A CPA prepares and files your return and advises on tax law. A retirement planner projects income across several years and coordinates timing, such as Roth conversions and withdrawals. They work well when they share one set of numbers: the planner builds the multi-year picture, and the CPA confirms the tax effect before you act.
What does each professional do?
A CPA prepares and files your tax return, applies tax law to what already happened, and can advise on the tax position of a decision. A retirement planner looks forward. The planner builds a multi-year projection of income, withdrawals, Social Security, and Medicare costs, and asks what happens to each if you change the timing of one piece.
| CPA | Retirement planner | |
|---|---|---|
| Main question | What do I owe, and how should this transaction be reported? | Which years should income land in, and from which accounts? |
| Time frame | The tax year, plus planning for the next | Many years, through required distributions and beyond |
| Typical output | A tax return and tax positions | A written projection and a withdrawal and conversion schedule |
| Accountable for | Tax preparation and tax advice | The plan and its assumptions |
Neither replaces the other. A planner’s projection only works if the tax assumptions are right, and a CPA’s advice is more useful when it sees the multi-year picture.
Where do they overlap?
The overlap is the timing of income. A Roth conversion, a large withdrawal, a stock sale, or a deferred compensation payout all land in one tax year, and each can affect your bracket, how much of your Social Security is taxed, and your Medicare premiums two years later. Our post on the first ten years of retirement explains why those decisions cluster in the years before required distributions, and our answer on IRMAA covers the premium effect.
When should they talk?
Before the decision, not after the return. Useful moments include:
- Before a Roth conversion. The CPA confirms the tax cost against your projected income, and the planner shows how it fits the conversion window.
- Before a large sale or payout. Both can see what else lands in that year.
- Before required distributions begin. At 73, or 75 if you were born in 1960 or later, the minimum is set by the IRS.
- After a life event. Retirement, a spouse’s death, a move, or a change in health.
A short call in the fall, while there is still time to adjust the year, tends to help more than a conversation in April.
What if you do not have a CPA?
Many people use a tax preparer who files the return but does not plan. In that case, ask your planner for a written projection you can bring to a tax professional, and ask the tax professional to confirm the key points before you act. Robert’s practice is built to work alongside an existing CPA and portfolio manager, not to replace them. Our page on ongoing retirement tax planning describes how that coordination runs year to year.
How do you keep them aligned?
Give both the same documents, ask each to state their assumptions in writing, and keep one shared list of decisions pending for the year. When they disagree, ask each to show the calculation. Educational only: nothing here is tax advice, and your own CPA should confirm any tax position.
What should you do next?
Ask your current advisor and your CPA when they last compared notes about your income for the coming years. If the answer is “never,” that is the gap worth closing. Schedule a consultation to see what a coordinated, multi-year tax projection looks like for your numbers, and bring your CPA’s name and your last two returns.
Common questions
- Do I need both a CPA and a financial advisor in retirement?
- Not always, but many people with large pre-tax accounts benefit from both. A CPA handles filing and tax law. A planner looks several years ahead at withdrawals, Roth conversions, Social Security, and Medicare premiums. If your income and tax picture is simple, one professional may be enough.
- When should my advisor and my CPA talk?
- Before decisions that change income in a year: a Roth conversion, a large withdrawal or sale, an annuity purchase, a deferred compensation payout, or the start of required distributions. Talking after the year ends leaves less room to adjust. A short call in the fall is often more useful than one in April.
- What should I bring to both?
- Your last two tax returns, current statements for every account, your Social Security and pension estimates, and any projection or conversion schedule you have. Ask each professional to work from the same numbers, and ask for key assumptions in writing so they can be compared.
- Who makes the final decision?
- You do. Each professional answers for their own work: the CPA for the tax return and tax positions, the planner for the plan and its assumptions. If they disagree, ask each to show the calculation, then decide which assumptions fit your situation.
If the decisions on this page are ahead of you, the two of you can work through them with Robert Boeck before any of them becomes permanent.
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