New year strategies for managing your wealth

You work hard for your wealth, and it’s important to make sure your wealth is also working hard for you.

Aligning your wealth management partner with your financial goals is crucial to achieving the lifestyle you strive for today and the legacy you hope to leave. As the new year begins, it is an opportune time to assess your finances and consider where you are in terms of meeting specific milestones and achieving your long-term goals.

Yearlong attention to your wealth management goals should always be a priority. But as 2024 begins, the following are key wealth management strategies to review.

Your relationship with your wealth management partner

A wealth management partner should feel like an extension of your family. You trust them with the details of your family finances, grant them access to your assets, and rely on them to guide your decision-making.

It is important to be sure you are partnering with someone who gives you the personal attention you deserve — whether you are their wealthiest client or at earlier stages of your wealth management journey. Wealth managers should treat millionaires like billionaires — in other words, middle market clients who have investable assets of $1 million and more deserve the same white glove treatment as those clients who have billion-dollar assets.

That means a high-touch, dedicated adviser who is consistently available to answer your call, address questions and provide guidance. It means acting swiftly when a client has a request or concern.

Clients of large banking institutions need to pay particular attention to the type of service they are receiving. You may not be getting the one-on-one personal service you deserve, something Signature Chicago Wealth Management prioritizes at all times.

Think about tax strategies for the new year

It’s the beginning of a new year, an important time to be thinking about your taxes and tax strategy for the year ahead. A key component of this area is gifting and charitable contributions. Have you planned ahead for these areas in your budget?

Each year, the amount of a charitable gift you can deduct against your income tax is capped at a percentage of your adjusted gross income; that percentage is higher for gifts to public charities and donor-advised funds than gifts to private foundations, and is higher for gifts of cash than gifts of noncash assets. Talk with your accountant about how your gifting may reduce your tax bill.

Take the opportunity to harvest portfolio losses

If you’ve experienced losses this year with certain investments in your portfolio, you still have an opportunity to reap some benefits.

Your wealth manager can advise you on selling stocks, harvesting losses and offsetting them against gains you may have gotten on another investment that was in the black. The bottom line: tax-loss harvesting is the timely selling of securities at a loss to offset the amount of capital gains tax owed from selling profitable assets. Strategize with your wealth manager and accountant on how this may benefit you.

As you plan for the year ahead, be sure to schedule a meeting with your wealth manager to plan for the future. Regardless of where you are in your wealth management journey, it is crucial to have a partner who understands your goals and is available to work with you closely every step of the way.

Signature Chicago Wealth Management highly values customer relationships and can help you pursue your business and personal financial goals. Learn more at https://signaturechicagowm.com/ or contact Christopher McCurdy at cmccurdy@signaturechicagowm.com or (847) 268-1036.

• Christopher McCurdy is managing director/SVP of Signature Chicago Wealth Management.