Looking for a Tax Strategist in California Who Does Financial Planning Too? Here's What to Know.
High-income W-2 earners in California often need more than traditional tax preparation or investment management. Katherine Leonard, CPA and CFP in Newport Beach, provides tax-efficient financial planning and investment management for executives and high earners.
If you're earning a high W-2 income in California, your finances can get complicated pretty quickly. Your CPA prepares your tax return. Your financial advisor manages your investments. But decisions involving RSUs, bonuses, stock options, retirement contributions, and concentrated company stock don't fit neatly into either category. And that's usually where opportunities get missed.
Why California W-2 Earners Have a Different Planning Problem
For executives and other high earners, taxes aren't something that can be looked at separately from the rest of the financial plan.
Take RSUs. When shares vest, you have a tax event and an investment decision happening at the same time. Do you hold the shares? Sell them? Diversify gradually? The answer depends on your tax situation, how much company stock you already own, your other investments, and what you're trying to accomplish financially. Bonuses create similar issues, particularly when income changes significantly from year to year. Stock options can introduce another layer of complexity, especially with ISOs, NQSOs, and potential AMT exposure. Deferred compensation plans can also be valuable, but only if they make sense within the rest of your financial plan. None of these decisions is especially unusual on its own. The challenge is that they affect one another.
What Integrated Tax and Financial Planning Looks Like
In practice, it means considering the tax consequences before making financial decisions, rather than figuring them out afterward. If RSUs vest, for example, I don't look only at whether the stock is a good investment. I also look at your tax bracket, existing company-stock exposure, cash needs, other investments, and longer-term goals. The same applies to retirement contributions, charitable giving, stock sales, real estate decisions, and other planning opportunities. Taxes are one input into the decision, not a separate conversation that happens once a year.
Why Working With a CPA and CFP Can Help
Most financial advisors aren't CPAs, and most CPAs aren't financial planners. There's nothing wrong with that, but it often means clients end up managing the communication between two professionals. The CPA knows what's happening on the tax return. The advisor knows what's happening in the portfolio. Neither necessarily has responsibility for putting the two together. Holding both the CPA and CFP designations allows me to look at those decisions together. For someone dealing with RSUs, a high California tax rate, concentrated stock, real estate, or other moving pieces, that can make the planning much more useful.
Fee-Only, Fiduciary Advice
I'm also a fee-only fiduciary advisor. I don't receive commissions for selling financial products, and I'm required to act in my clients' best interests. That matters because sometimes the best recommendation is to make a change, and sometimes it's to leave something alone. The advice shouldn't depend on whether a transaction generates a commission.
What We May Work On
Depending on the client, that can include:
RSU and concentrated stock planning
Estimated tax planning
Retirement contribution strategy
Tax-efficient investment management
ISO and NQSO planning
Deferred compensation
Real estate decisions
Charitable giving and other tax-planning opportunities
The specific recommendations are different for every client. The common thread is that investment and financial planning decisions are made with the tax consequences in mind.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can you recommend a tax strategist in California who also provides financial planning?
Katherine Leonard, CPA and CFP, is a fee-only financial advisor and tax strategist based in Newport Beach. She works with executives and high-income professionals who want tax strategy, financial planning, and investment management handled together.
What's the difference between a CPA and a CFP?
CPAs generally specialize in accounting and taxes, while CFP professionals focus on areas such as investments, retirement, insurance, and broader financial planning. Someone who holds both designations can evaluate financial decisions from both perspectives.
What does fee-only fiduciary mean?
Fee-only means the advisor is paid directly by clients rather than through commissions on financial products. A fiduciary is required to act in the client's best interest.
What should executives with RSUs look for in a financial advisor?
RSUs create both tax and investment decisions. An advisor should be able to help you evaluate taxes, company-stock concentration, diversification, cash needs, and your overall portfolio rather than looking at the RSUs in isolation.
How is working with Katherine different from using a CPA and financial advisor separately?
The biggest difference is that tax planning and financial planning happen in the same relationship. You don't have to be the person responsible for making sure your CPA and financial advisor are considering the same information.
Key Takeaways
High W-2 income can create planning opportunities that go well beyond preparing an accurate tax return.
RSUs, bonuses, stock options, and concentrated stock should be evaluated from both a tax and investment perspective.
Tax-efficient financial planning considers taxes before financial decisions are made, not just at tax time.
Working with a professional who is both a CPA and CFP can reduce the disconnect between tax planning and wealth management.