Financial advisors are moving toward wealthier clients faster than many of their practices are building the tax and estate expertise those clients need. In research released September 1, 2026, Cerulli Associates reported that 55% of advisors offer trusts and estate planning and only 40% offer income tax planning, while a growing share plan to buy software to close the gap.
What the research found
The Boston-based research firm found that advisors offer an average of 7.6 services. Estate and trust planning was available from a little more than half of them, and income tax planning from fewer than half. Technology is where practices are heading: 47% of advisors not yet using portfolio tax optimization tools expect to adopt them within 12 months, and 37% of those without specialized estate planning software expect to adopt it on the same timeline.
Cerulli director Michael Rose tied the shift to the demands of affluent households, saying advisors moving upmarket need to cover income tax, estate and charitable planning. He also noted that planning-focused practices face far more customization and complexity than firms that mainly manage investments, which helps explain the appetite for specialized tools.
Who is affected
The findings matter most for households whose tax picture has outgrown a model portfolio: executives with equity compensation, business owners, families with taxable accounts large enough that realized gains swing the annual bill, and anyone whose estate approaches the federal threshold. The IRS lists the estate tax filing threshold at $15,000,000 for deaths in 2026, up from $13,990,000 in 2025. Families near or above that line, or living in states with their own estate taxes, tend to need coordinated work among attorneys, CPAs and investment managers.
The research also points to a gap between what advisors market and what they deliver. A firm can describe itself as offering wealth management while its tax work amounts to year-end loss harvesting and its estate planning amounts to a referral. With fewer than half of advisors offering income tax planning, a client cannot assume the service is included.
The after-tax math
Planning depth shows up in dollars when decisions are timed around bracket thresholds. Example, using the IRS's published 2026 brackets and round numbers: a married couple filing jointly expects $450,000 of taxable income. For joint filers, the 32% bracket begins at $403,550, and the 24% bracket covers income from $211,400 up to that point.
| Scenario | Taxable income | Federal tax effect |
|---|---|---|
| No timing plan | $450,000 | Baseline |
| $50,000 of deductible giving bunched into 2026 | $400,000 | About $15,700 less tax |
Moving $50,000 of deductible spending, such as several years of planned charitable gifts, into 2026 would pull $46,450 of income out of the 32% bracket and $3,550 out of the 24% bracket, cutting federal tax by roughly $15,700. The same gifts spread thinly across years in which the couple takes the standard deduction, $32,200 for joint filers in 2026, might produce little or no tax benefit. The example is simplified: it ignores state tax and the deduction limits that can apply to high earners.
That kind of year-by-year coordination is what separates tax planning from tax preparation, and it is the capability Cerulli suggests many practices are still building.
Questions to discuss with an advisor
- Who prepares or reviews the tax return, and does the advisor see it every year?
- Is estate planning done in-house by credentialed staff or referred out, and who coordinates the attorney and the CPA?
- What software is used to model tax on withdrawals, gains and Roth conversions, and can the output be shared with the family?
- How is planning work priced relative to investment management?
Households in this position often ask for a sample plan or a redacted case study before signing on. A practice that has invested in tax and estate tools can usually show how a recommendation changed a client's after-tax result, not only the portfolio's return.
What to watch
If adoption plans hold, a large share of advisors will add tax optimization and estate software over the next year. Software is not the same as expertise, and the credentials of the people running it will matter. Families may also see more firms bundle tax preparation with advice, which can change fees and how conflicts of interest are disclosed.
Sources
After TAX is an independent publication. Articles are general information, not tax, legal or investment advice. Consult a licensed professional about your situation.
