Why Holiday Spending Gets Out of Control
Between gifts, parties, travel, and social events, it’s easy to lose track of expenses. According to recent studies, the average American spends over $1,000 on holiday gifts alone. Add in entertaining, travel, and charitable giving, and the costs can quickly snowball.

Common holiday spending traps:

• Impulse purchases and last-minute gifts
• Overspending on parties and decorations
• Unplanned travel expenses
• Forgetting about hidden costs (shipping, tips, extra groceries)

The Financial Impact: More Than Just January Blues
Overspending during the holidays can lead to credit card debt, stress, and setbacks in your financial planning. It can also impact your ability to save for retirement, invest, or meet other wealth management goals. As a financial advisor, I recommend treating holiday spending like any other major expense: plan ahead, set limits, and track your progress.

Your Holiday Budget Tool: Our Gift to You!
To help you celebrate wisely, we’re offering a free Holiday Budget Tool. This simple worksheet lets you plan for:

• Holiday parties (food, drinks, decorations)
• Gifts (family, friends, colleagues)
• Social/fun events (concerts, outings, experiences)
• Travel (flights, hotels, gas, meals)
• Other holiday costs (charity, tips, extra groceries)

Tips for Smart Holiday Spending

• Set a total budget and break it down by category.
• Shop with a list to avoid impulse buys.
• Look for deals and use rewards points where possible.
• Give experiences instead of expensive gifts.
• Plan charitable giving as part of your overall financial strategy.
• Don't be the guy in the picture and load up on after-Christmas deals that were not in your budget.  We guys have all been that guy holding onto the cart.  Admit it guys! 

Celebrate the Season—And Your Financial Success
The holidays should be a time of joy, not financial regret. With a little planning, you can celebrate, give generously, and start the new year on solid financial ground. If you need help with budgeting, wealth management, or financial planning, our team in Tampa is here for you.

Happy Holidays from InTrust Advisors!
Ready to take control of your holiday spending? Get our free Holiday Budget Tool or schedule a Strategy Session to start the new year with confidence.

​Meet Carol, a 72-year-old widow with a $6 million IRA and a $10 million estate. She’s not spending much, and her Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs) are just adding to her taxable estate. Her kids are successful, but she wants to leave them something meaningful—and ideally, not a tax headache.

Carol’s estate is projected to exceed the federal exemption, meaning her heirs could face a 40% estate tax on everything above the limit. That’s a big bite.

So, what do we do?

We start converting.

Each year, Carol converts $500,000 from her traditional IRA to a Roth. She pays the tax now, reducing her estate and shrinking the assets subject to that 40% hit. The Roth grows tax-free, and her heirs can stretch the account for up to 10 years after her passing—without triggering immediate income tax.

It’s not about guessing future tax rates. It’s about controlling the timing of taxes, reducing estate exposure, and creating a more flexible legacy.

So when do we like Roth conversions?

• When estate taxes are in play. Shrinking taxable assets now can save millions later.
• When we can control the tax timing. RMDs force your hand. Conversions let you choose.
• When legacy is the goal. Roth IRAs give heirs time—10 years of tax-free growth, if managed properly.

​We don’t love conversions as a bet on future tax rates. That’s like trying to predict the weather in 2045. But when the math works, and the goals are clear, Roth conversions can be a beautiful thing.

Want to explore whether a Roth conversion makes sense for you? Start with a 15-Minute Retirement Check-In, or dive deeper with a Strategy Session or Partnered Planning engagement.  We start with a quick check-in, move into strategy, and offer ongoing partnership for those who want deeper support. It’s not just about numbers—it’s about aligning your financial life with your values and goals.

Sometimes, the best tax strategy isn’t about saving today—it’s about planning for tomorrow.

Let’s meet Tom and Linda, a married couple living in New Mexico. Tom just turned 65, Linda is 62, and both are still working full-time. They’re not quite ready to retire—but they’re definitely thinking about it.

Thanks to the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, they now have some powerful new tools to help them plan smarter, save more, and maybe even retire a little earlier.

Here’s how.

1. The $6,000 Personal Exemption for Seniors. Tom, being 65, qualifies for a new $6,000 personal exemption—on top of the existing senior standard deduction. If Linda were also turning 65 before year-end, she would qualify too. That’s $12,000 in additional deductions for the couples over the age of 65, assuming their income is below the $150,000 phaseout threshold.

Planning Tip: If their income is close to the limit, they could attempt to defer some income until 2026 or accelerate a deductible expense, like a large charitable contribution into 2025.

2. Above-the-Line Charitable Deduction. Starting in 2026, Tom and Linda can deduct up to $2,000 in charitable contributions even if they don’t itemize. That’s a win for generosity and tax planning.

Planning Tip: If they typically give to charity, they should consider bunching donations or using donor-advised funds to maximize their impact and deductions.  The $2,000 above the line deduction as an fyi cannot be made from a donor-advised fund.

3. Roth Conversion Opportunity. With these new deductions and a stable tax bracket structure, Tom and Linda have a golden opportunity to convert some of their IRA assets to Roth IRAs—without shrinking their accounts or bumping into a higher tax bracket.

Why it matters:

• Roth IRAs grow tax-free
• No Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs)
• Can reduce future Medicare premiums
• Helps surviving spouses avoid higher single filer tax rates
• Advantaged for your heirs over traditional IRAs

Planning Tip: Use the savings from the new deductions to pay the conversion tax. It’s like turning a tax break into a long-term retirement win.

