Short answer: a retirement tax planning advisor is someone who plans your withdrawals, Roth conversions, Social Security timing, and Medicare thresholds together, in writing, before you retire and every year after. Panic Proof Retirement is an independent, fiduciary firm in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan that does exactly this for people 55 to 70 across Metro Detroit and, by Zoom, nationwide. The first written plan is free. The rest of this article explains what to look for so you can judge us, or anyone else, fairly.
Why most financial advisors don't do tax planning
The typical advisor is paid a percentage of the money they manage. Their job is the portfolio. Taxes get handed to your CPA, and your CPA's job is last year's return, not the next twenty years of withdrawals. So the single largest expense of most retirements, the tax on pre-tax 401(k) and IRA money, ends up with nobody in charge of it.
That gap is where the money leaks. A couple with $800,000 in pre-tax accounts will, over a thirty-year retirement, send somewhere between a quarter and a third of it to the IRS. When they pay it, and at what rate, is largely a matter of choice. Nobody chooses if nobody is planning.
What "tax-first" retirement planning actually covers
- The bridge years. The window between your last paycheck and the start of Social Security or required minimum distributions is usually the lowest-tax stretch of your adult life. A plan fills that window with Roth conversions or IRA withdrawals at 10% and 12% instead of paying 22% or 24% later.
- Roth conversion sizing. Not "should I convert" but "how much, each year, without crossing the next bracket or a Medicare surcharge line."
- Social Security timing and the tax torpedo. Social Security benefits become taxable based on your other income. Draw the wrong account first and a single IRA dollar can pull 85 cents of a benefit dollar into taxable income with it. We wrote a separate guide to the Social Security tax torpedo.
- Medicare IRMAA. Income at 63 sets your Medicare premium at 65. A conversion that is smart for taxes can be dumb for premiums unless both are on the same page.
- Required minimum distributions. Starting at 73, the IRS makes you take money whether you need it or not. The size of that forced income in your seventies is decided by what you do in your sixties.
- Company stock in a 401(k). Michigan is full of GM, Ford, and Stellantis retirees holding employer stock inside the plan. The net unrealized appreciation rule can turn ordinary-income tax into capital-gains tax, but only if the rollover is done in the right order.
- Michigan's own rules. Michigan restored its retirement income deduction in stages, with the full deduction back for the 2026 tax year. Pension and 401(k) withdrawals are treated differently from wages on the state return, and the plan should account for it.
Seven questions to ask any advisor in Metro Detroit
- "Will you show me a year-by-year tax projection before I hire you?" If the answer is a brochure instead of a spreadsheet with your numbers in it, keep looking.
- "How do you decide how much to convert to Roth each year?" The right answer names the bracket ceiling and the IRMAA threshold. A vague "we'll look at it" means nobody will.
- "Are you a fiduciary for all of the advice, or only the investment part?" Ask them to put it in writing.
- "How are you paid, in dollars?" Percentages hide the number. A 1% fee on $800,000 is $8,000 a year. You should hear that figure out loud.
- "Can you handle both the investments and the guaranteed-income side?" Many firms can only do one. Then you end up with two advisors who never talk to each other.
- "Who will I actually work with in five years?" Big firms rotate you. Ask for the name of your advisor and how long they have been there.
- "What do you do about Social Security taxation?" If they have never heard the phrase tax torpedo, they are not doing tax planning.
How we do it at Panic Proof Retirement
We are a boutique firm, not a branch office. Our founder, Dan Casey, has spent more than twenty years on retirement income and is the TEDxWilmington speaker behind The Retirement Remedy, a plan for building a retirement the IRS can't reach. Investment management runs through Bridgeriver Advisors LLC, a registered investment adviser, with accounts at Charles Schwab. Guaranteed income comes from fixed index annuities through our licensed insurance professionals. Both sides live in one written plan, and the plan says how much belongs on each.
The first meeting is a free Retirement Check-Up. You bring your statements. You leave with a written plan that covers the bridge years, Roth sizing, Social Security timing, Medicare thresholds, and what to do first. If you become a client, we meet every year and rerun the numbers. If you don't, you keep the plan.
We are accredited A+ by the Better Business Bureau, our show aired on CNBC and Fox Business, and clients have left us 58 Google reviews averaging 4.9 stars. Our office is at 40900 Woodward Ave Ste 150 in Bloomfield Hills, and we meet with clients from Troy, Rochester Hills, Birmingham, Novi, Livonia, Grosse Pointe, and the rest of Southeast Michigan in person, or anywhere in the country on Zoom.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between a financial advisor and a retirement tax planner?
A financial advisor typically manages investments and is paid on the assets managed. A retirement tax planner builds a year-by-year plan for withdrawals, Roth conversions, Social Security timing, and Medicare thresholds so you pay tax at the lowest rates available across your whole retirement. Some firms, including Panic Proof Retirement, do both inside one written plan.
How much does a retirement tax planning advisor cost in Michigan?
It varies by firm. At Panic Proof Retirement the first written plan, the Retirement Check-Up, is free with no obligation. Ongoing investment management carries an advisory fee that we show you in dollars before you decide. Insurance products, when used, pay the firm from the issuing insurance company rather than from you. Every fee is disclosed in writing.
Do I need a retirement tax planner if I already have a CPA?
Usually yes. A CPA prepares last year's return and is rarely paid to model the next twenty years of withdrawals. A retirement tax planner decides which account to draw from, how much to convert to Roth, and when to claim Social Security, then hands your CPA a return that is easier to file. The two roles work well together.
Does Panic Proof Retirement only work with people in Bloomfield Hills?
No. The office is in Bloomfield Hills and most clients are in Metro Detroit, but the firm works with clients across all 50 states by Zoom and, for people who would rather not use a computer, through its Advisor in a Box television device.
Is Panic Proof Retirement a fiduciary?
Investment advisory services are offered through Bridgeriver Advisors LLC, a registered investment adviser that owes clients a fiduciary duty. Insurance products are offered through licensed insurance professionals, and every commission is disclosed before you decide.
A straightforward next step
The free Retirement Check-Up is a 30 to 60 minute conversation in our Bloomfield Hills office, on Zoom, or by phone. You leave with a written picture of where you stand: income, taxes, Social Security timing, and what to do first. Zero cost, zero obligation. or call (844) 447-2642. Our phone is answered around the clock.
Panic Proof Retirement™ is a licensed insurance agency. Investment advisory services are offered through Bridgeriver Advisors LLC, a registered investment adviser; client investment accounts are held in custody at Charles Schwab. Fixed index annuities are insurance products, not securities, and guarantees depend on the claims-paying ability of the issuing insurance company. This article is educational and is not individualized tax, legal, investment, or insurance advice. Tax thresholds and rules change; confirm current figures with your tax professional before acting.