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Maximize Your Year-End Tax Strategy for 2025

As the end of the year swiftly approaches, it’s essential to evaluate your financial standing and make strategic moves that will benefit your 2025 tax filing. With the holidays and celebrations just around the corner, now is the perfect time to focus on year-end tax planning to ensure you maximize your potential returns. Here's a comprehensive guide to last-minute tax strategies you should consider:

Assess the Need to File for 2025 - If your income falls beneath the filing threshold, consider taking advantage of tax-free income opportunities. For instance, if you own appreciated stocks that can be sold tax-free, consider doing so. You might also consider a tax-free distribution from your IRA if you meet the age or exception criteria.

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It's crucial to point out that not filing might lead to missing out on valuable refundable tax credits. Analyze your financial situation to make an informed decision.

Roth IRA Conversion During Low-Income Years - If 2025 has proven to be an income-light year, it might be a strategic opportunity to convert a traditional IRA to a Roth IRA at a lower tax rate. This is especially beneficial if you have assets that have depreciated in value within retirement accounts, offering potentially reduced tax burdens on conversion.

Optimize Education Tax Credits - For families with college-aged children, maximize the benefits of the American Opportunity or Lifetime Learning credits. Consider prepaying tuition for the early months of 2026 to augment your tax credits for 2025, particularly impactful for students entering college mid-year.

Home Sale and Capital Gain Exclusions - Sold your primary residence this year? You may qualify for tax-free exclusion of capital gains up to $250,000, or $500,000 if married and filing jointly, given you meet the ownership and usage requirements. Even without full eligibility, partial exclusions might apply if the sale resulted from changes like employment or health-related reasons.

Optimize Health Accounts - Ensure you maximize contributions to your health flexible spending and savings accounts. For 2025, the maximum contribution to a Health Flexible Spending Account (FSA) is $3,300, with $660 being the carryover amount usable in early 2026. HSA contributions made late in the year can still count for the entire year, providing you meet eligibility requirements by December.

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Boost Retirement Savings - Before 2025 concludes, maximize your retirement contributions. This includes ensuring you meet employer match thresholds and understand new catch-up contributions available between ages 60-64. Assess additional avenues for married couples to optimize IRA contributions through spousal income.

Consider Deferring Income - If expecting end-of-year bonuses, explore the possibility of deferring income to 2026 if it aligns with your tax strategy. This can be advantageous if next year holds lower projected earnings.

Manage Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs) - U.S. taxpayers age 73+ must manage annual RMDs. First-time RMDs can defer until Q1 of 2026, potentially creating dual distributions. Inheritances from retirement accounts require attention to mandatory first-time RMDs in 2025.

Capitalize on Stock Portfolio Losses - If you maintain depreciated assets, consider selling to offset capital gains taxes up to 20%. This strategy also benefits taxables subject to net investment income surtax, but watch for wash sale rules.

SALT Deduction Strategies - The One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) hikes the deduction cap to $40,000, effective 2025. Prioritize prepaying state and property taxes to maximize your deduction this year before changes take effect.

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Enhance Charitable Contributions - Strategize charitable donations to maximize deductions, given the impending 2026 reduction by 0.5% of AGI. Use this year’s standard and itemized deduction approach to turbocharge benefits.

Other Key Year-End Considerations - Manage medical expense thresholds over 7.5% of AGI, leverage gift tax exclusions, explore disaster and scam loss claims, and evaluate impacts of life changes such as divorce or separation.

Energy credits for home improvements remain at 30% up to the $1,200 cap. Make sure installations for solar and energy-efficient enhancements are complete before December 31, 2025, to qualify.

Need further guidance? Please reach out for a detailed review of your year-end tax planning strategy.

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