Jeff Levine on the Planning Tug-of-War: Income vs. Estate
AICPA Personal Financial Planning (PFP)
Release Date: 12/18/2025
Bob Keebler says Why The IRS Just Put a Target on This Tax Strategy
AICPA Personal Financial Planning (PFP)
What happens when a widely used tax strategy suddenly comes under IRS scrutiny? For advisors working with clients who hold concentrated stock positions, that question has become very real. In this joint episode of the PFP Podcast and Tax Section Odyssey, Cary Sinnett talks with nationally recognized tax expert Bob Keebler about recent IRS guidance affecting certain Section 351 ETF conversion strategies. They discuss how the step transaction doctrine may apply, why some previously completed transactions could face scrutiny, and what advisors should be doing now for clients who have used or are...
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When the Numbers Don't Add Up
AICPA Personal Financial Planning (PFP)
What does it take to uncover the financial truth behind a multibillion-dollar securities fraud case? In this episode, Cary Sinnett talks with forensic accounting expert Chris Davis about his work supporting plaintiffs’ attorneys in a multibillion-dollar securities fraud case involving Elon Musk. Chris explains how forensic accountants analyze complex financial records and SEC filings, then translate technical findings into clear evidence that attorneys and juries can understand. His role was separate from the damages expert’s analysis. The discussion also explores how forensic accounting...
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The Advisors Who Thrive With AI Will Do This Differently
AICPA Personal Financial Planning (PFP)
AI is getting faster at producing technical answers. So, what will make clients continue to choose you? In this episode, Cary Sinnett and Brianne Smith explore how AI is reshaping financial planning and why human judgment, empathy and connection matter more than ever. Learn how advisors can use technology to spend less time on manual work and more time helping clients navigate the decisions that matter most. What you’ll learn: Where advisors provide value that AI cannot replicate How AI can amplify strong or weak professional judgment Why empathy and communication are...
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Bob Keebler Explains How a Footnote Can Cost Thousands
AICPA Personal Financial Planning (PFP)
A footnote in the Joint Committee on Taxation’s Blue Book may create significant tax consequences for trusts and estates beginning in 2026. In this episode, Bob Keebler joins Cary Sinnett to explain why Footnote 102 has raised concerns about applying the new 2/37ths limitation to distributable net income, charitable deductions and other trust and estate deductions. They explore how the limitation could create phantom income and affect charitable planning, inherited IRAs, Roth conversions, fiscal-year elections and trusts with multiple levels of distribution. What you’ll learn Why...
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The Real Reason Clients Don't Follow Your Advice
AICPA Personal Financial Planning (PFP)
The real challenge for planners is not always giving better advice. It is understanding why clients do not act on the advice they already have. In this episode, Cary Sinnett talks with behavioral finance expert Carl Richards about what gets in the way of follow-through. They explore why clarity, purpose and trust often matter as much as technical precision, and how planners can help clients move from understanding a recommendation to actually acting on it. What you'll learn: Why the best financial plan is not necessarily the most technically precise plan, but the one a client will implement....
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The Secret to Getting Early-Career CPAs Excited About Financial Planning
AICPA Personal Financial Planning (PFP)
The future of personal financial planning depends in part on whether today’s professionals help the next generation see what the career can become. In this episode of the PFP Podcast, Cary Sinnett talks with Dr. Brianne Smith about how firms can expose students and early-career professionals to the human side of financial planning and give them meaningful opportunities to grow into advisory roles. Drawing on her experience as both a practitioner and accounting professor, Brianne shares practical ideas for developing future financial planners, from bringing real client stories onto college...
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What Financial Planning Research Reveals About Your Clients
AICPA Personal Financial Planning (PFP)
What can the latest research teach us about helping clients make better financial decisions? In this episode Cary Sinnett talks with Dr. Megan McCoy, who leads the personal financial planning program at Kansas State University, about bringing academic research and real-world financial planning practice closer together. They explore what emerging research in client psychology, communication and financial behavior can teach planners about helping clients navigate difficult decisions, financial anxiety and major life transitions. What you'll learn How research can add another layer of insight to...
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Are You Solving the Right Problem First? Ask Dr. Brian Portnoy
AICPA Personal Financial Planning (PFP)
Technical expertise may earn a client's confidence, but human connection earns their trust. In this episode of the PFP Podcast, Cary Sinnett continues his conversation with Dr. Brian Portnoy, author of The Geometry of Wealth, exploring how CPA financial planners can move beyond numbers and into the conversations that truly matter. Together they discuss why "funded contentment" should be at the center of financial planning, how advisors can uncover what clients truly want their wealth to accomplish, and why emotional intelligence may become one of the profession's greatest competitive...
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Why Bob Keebler Makes the Section 645 Election Almost Every Time
AICPA Personal Financial Planning (PFP)
The months immediately following a client's death create one of the most important income tax planning windows in estate administration. While many practitioners focus on basis step-ups and beneficiary distributions, one election can fundamentally change how post-death income is managed: the Section 645 election. In this episode, Cary Sinnett sits down with nationally recognized tax expert Bob Keebler to explore how electing to treat a revocable trust and estate as a single taxable entity can create valuable planning opportunities through fiscal year flexibility, income deferral, charitable...
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The IUL Experiment with Andy Panko
AICPA Personal Financial Planning (PFP)
Indexed Universal Life (IUL) insurance is often marketed as a “tax-free retirement income” solution, but how do these policies really work over time? To cut through the noise, financial planner Andy Panko, CFP®, RICP®, EA, decided to run his own real-time experiment. He bought an IUL, fully documented the structure, costs, and performance, and is openly sharing the results year after year. In this episode, Andy joins us to explain what IULs are, why he launched The IUL Experiment, and what every financial planner should know before considering them in retirement planning conversations....
info_outlineIn this episode, host Cary Sinnett is joined by Jeff Levine, CPA, CFP, a nationally recognized tax planning thought leader, to examine one of the most persistent dilemmas in personal financial planning: the tension between income tax strategies and estate tax minimization.
They explore why these two priorities often conflict and walk through practical examples CPA financial planners face when advising clients on gifting, step-up in basis, trust structures, and navigating compressed tax brackets. Jeff explains how changes to the federal estate tax exemption, evolving client priorities, and multi-generational considerations require a fresh look at long-standing estate planning techniques.
Whether you are working with high net worth business owners or everyday clients with legacy concerns, this episode offers clear guidance on when to prioritize short-term tax efficiency, when to focus on long-term wealth transfer, and how to serve both goals when possible.
Topics Covered:
- Why estate and income tax strategies often work against each other
- The trade-off between gifting highly appreciated assets versus preserving step-up in basis
- When income tax planning should take priority even for affluent clients
- Rethinking outdated uses of credit shelter trusts in the modern exemption environment
- Grantor versus non-grantor trusts and the income tax implications of each
- Building flexibility into irrevocable trusts through toggling, decanting, and situs changes
AICPA Resources:
- Toolkit: Year-end planning
- Article: Tax Trifecta Trust after H.R. 1
- Article: Year-End Planning Through the Lens of H.R. 1
- Guide Excerpt: The Adviser’s Guide to Financial & Estate Planning: V4
This episode is brought to you by the AICPA’s Personal Financial Planning Section, the premier provider of information, tools, advocacy, and guidance for professionals who specialize in providing tax, estate, retirement, risk management and investment planning advice. Also, by the CPA/PFS credential program, which allows CPAs to demonstrate competence and confidence in providing these services to their clients. Visit us online to join our community, gain access to valuable member-only benefits or learn about our PFP certificate program.
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