Year-end financial checklist

A lot can change in a year—across the economy, your finances, and your personal life. A year-end financial review helps you take stock and set up the next year with clarity. And with tax season around the corner, reviewing your portfolio and personal finances now could potentially help reduce your tax liability. 

Use this year-end financial checklist as a guide.

1. Year-end review of your financial plan

• Capture where your money went this year: home improvements, travel, education funding, or other priorities.
• Determine which, if any, financial goals you met and which you moved to next year.
• Note any large purchases on the horizon for the coming year.
• Make sure you account for any life changes in your financial plan, e.g. births, deaths, marriage, divorce, retirement.

Year-end financial planning tips

• Be honest with yourself. If money was tight, or if you had a surplus, this is a good time to adjust your spending and priorities.
• Use a financial professional as a sounding board. An outside perspective is helpful when reviewing short- and long-term family financial goals. A financial professional might be able to make suggestions you haven’t thought about.

2. Year-end review of employee benefits

• Review contributions to your employer-sponsored 401(k).
  • For the 2025 tax year, the maximum 401(k) contribution is $23,500, plus an additional $7,500 (or more) if you’re age 50-59 or 64 and older. New in 2025, employees age 60-63 can contribute an additional $11,250 in catch-up contributions. (Get more details on tax changes and adjustments.)
  • If you’re not at the max, consider at least contributing to the company match.
  • Revisit your asset allocation. Rebalance if your stock/bond/other mix drifted outside of your risk tolerance.
• Review other benefits: stock options and incentive plans, health, life, and disability insurance, and your flexible spending account (FSA), if you have one.
• If you have a health savings account (HSA), check your contributions. For the 2025 tax year, the maximum HSA contributions are $4,300 for individuals and $8,550 for families, plus an additional $1,000 for individuals age 55 and over.
• Confirm beneficiaries and add a successor beneficiary where possible.

Year-end employee benefit review tips

• Calculate your remaining health insurance deductible. Accelerate or postpone medical treatments as needed.
• Use up your FSA before it expires. There are some qualified products you may not have thought of, from contact lens solution to bandages, that you can purchase with those funds.

3. Add a tax review to your year-end financial checklist

• Update your tax withholding if you had life changes in the last year, e.g. marriage, birth, divorce, death or retirement.
• Consider the timing of income and deductions for next year’s anticipated income, and defer or accelerate bonuses, property sales, charitable gifts and other taxable transactions as needed for optimal tax impact.

Year-end tax review tip

• Explore tax loss harvesting. If you had investments that lost money, tax loss harvesting can help you reduce your tax liability. There are strict rules around how this is carried out, so to avoid potential penalties, talk to a financial or tax professional before using this strategy.
• Consult a tax or financial professional. They can help you evaluate all your tax saving options.

4. Year-end assessment of your investments

• Check your asset allocation against your goals and rebalance if needed.
• Reassess risk tolerance and time horizon, especially as retirement approaches.
• Review contributions to a traditional or Roth IRA. The 2025 maximum contribution is $7,000, plus $1,000 if you’re 50+.
• Review taxable events and diversification:
  • Note capital gains and losses realized this year.
  • Ensure tax diversification across accounts (taxable, tax-deferred, Roth).
  • If contributing to a 529 plan, review potential state tax benefits.

Year-end investment review tips

• Use the IRA extension. You can contribute to your IRA through the tax filing deadline next year, and it will still count toward the previous tax year.
• Consider a “back-door” Roth IRA strategy. You can use this strategy to establish or continue funding a Roth IRA account, but it may not be as advantageous if you already have a traditional IRA with a significant account balance. It may also trigger additional taxes. Your tax and financial professionals can help.

5. Look at your charitable contributions

• Review the amount and types of donations you made this year, including appreciated assets.
• If you’re age 70½ or older, assess whether a qualified charitable distribution (QCD) from an IRA makes sense. The maximum contribution in 2025 is $108,000 (adjusted yearly for inflation), and although a charitable deduction is not allowed for a QCD, you won’t have to include that donated amount in your taxable income.
• Consult with a tax advisor to fully understand the rules regarding your giving options.

Year-end charitable giving tips

• Bunch your donations. If you plan to donate the same amount of money each year, consider “bunching” the donations into a single year. This could increase your potential itemized deduction for that year. Consider using a donor-advised fund to spread out the giving while taking advantage of “bunching.”
• Donate appreciated assets. If you noticed large long-term capital gains, consider donating the appreciated assets. You won’t have to pay the capital gains tax, and if you itemize, you can deduct the full amount of the appreciated assets. 

6. Review your credit and debt at the end of the year

• Compile all balances for credit cards, mortgages, HELOCs, auto, and student loans; compare interest rates and terms and refinance or consolidate where beneficial.
• Prioritize high-interest debt to reduce total interest paid.
• Align your debt management strategy with broader goals for saving and investing.

Year-end debt tips

• Pay attention to rates. Review the terms on any outstanding balance to make sure you have the best possible rate.
• Maximize your rewards. If you’re going to use credit cards, look for ones with programs for either cash back or travel rewards.

7. Think about estate planning

• Update your will, trust, powers of attorney, and healthcare directives after life events or at least every five years.
• Review beneficiaries and trustee/executor designations to ensure they reflect your current wishes.

Year-end estate planning tips

• Stay objective. Consider naming a corporate trustee or co-trustee, who can impartially administer your trust and has experience dealing with family dynamics that can arise during the process.
• Be tax smart. In 2025, monetary gifts up to $19,000 to any recipient are federal tax-free. Also, consider taking advantage of the lifetime gifting exemption, which is $13.99 million per individual in 2025.

8. Don’t forget insurance

• Review your existing policies and coverage amounts. These may include life, disability, long-term care, homeowners, auto, and umbrella.
• Confirm that coverage still fits current needs and that the original reasons for coverage still apply.
• Verify insurance beneficiaries, especially after major life events.

Year-end insurance review tip

• Crunch the numbers. Consider using a life insurance calculator to review your situation each year.

When it comes to financial planning, you don’t have to go it alone. Explore the benefits of partnering with a wealth professional to help you work toward your financial goals.