Hilltop Wealth & Tax Solutions

Hilltop Wealth & Tax Solutions Hilltop Wealth & Tax Solutions serves as your personal CFO, providing fiduciary wealth and tax strategies to help you build, protect, and optimize your future.

Hilltop’s obligation is to serve your best interests. We do not accept commissions. Hilltop’s fees are based on a percentage of assets under management, so our success depends on your success.

07/17/2026

Your portfolio balance isn't what you keep 👀

Most people think a financial plan starts and ends with their investment accounts. But three critical areas often go unaddressed — and each one can quietly erode the retirement you've worked decades to build.

Without a withdrawal strategy, the IRS could take a far larger cut of your savings than necessary. Without an income sequencing plan, gaps in Social Security timing, RMDs, and account drawdown order can be hard to recover from. And without a coordinated estate structure, assets may pass inefficiently and create tax headaches for the people you're trying to protect.

Your investments are one piece. A real plan makes everything work together.

To start building a plan that covers all of this, schedule your complimentary introductory call through the link in bio.

Educational content only; not individualized investment, tax, or legal advice. Investing involves risk, including possible loss of principal. Past performance is not indicative of future results.

Strategies discussed are general in nature and may not be suitable for your situation. Consult your tax and/or legal professional regarding your circumstances.

Hilltop Wealth & Tax Solutions is a financial advisor.

07/16/2026

A great portfolio can still leave you broke in retirement. 👀

Most people spend 30 years in accumulation mode, adding money, letting it grow, riding out volatility. Then they retire and assume the same approach works in reverse.

It doesn't.

When you start withdrawing instead of contributing, the rules change entirely. Sequence of returns becomes a real threat. One bad year early in retirement can do damage that a portfolio never fully recovers from.

And here's the part that catches even high earners off guard: tax drag on withdrawals can quietly cost you more than a bad market year.

Without a plan for which accounts to draw from and in what order, you could be handing the IRS a bigger cut of your retirement income than necessary, on every single withdrawal.

The IRS is a silent partner in your retirement. The question is whether you've planned around that or not.

A strong balance sheet is a starting point. A distribution strategy is what turns it into retirement income.

Watch the full video to see how this works and what to do about it.

Educational content only; not individualized investment, tax, or legal advice. Investing involves risk, including possible loss of principal. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Strategies discussed are general in nature and may not be suitable for your situation. Consult your tax and/or legal professional regarding your circumstances.

Hilltop Wealth & Tax Solutions is a financial advisor serving business owners, executives, and high-income professionals approaching or in retirement.

07/15/2026

One income spike can cost you $500+ more a month in Medicare premiums 👀

Most people assume Medicare has a flat monthly rate. It doesn't — and for high earners, the difference can be significant.

There's a surcharge called IRMAA that gets added to your Medicare Part B premiums based on your income from two years prior. So what you earn today directly affects what you pay in retirement — and most people don't realize it until the bill arrives.

In 2026, the standard Part B premium is $202.90 per month. But cross the first income threshold and it climbs to $284.10. At the top bracket, you're looking at $689.90 per month — per person.

The tricky part? Common retirement moves like Roth conversions or the sale of a business can push your income just past one of these thresholds without careful planning. A dollar over the line can mean thousands in additional premiums.

Proactive income mapping across your retirement years — not just one year at a time — is how you avoid these surcharges before they show up on your statement.

Follow for more retirement planning strategies designed to protect what you've built.

Educational content only; not individualized investment, tax, or legal advice. Investing involves risk, including possible loss of principal. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Strategies discussed are general in nature and may not be suitable for your situation. Consult your tax and/or legal professional regarding your circumstances.

Hilltop Wealth & Tax Solutions is a financial advisor.

07/14/2026

Is your financial team quietly costing you? 👀

Most people assume their advisor and CPA are on the same page. But for a lot of high earners approaching retirement, that coordination simply isn't happening.

And the cost isn't always obvious — it shows up in missed tax windows, uncoordinated decisions, and planning that's reactive instead of proactive.

There are 3 clear signs that your team is working in silos, and if any of them sound familiar, it may be time to rethink your approach.

Watch the video to see if your current setup is leaving money on the table.

Get a copy of Erik's book, The Personal CFO Revolution, through the link in bio.

Educational content only; not individualized investment, tax, or legal advice. Investing involves risk, including possible loss of principal. Past performance is not indicative of future results.

Strategies discussed are general in nature and may not be suitable for your situation. Consult your tax and/or legal professional regarding your circumstances.

Hilltop Wealth & Tax Solutions is a financial advisor.

07/13/2026

Doctors: your RMDs could trigger a tax chain 😬

Most high earners spend decades accumulating wealth in pre-tax accounts, and almost no time planning how to distribute it efficiently.

That's where the real cost quietly builds.

When Required Minimum Distributions begin at 73, they don't exist in isolation. They can push you into higher federal tax brackets, trigger significant Medicare premium surcharges (IRMAA can reach $689.90 per person per month in 2026), and cause up to 85% of your Social Security benefit to become taxable once income crosses certain thresholds.

For a physician couple with combined RMDs above $200,000, these three effects compound fast.

The good news: this is a coordination problem, not an unsolvable one. Roth conversions before RMDs begin, strategic income sequencing, and proactive MAGI management can make a meaningful difference. But only if the planning starts early enough.

This is the part most advisors skip. Watch the full video to see exactly how it works.

Educational content only; not individualized investment, tax, or legal advice. Investing involves risk, including possible loss of principal. Past performance is not indicative of future results.

