July Quarterly Newsletter - 2026

Highlights of this Special Edition Newsletter:

• After the Filing Deadline: Turning Tax Season Into Strategy

  • Why Mid-Year is the Right Time to Revisit

• LVM Enters Its 39th Year!

• Clients Giving Back

• Supporting Our Community

After the Filing Deadline: Turning Tax Season Into Strategy

Filing a return can feel like crossing a finish line. We tend to see it as the opposite. The return you just signed is one of the most informative financial documents you will produce all year, and the weeks right after it are when that information is most useful.

A completed return tells us a great deal. It shows your effective and marginal tax rates, where your income actually came from, how much you realized in capital gains, whether you crossed into the 3.8% net investment income tax or triggered higher Medicare premiums, and how your deductions ultimately landed. Read closely, last year’s return usually points to a few specific places where this year can go better.

A handful of questions are worth raising now rather than waiting until next spring:

• Are your 2026 estimated payments and paycheck withholding still in line with what the year is shaping up to be?

• Is there room for a partial Roth conversion while you are in a lower bracket?

• Could a donor-advised fund or a qualified charitable distribution make your giving more efficient?

• Did last year leave behind capital loss or charitable carry-forwards that should shape this year’s plan?

April 15 closes the books on one year. It is also the best moment to start working on the next one. The clients who consistently keep more of what they earn tend to be the ones planning well ahead of the deadline rather than scrambling against it.

Why Mid-Year Is the Right Time to Revisit

Many of the most useful planning moves are time-sensitive. The earlier in the year we look, the more flexibility we have to act, and the less likely you are to be forced into rushed decisions in December.

With your return complete, this is a natural point to:

• Revisit how and when to realize capital gains, including harvesting losses if the markets give us the opportunity

• Coordinate charitable giving, sometimes concentrating several years of gifts into a single year to clear the standard deduction

• Confirm you are on pace with retirement contributions and holding the right assets in the right types of accounts

• Model the tax impact of a bonus, vesting equity compensation, a business sale, or other income changes before they arrive

• For those near or in retirement, weigh how Roth conversions, required distributions, Social Security, and future Medicare premiums interact

None of this is meant to change your investment plan. The goal is to reduce the tax drag we can avoid while leaving your long-term strategy intact. Good tax planning works quietly in the background, supporting the plan rather than steering it.

This article is intended for general educational purposes and is not individualized tax or investment advice. Tax rules are complex and depend on your particular circumstances; please consult your LVM advisor and tax professional before acting.

LVM Enters Its 39th Year!

As we at LVM enter our 39th year, we are grateful for the trust and confidence you have placed in us over the years. Our company exists because of valued clients like you, and we sincerely thank you for your continued support and loyalty.

Supporting Our Community

On Friday, June 19, LVM Capital Management employees gathered at Kalamazoo Valley Gleaners (KVG) to help fight hunger. It was an honor to support such a worthy cause alongside KVG's dedicated volunteer community.

In North America, more than 25% of all fruits and vegetables are plowed under or sent to landfills simply because they are the wrong size, color, or shape, or have reached their "best before" date. As a result, 63 million tons of food go uneaten each year (per KVG's website).

The practice of gathering this otherwise wasted food and transforming it into nutritious meals is called gleaning. Gleaning not only feeds the hungry—it also benefits our planet by reducing food waste. KVG builds strong relationships with local farmers to rescue surplus produce, then works alongside community volunteers to process it into nourishing food. Produce is collected, washed, trimmed, dehydrated, and packaged for shipment through Feed the Hunger to locations around the world, delivering meals to people facing hunger.

We encourage you to check out kalamazoogleaners.org to learn more about their mission.

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