Memento Financial Planning

Memento Financial Planning Helping high-earning Millennial couples turn income into freedom.

We specialize in equity compensation, debt optimization, and building tax-efficient investment strategies so you can live and work on your terms.

06/02/2026

Financial planning isn't a "fixed" setting. It is a dial.

There are seasons to "Crank the Dial" (Peak earning years, low expenses).
And there are seasons to "Turn the Dial Down" (New baby, home purchase, career pivot).

We recently worked with a couple to reduce their weekly taxable savings so they could better align their cash flow with their current goals.

Reducing your savings rate for a season isn't a failure. It is a strategic adjustment.

The goal of a plan isn't to save the most money possible. It is to ensure your money is serving your current life while protecting your future one. 🎚️

06/02/2026

"Should I do a Roth 401(k) or a Traditional 401(k)?"

The answer for high earners isn't found in a blog post; it’s found in your Current Tax Bracket. 🧾

If you are in the 35% or 37% federal bracket today, a Traditional contribution offers an immediate, guaranteed "discount" on your tax bill.

Roth sounds better because it’s "tax-free later," but later is a hypothesis. The tax savings today are a fact.

A strategic plan doesn't just pick a side. It looks at the "Tax Waterfall"—maxing out the pre-tax space now, while using Backdoor Roth IRAs to fill the tax-free bucket for the future. 🌊

06/01/2026

The goal of our planning isn't just "retirement." That’s an outdated 20th-century concept. 👴

The goal is Autonomy. ⛵

We help high earners build a roadmap to the "Work Optional" milestone. This is the point where your investment assets can replicate your lifestyle income.

Once you reach that point, you stop working because you have to and start working because you want to.

Financial planning is the process of turning your labor into a permanent system of freedom. 🏗️

05/30/2026

Incentive Stock Options (ISOs) are one of the best wealth-building tools in tech, but they come with a "Phantom Tax" called AMT. đź‘»

If you exercise and hold your options to get the long-term capital gains rate, the IRS may hit you with a massive tax bill on "paper gains" you haven't even cashed out yet.

We help clients calculate their AMT Crossover Point.

This is the exact number of options you can exercise without triggering a surprise bill in April.

Don't let your equity exercise become a tax crisis. Plan the strike before you take the hit. 🧾

05/29/2026

The name Memento comes from Memento Mori—remember that time is finite. ⏳

In 2026, we are more "Time Poor" than ever. We are bombarded with data, notifications, and 24/7 market noise.

Financial planning isn't just about "Retirement at 65." It’s about Life Design at 40.

It’s the permission to take a sabbatical now.

It’s the decision to work 4 days a week instead of 5.

It’s the clarity to spend on memories while your kids (and parents) are still here.

We plan for the future so you can finally be present today. ⛵📸

05/28/2026

Tax rates in the future are a variable you cannot control. You can, however, control how your assets are positioned to handle them.

We look at wealth through three distinct buckets.

Taxable (Brokerage accounts).

Tax Deferred (Traditional 401k and IRA).

Tax Free (Roth and HSA).

Many high earners are heavy on the deferred bucket. They have millions in a 401k but very little in the other two. This creates a massive tax bill in retirement that you cannot avoid.

One approach to building flexibility is ensuring you have money in all three. Taxable accounts provide liquidity before age 59. Roth accounts provide tax free growth. Deferred accounts provide a deduction today.

True financial independence is not just about the total number.

It is about having the right mix of buckets to pull from when the rules change.

How balanced are your three buckets today?

05/28/2026

It isn't about what you earn. It is about what you keep.

For high-earning households, "Tax Alpha" is often more predictable than market alpha.

• Strategic use of Roth conversions 🔄
• Asset location (which assets go in which accounts) 📍

• Maximizing health and education tax shelters 🎓

You can't control what the S&P 500 does tomorrow. But you can control how much of your growth is lost to avoidable taxes.

Focus on the variables you can actually influence.

05/27/2026

An inherited IRA is a tax planning puzzle with a ten year clock.

The IRS generally requires these accounts to be emptied by the end of the tenth year following the original owner's death. For high earners, this is a major hurdle.

If you take a large distribution during a high income year, you might push yourself into the highest tax bracket.

One approach is looking at the decade ahead. If you plan to get married, or if you expect a lower income year in the future, it may make sense to wait.

If you are in a lower bracket now, taking smaller distributions over several years might save you six figures in total taxes.

Financial planning is not just about where the money goes. It is about when the money moves.

Do you have a strategy for your required distributions, or are you just waiting until year ten?

05/26/2026

If you worked for more than one company this year, you might have an accidental 401(k) problem.

The IRS limit for 401(k) contributions is $23,500 (for 2025) or $24,500 (for 2026). When you stay at one job, the payroll system stops you once you hit that number.

But when you switch jobs, the new company has no idea what you contributed at the old one.

We recently reviewed a client’s W2s who worked at three different tech companies in a single year. Each company allowed him to contribute toward the max.

He ended up over-contributing by more than $4,000.

If you do not fix this, the IRS will tax you on that money twice. Once now, and once when you eventually withdraw it in retirement.

One approach is to review your year-to-date contributions every time you switch jobs.

If you have already gone over, you need to request an "excess deferral removal" from your current 401(k) provider.

Check your W2s from last year. Did you accidentally give the IRS a double-taxation win?

05/26/2026

Most tech professionals get a tax surprise in April because of a single number. 22%.

Your company is required to withhold taxes on RSU vests.
The default rate is almost always 22%.

This works for some.
It rarely works for dual-income tech households.

If your total income puts you in the 32% or 35% tax bracket, there is a delta.
The IRS is only getting 22% at the time of the vest.
You are responsible for the rest.

On a $150,000 vest, that 13% gap is nearly $20,000.

If both partners have vests, that liability compounds quickly.

Your employer is not making a mistake.
They simply do not see your spouse's income or your total tax picture.
They follow the standard rule.

The fix is usually adjusting your W-4 on your base salary or making quarterly payments.
April should be a check-in, not a shock.

How much are they withholding on your vests?

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Woburn, MA

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