and isn’t taxed

General giving tip: Don’t wait until December. Gifts charged before year-end generally apply earlier in tax filings.
Bundle donations: Use donor-advised funds to bunch several years of giving into one tax year.

Coordinate RMD Planning

Once you’re 73 and older, the IRS requires RMDs from tax-deferred accounts like IRAs. Missing these can mean steep penalties.

Plan how to fulfill: If you’re charitably inclined, a QCD may be viable. Otherwise, schedule withdrawals thoughtfully.

Goldstone’s role: Advisors help forecast RMDs, manage distributions, and integrate income with tax planning through comprehensive advisory services.

Goldstone Financial Group employs the Goldstone Retirement Roadmap™, featuring three steps:

Discover — Shape what your ideal retirement looks like.
Evaluate — Review current financial standing and income needs.
Plan — Receive a custom strategy tailored to your unique goals

This approach helps ensure retirement income, tax planning, healthcare, legacy planning, and investments all work in sync.

Why Year-End Planning Matters—The Goldstone Difference

As emphasized in our blog, “Tax Planning Strategies for 2025,” the looming expiration of many favorable tax provisions means proactive planning this October can materially affect your long-term tax outlook.

Goldstone’s planning brings:

Personalized tax analysis
Strategic execution across tax, retirement, legacy, and income planning
Integration of healthcare costs and estate efficiency

Practical October Timeline

Week	Action Item
Early Oct	Review retirement plans; max out contributions to IRA / 401(k)
Mid-Oct	Fund HSA (if eligible); explore Roth conversions
Late Oct	Conduct tax-loss harvesting; assess RMD strategy and QCD options
End of Oct	Consult Goldstone for a holistic review: tax, income, estate, healthcare

Conclusion – Act Now, Retire Confidently

October isn’t too late—it’s the golden planning window before open enrollment begins. By taking these strategic steps now—maxing retirement contributions, leveraging HSAs, executing tax loss harvesting, considering Roth conversions, managing RMDs and charitable giving—you’ll position yourself for smarter taxes and stronger income in the year ahead.

At Goldstone Financial Group, our advisors bring the insight, integration, and care you need throughout the process—from leveraging our Retirement Roadmap™ to coordinating tax, income, legacy, and healthcare planning.

Ready to make your move? Contact us today to schedule a consultation and ensure your year-end strategies are in sync with your retirement vision.

Disclosure:

Goldstone Financial Group, LLC (“GFG”) is a registered investment advisor with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Registration does not imply a certain level of skill or qualification. This material is provided for informational purposes only. Opinions expressed herein are solely those of GFG. None of the information presented in this material is intended to offer personalized investment advice and does not constitute an offer to sell or solicit any offer to buy a security or any insurance product and is not intended to be used as the sole basis for financial decisions, nor should it be construed as advice designed to meet the particular needs of an individual’s situation. The information contained herein has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable but accuracy and completeness cannot be guaranteed by GFG