Planning Ahead for 2026: Key Financial Areas Worth Reviewing
February 3, 2026
Written by: Gavin Walter, CFP®
The start of the new year creates a great opportunity to slow down and give thoughtful attention to long-term financial planning before daily responsibilities and unexpected surprises take over.
Most people don’t run into financial trouble because they make one poor decision. It usually happens because small changes went unchecked for too long. Effective planning is less about reacting to problems and more about reviewing key areas before those changes force your hand.
Now that 2026 is underway, this is an ideal time to revisit several important aspects of your financial life. These reviews do not require major changes in most cases, but they can help reduce surprises and ensure your plan continues to align with your goals. Proactively addressing the following areas can provide greater confidence as you move into the year ahead.
Clarifying Your 2026 Income Picture
Every solid financial plan starts with income. Yet income is also one of the most underestimated variables in planning.
Raises, bonuses, commissions, business income fluctuations, pension adjustments, and retirement distributions can all shift year over year. Even modest changes can ripple into tax planning, savings strategies, and cash-flow decisions.
As you look ahead to 2026, it’s worth mapping out expected income changes across all sources. This projection becomes the foundation for decisions around taxes, retirement contributions, and long-term planning strategies.
Projecting Withholding and Preparing for Income Changes
When income changes, withholding often doesn’t, and that’s where trouble can start.
Unexpected tax bills (or oversized refunds) are usually the result of outdated withholding rather than poor planning. Promotions, job changes, retirement transitions, or unusually large bonuses can all throw off the balance.
Reviewing withholding early in the year gives you time to make thoughtful adjustments and smooth cash flow throughout 2026 instead of scrambling at tax time. During peak earning years especially, proactive tax planning can have an outsized impact. Coordinating with a tax professional can help ensure that withholding decisions are aligned with your broader plan.
Using the New Retirement Contribution Limits to Your Advantage
Retirement savings limits change periodically, and those changes are easy to miss if you’re not paying attention.
For 2026:
- 401(k) and 403(b) elective deferral limit: $24,500
- Catch-up (age 50+): an additional $8,000 (total $32,500)
- Enhanced catch-up (ages 60–63, where applicable): up to $11,250 (total $35,750)
For IRAs:
- Base contribution limit: $7,500
- Catch-up (age 50+): $1,100 (total $8,600 across all IRAs)
Roth IRA contributions and traditional IRA deductions remain subject to income eligibility rules.
This review isn’t just about maxing out accounts. It’s about confirming how you’re contributing, traditional vs. Roth, employer plan vs. IRA, and whether those choices still support your tax and retirement goals. Small contribution increases, when aligned with a long-term strategy, can compound meaningfully over time.
Revisiting (or Creating) Estate Planning Documents
Estate planning is easy to ignore once documents are signed, but that’s often when they start drifting out of date.
If you don’t yet have estate documents in place, the beginning of a new year is a strong time to engage an estate planning attorney. If you already do, periodic reviews are just as important.
Marriage, divorce, children or grandchildren, changes in assets, or a move to a new state can all affect whether your documents still reflect your intentions. Reviewing wills, powers of attorney, healthcare directives, and beneficiary designations helps ensure your plan works as expected when it matters most.
Even confirming that no updates are needed can provide meaningful peace of mind.
Homeowners and Auto Insurance Coverage
Insurance policies often renew quietly in the background, and over time, that can lead to coverage gaps or unnecessary costs.
If it’s been several years since you reviewed your homeowners or auto insurance, early 2026 is a good time to take another look. The goal isn’t necessarily to switch providers, but to confirm that coverage levels, deductibles, and premiums still make sense given today’s property values, driving habits, and risk exposure.
A brief review can help ensure you’re adequately protected without overpaying.
Making Sure Your Investment Risk Still Fits Your Life
Risk tolerance isn’t fixed. It evolves as income changes, family responsibilities grow, and retirement moves closer.
Market volatility also has a way of revealing whether your portfolio risk is theoretical or truly tolerable. Revisiting your risk profile helps confirm that your investment strategy still aligns with both your goals and your comfort level.
That alignment is critical, not just for performance, but for discipline. Investors who understand and accept their risk are far more likely to stay the course when markets become uncomfortable.
Keeping Debt and Refinancing Opportunities on Your Radar
Debt doesn’t require constant action, but it does require awareness.
If you’ve taken on new debt recently, especially a mortgage, it’s worth monitoring interest rates throughout the year. Refinancing isn’t always the right move, but changing rate environments can create opportunities to improve cash flow or reduce long-term costs.
This is less about timing the market and more about being prepared. Staying informed allows you to act intentionally if conditions become favorable.
Bringing It All Together
Planning early in 2026 doesn’t mean overhauling your financial life. In most cases, it means reviewing key areas, making small adjustments where appropriate, and confirming that your plan still reflects your priorities.
Handled proactively, these reviews reduce uncertainty and help you stay in control, rather than reacting to issues after they’ve already created stress.