Real-Life Insight: The Roth Conversion Misstep. We once worked with a couple who converted a large IRA balance all at once—without considering the impact on their Medicare premiums. The result? A surprise surcharge and a higher tax bill.

With Tom and Linda, we’d take a measured approach: convert just enough each year to stay within their current bracket and avoid triggering Income Related Monthly Adjustment Account or IRMAA penalties.

Other Planning Opportunities:

• Social Security Timing: Tom may want to delay benefits to increase his monthly payout, while Linda could file earlier depending on their income needs.
• Health Savings Accounts (HSAs): If either is still eligible, they can contribute pre-tax dollars for future medical expenses.
• Estate Planning: With the estate tax exemption now set at $15 million per person, they can revisit their legacy strategy with confidence.

What’s Next? If you’re like Tom and Linda, the One Big Beautiful Bill might be your chance to rethink retirement. And if you’re not sure where to start, we’ve got you covered:

• Try our 15-Minute Retirement Check-In—it’s free, fast, and insightful.
• Book a Strategy Session to tackle your biggest financial questions.
• Explore Partnered Planning for a comprehensive roadmap to retirement.

Final Thought. Tax law changes can feel overwhelming—but they also create opportunities. With the right guidance, you can turn those changes into real-life wins.

What’s the RISE Score? Think of it like a credit score for retirement. It uses thousands of simulations to estimate how well your income will cover essential expenses in retirement. It’s fast, data-driven, and gives you a score from 0 to 850.  The RISE Score is one of the most advanced AI retirement tools available today, but it’s only one piece of a comprehensive retirement planning strategy.

But here’s the catch...

AI Is Smart—But It Doesn’t Know You. AI tools like the RISE Score are great at crunching numbers. What they’re not great at? Understanding your life.  According to InTrust's, Jeff Diercks, “AI can simulate thousands of retirement scenarios—but only a human advisor can ask the right questions.”

We’ve seen it firsthand: a client runs their RISE Score and gets a “green light,” but they forgot to include their mortgage, their plans to travel, or the fact that they’re supporting a family member. The AI didn’t know—and it gave a misleading answer.

That’s where we come in.

Enter the Human Advisor. Our 15-minute check-in isn’t just about the score. It’s about context. Our team of Tampa-based financial advisors brings context, empathy, and experience to your retirement planning journey.  We’ll review your results together, ask the right questions, and help you interpret what the score really means for your life.

No pressure. No sales pitch. Just clarity.

What’s the Catch? There isn’t one. It’s free. All we ask is:

• You show up with your RISE Score results
• You give us honest feedback
• If you love it, maybe leave us a glowing review on Google or Yelp (as soon as the damn regulators allow us to do so as state advisors.  I am told it's close).

Real-Life Example: When AI Misses the Mark. One client came in with a RISE Score of 780—excellent! But after a quick chat, we realized they hadn’t factored in their plan to buy a second home, their adult child’s tuition, or their desire to retire early. After adjusting for those, the picture looked very different.

AI gave them a number. We gave them a plan.

Schedule your free 15-minute retirement check-in with a fiduciary financial advisor in Tampa and discover how human insight complements AI tools like the RISE Score.​

If you own a business—big or small—the Big Beautiful Bill is packed with tax breaks to help you grow, invest, and save.

What’s New for Business Owners?  

1. 100% Write-Offs for New Investments
Buy a new truck? Upgrade your computers? Build a new office? You can now deduct 100% of the cost right away. That means big savings in the year you spend the money.

2. 20% Income Deduction—Now Permanent
If you own an LLC, S-corporation, or other pass-through business, you can still deduct 20% of your profits from taxes. And now, that rule is permanent.

3. Minimum Deduction for Small Businesses
Even if your business only makes $1,000 in profit, you still get a $400 deduction. It’s a small but meaningful boost for side hustles and startups.

4. R&D Write-Offs Made Easier
If you invest in research or product development, you can now deduct those costs right away instead of spreading them out over years.

How do these help a business owner’s wallet? 
In straightforward terms, these changes mean lower taxes when you grow your business. For example, if your company buys a $50,000 piece of equipment, you can deduct the entire $50k this year. If you’re in roughly a 21% tax bracket (typical for a corporation) or higher (for personal business income), that could save over $10,000 in taxes immediately. That’s money you don’t have to pay to the government, letting you possibly buy another piece of equipment or hire someone sooner.

Similarly, the permanent 20% income deduction means if your small business earns $100,000 in profit, about $20,000 of that isn’t taxed. If you pay, say, ~24% tax on that income, that’s around $4,800 less in taxes each year – a significant savings. Over multiple years, this adds up and can be reinvested into the business or saved for lean times. All in all, the tax savings give business owners more capital to reinvest, expand, and create jobs.

How can we help business owners? 
InTrust Advisors works closely with business owners to strategize around these tax changes. We can help you plan the timing of major purchases or investments to take full advantage of the 100% write-offs – for instance, deciding whether to buy equipment this year or next for optimal tax impact.

We also assist in tax planning in coordination with your CPA to ensure you’re properly using the 20% income deduction and any other credits available.

Please note the exact terms of these Big Beautiful Bill provisions were not specified for simplicity.  You should seek qualified tax help in implementing any of the provisions above.