By the time you reach Milestone Six, you’ve done something most people never do.

You’ve:

• Built a fully funded emergency fund

• Eliminated high-interest debt

• Captured employer retirement matches

• You’ve protected against the unexpected

Now, it’s time to move into advanced wealth-building strategies.

Milestone Six of Apriem’s 10 Smart Money Milestones is: Turning Taxes Into An Advantage.

This milestone focuses on leveraging some of the most powerful—and most misunderstood—tools in financial planning: tax-advantaged “special accounts.”

Up to this point, much of your financial journey has been about:

• Stability

• Liquidity

• Risk management

• Flexibility

Milestone Six marks a shift toward long-term optimization.

This is where financial planning begins to meaningfully:

• Reduce lifetime tax exposure

• Increase after-tax wealth

• Enhance retirement security

• Create opportunities for multigenerational impact

It’s also where many people stop—not because it isn’t valuable, but because it’s complex.

In Milestone Six, “special accounts” refer to tax-advantaged accounts with specific rules and limitations, including:

• Roth IRAs

• Health Savings Accounts (HSAs)

These accounts exist because the government wants to encourage certain behaviors—saving for retirement and healthcare—but limits access because of how powerful these tools can be.

The restrictions aren’t a flaw.
They’re the feature.

Special accounts offer benefits that are difficult—or impossible—to replicate elsewhere in a financial plan.

Roth IRAs

• Contributions made with after-tax dollars

• Tax-free growth

• Tax-free withdrawals in retirement (under current law)

Health Savings Accounts (HSAs)

Often referred to as the only triple tax-advantaged account:

1. Contributions are tax-deductible

2. Growth is tax-free

3. Withdrawals for qualified medical expenses are tax-free

When used strategically, HSAs can function as supplemental retirement accounts, not just healthcare spending tools.

A common question is:

“Why wait until Milestone Six to talk about Roth IRAs and HSAs?”

The answer is liquidity and optimization.

We consistently see people jump into these accounts too early—before:

• Emergency funds are fully built

• High-interest debt is eliminated

• Near-term goals are funded

The result?

• Cash-flow strain

• Liquidity crunches

• Over-optimization at the wrong stage of life

Special accounts are powerful, but they often lock money away until later years. Used too early or too aggressively, they can create problems instead of solving them.

Many special accounts are most valuable later in life.

• Roth IRA benefits are typically realized after age 59½

• HSAs often make the most sense when allowed to compound long-term and used strategically in retirement

Because of this, these accounts belong in a phase of your financial journey where:

• Income is stable or growing

• Savings rates are higher

• Short-term liquidity needs are already solved

That’s why Milestone Six comes after the foundational milestones.

Milestone Six introduces deeper tax planning, not just tax deferral.

This includes decisions such as:

• Roth vs. pre-tax contributions

• Strategic use of HSAs

• Coordinating taxable and tax-advantaged accounts

• Managing future required distributions

• Planning for retirement income efficiency

These decisions are rarely one-size-fits-all and depend heavily on:

• Current tax brackets

• Expected future income

• Career trajectory

• Retirement timelines

• Family and legacy goals

This is where personalized wealth management becomes critical.

Most people at Milestone Six:

• Have solid or high incomes

• Maintain strong savings habits

• Are thinking seriously about retirement readiness

• Want to optimize—not just accumulate—wealth

Reaching this milestone is a sign of financial maturity and discipline.

Failing to capture employer matching dollars:

• Slows wealth accumulation

• Reduces compounding over time

• Makes later milestones harder to achieve

Capturing the match:

• Accelerates progress toward financial independence

• Increases long-term retirement balances

• Builds confidence in your financial strategy

This milestone isn’t about taking more risk—it’s about being smarter with opportunities already available.

To complete Milestone Six:

1. Confirm foundational milestones are complete

   • Emergency fund, debt, liquidity, employer match

2. Identify eligible special accounts

   • Roth IRA, HSA, or others based on situation

3. Evaluate contribution strategy

   • Pre-tax vs. Roth

   • Cash flow impact

4. Align accounts with long-term goals

   • Retirement income planning

   • Tax efficiency

5. Review regularly

   • Tax laws, income, and life circumstances change

Once these accounts are intentionally integrated into your broader plan, Milestone Six is achieved.

Optimized tax-advantaged accounts don’t just affect retirement.

They can:

• Reduce lifetime tax burden

• Increase legacy assets

• Improve flexibility in later years

• Provide emotional peace of mind

This milestone begins shifting the focus from just funding life to designing it.

Building Toward the Final Wealth-Building Milestones

Milestone Six sets the stage for even more aggressive long-term strategies—where the focus moves toward maximizing wealth, income efficiency, and legacy planning.

If you want help determining how special accounts fit into your specific financial situation, I am here to help!