Planning Wizards

Why these are wizards and not calculators

A calculator answers one question from one set of numbers. The two situations below do not work that way: the answer depends on a sequence of facts, and each fact changes which question comes next. A residency determination turns on where you physically worked, where your employer is, whether your state has a convenience rule, and whether you changed domicile mid-year — and the order in which you answer those changes the outcome. A year-end plan turns on your bracket this year versus next, which holdings have gains, and which deadlines are hard. Both are flows, not formulas, so both are built as guided walkthroughs that carry your answers forward.

Multi-state residency: what it actually decides

Most people assume they owe tax where they live. States frequently disagree. A New York resident who works from home for a Connecticut employer may find that New York taxes the income because of the convenience-of-the-employer rule, while Connecticut also taxes it because it was earned there — and the credit mechanism that is supposed to relieve double taxation does not always cover it. The residency wizard walks the facts in the order a state auditor would ask them, and flags where two states could both claim the same wages.

Year-end planning: what has a hard deadline

The distinction that matters is between moves that must be completed by December 31 and moves that can wait until you file. Realising a capital loss, making a charitable gift, completing a Roth conversion, and taking a required minimum distribution all have to happen in the calendar year. Contributing to an IRA, and some business purchases, can often be done after year-end but before the filing deadline. The year-end wizard separates the two lists so you are not rushing a decision that had months left on it — and not missing one that did not.

What to have ready

• Your filing status and an estimate of your 2026 AGI.
• Every state you lived in or worked in during the year, with approximate dates for each move.
• Your current withholding to date (year-end wizard) or your employer's location (residency wizard).
• For year-end: your unrealised gains and losses by holding, and whether you have already taken a required minimum distribution.

Nothing you enter is transmitted anywhere — both wizards run in your browser. Treat the output as a planning estimate and confirm any consequential move with a licensed CPA or EA before acting on it.