Strategies discussed are general in nature and may not be suitable for your situation. Consult your tax and/or legal professional regarding your circumstances.

Hilltop Wealth & Tax Solutions is a financial advisor.

07/10/2026

Most couples skip these 3 retirement talks 👀

And it can quietly unravel everything they've built.

The first conversation is about what happens to taxes if one spouse passes away before the other. Filing status shifts from married to single, and that change alone can push the surviving spouse into a noticeably higher tax bracket almost overnight.

The second is Social Security timing. When both spouses claim at the same time, it often means leaving a significant chunk of lifetime household income on the table. Sequencing matters more than most people think.

The third is long-term care. With costs averaging over $54,000 per year, a plan without a clear answer for how that gets funded can put everything else at risk.

These aren't distant hypotheticals. They're the decisions that determine whether your retirement plan holds up when life actually changes.

Educational content only; not individualized investment, tax, or legal advice. Investing involves risk, including possible loss of principal. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Strategies discussed are general in nature and may not be suitable for your situation. Consult your tax and/or legal professional regarding your circumstances.

Hilltop Wealth & Tax Solutions is a financial advisor.

07/09/2026

Your retirement income is taxed 3 different ways 👀

Most people assume they understand how their retirement income will be taxed. Most are wrong, and they find out the hard way.

Social Security, IRA and 401(k) withdrawals, and taxable brokerage accounts are each treated completely differently by the IRS. The gap between the best- and worst-case tax outcomes can be significant depending on which account you tap first.

Here's what catches a lot of retirees off guard: the order you pull from these accounts doesn't just affect your tax bill this year. It shapes your entire tax picture in retirement.

Knowing how each source is taxed, and how they interact with each other, is one of the most overlooked pieces of retirement income planning.

Watch to learn how all three work and why coordinating them could make a real difference.

To learn more about building a tax-efficient retirement income strategy, hit follow.

Educational content only; not individualized investment, tax, or legal advice. Investing involves risk, including possible loss of principal. Past performance is not indicative of future results.

Strategies discussed are general in nature and may not be suitable for your situation. Consult your tax and/or legal professional regarding your circumstances.

Hilltop Wealth & Tax Solutions is a financial advisor.

07/08/2026

Most retirees don't see this tax trap coming. 👀

A paycheck keeps taxes straightforward. Retirement income is a different story entirely.

What most people don't realize until it's too late: not all retirement income is taxed the same way. Withdrawals from different accounts follow completely different rules, and combining them carelessly can push you into a higher bracket, make a larger portion of your Social Security taxable, and even trigger Medicare surcharges that raise your premiums by hundreds of dollars per month.

There are three distinct income buckets in retirement, and the order you draw from them is one of the most important financial decisions you'll make.

Get the order wrong, and you pay more than you should. Get it right, and you keep significantly more of what you've built.

If you're between 50 and 72 and haven't mapped out a tax-efficient withdrawal strategy yet, this video is worth a few minutes of your time.

Educational content only; not individualized investment, tax, or legal advice. Investing involves risk, including possible loss of principal. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Strategies discussed are general in nature and may not be suitable for your situation. Consult your tax and/or legal professional regarding your circumstances.

Hilltop Wealth & Tax Solutions is a financial advisor serving business owners, executives, and high-income professionals approaching or in retirement.

07/07/2026

Retirement flips your finances overnight. Ready? 👀

Most people focus so much on getting to retirement that they never prepare for what actually changes when they arrive.

Three major money shifts happen on day one — and all three can work against you if your plan doesn't account for them.

The portfolio that grew your wealth needs a completely different strategy to protect and distribute it. Risk management looks nothing like it did during your working years.

Your income also becomes a multi-source puzzle overnight. Social Security, account withdrawals, and possibly a pension all get taxed differently than a paycheck ever did. Without a coordinated approach, the IRS quietly takes more than it should — every year.

And then there's timing risk. Without a steady paycheck replenishing your accounts, a market downturn in the early years of retirement can leave a mark that's very difficult to recover from.

The shift from offense to defense is real — and your strategy needs to make that transition with you.

Educational content only; not individualized investment, tax, or legal advice. Investing involves risk, including possible loss of principal. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Strategies discussed are general in nature and may not be suitable for your situation. Consult your tax and/or legal professional regarding your circumstances.

Hilltop Wealth & Tax Solutions is a financial advisor.

07/06/2026

More savings, but a bigger tax bill? 💰

Most high earners spend decades building up pre-tax retirement accounts, assuming a lower income in retirement means a lower tax bill.

But at 73, the IRS steps in. Required Minimum Distributions force withdrawals from every pre-tax account you've built, and those withdrawals count as ordinary income.

That income raises your AGI. A higher AGI means more of your Social Security becomes taxable. Cross certain income thresholds and Medicare starts piling on surcharges, potentially over $2,200 more per year for a married couple, triggered by just one dollar of extra income.

The real issue is how these income sources interact. RMDs, Social Security, and investment income don't just add up; they amplify each other in ways that can quietly push you into higher brackets and unexpected costs.

A larger pre-tax portfolio doesn't automatically mean a larger tax bill, but without a coordinated distribution strategy, it very well can.

Educational content only; not individualized investment, tax, or legal advice. Investing involves risk, including possible loss of principal. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Strategies discussed are general in nature and may not be suitable for your situation. Consult your tax and/or legal professional regarding your circumstances.

Hilltop Wealth & Tax Solutions is a financial advisor.

Address

4100 Edison Lakes Parkway Suite #225
Mishawaka, IN
46545

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 9am - 1pm

Telephone

(833) 889-7526

Website

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