By Jim Joseph, CFP®
Halftime is underway.
We’re at the midpoint of 2026, which means you have enough of the year behind you to see how things are shaping up and enough ahead of you to actually do something about it. A mid-year financial checkup isn’t just a formality. Quite the opposite, it’s one of the most practical steps to avoid headaches and missed opportunities when December arrives.
At FSA Wealth Partners, we believe reviewing your finances should be more than a once-a-year endeavor. Here are the areas to pay attention to right now.
Portfolio Drift: Is Your Allocation Still Yours?
Markets move. And when they do, your portfolio can drift pretty far from where you originally set it. A mix that started at 60% stocks and 40% bonds might now look more like 70/30 after a strong equity run, or 50/50 after a rough stretch. Either way, the risk profile you intended is no longer the one you’re living with or that you chose in the beginning.
The fix isn’t complicated, but it requires discipline. At FSA, we use defined rebalancing bands, which are specific thresholds that trigger a review when any position drifts beyond its target range. This takes the guesswork (and the emotion) out of the decision. With disciplined rebalancing, you’re not reacting to headlines, you’re following a plan.
Rebalancing also reinforces a simple but powerful habit: selling high and buying low. When stock investments have outperformed, trimming them and adding to underweighted areas keeps you from accidentally becoming more aggressive than you intended. If you’d like to review how we approach this at FSA, our investment management page is a good place to start.
YTD Gains and Losses: Don’t Wait Until December
Tax planning works best when done throughout the year, not just in Q4 when your choices and opportunities are limited. In your taxable investment accounts, pull up your year-to-date realized gains and losses now. If you’ve got a significant gain sitting on the books, you may want to look for opportunities to harvest losses elsewhere to offset it.
It’s also a good time to revisit your withholding and quarterly estimated payments. If you’ve had a bonus, RSU vesting, a property sale, or any other income event, your original withholding estimate may be off. Catching that now (rather than in April) can save you from an underpayment penalty and a stress-inducing tax bill.
A few things to check:
- Are your quarterly estimated payments on pace with what you’ll actually owe?
- Have any life changes (new income source, job change, sale of an asset) shifted your tax picture?
- Are there positions with unrealized losses you could harvest before year-end while staying aligned with your investment strategy?
This is where coordinating your investment activity with your tax situation really pays off. Our FSA Get Wealth Planning Process™ is built around exactly this kind of integration.
Retirement Contributions: Are You on Pace?
It’s June. You’ve got six months left to max out your retirement accounts—and this is the time to check whether you’re actually on track to do it.
For 2026, the 401(k) contribution limit is $24,500 for most people, with a $7,500 catch-up contribution available if you’re 50 or older (and an enhanced catch-up for those aged 60-63). IRA limits are $7,500, with a $1,000 catch-up for those 50+.
If you’ve been contributing at the same dollar amount you set in January, do the math: will you hit those limits by December 31?
Equally important: are you capturing your full employer match? Leaving that money on the table is a financial mistake that’s easy to avoid. If your employer matches contributions up to a certain percentage of your salary, make sure your contribution rate gets you there. Not just close, all the way there.
Remember that for those over 50 years old, catch-up contributions now need to be Roth 401(k). Since employer match contributions are not tax-deductible to the employee, adding these to the Roth element of your 401(k) account is also a great idea.
If your 401(k) is through a current employer and you’d like a second opinion on how it’s invested, we can help you evaluate your options.
Beneficiaries, Titling, and Insurance: The Stuff People Forget
This one doesn’t have a deadline, which is exactly why it gets pushed to the back burner year after year. But it matters. A lot.
Beneficiary designations on retirement accounts, life insurance policies, and annuities override your Last Will and Testament. If you’ve had a marriage, divorce, death in the family, or the arrival of a child or grandchild since you last updated these, now is the time to review them. An outdated designation can send assets to the wrong person, and there’s no court remedy once it’s done.
On the titling side, confirm the accounts and property you own are titled consistently with your overall estate plan. Joint ownership, transfer-on-death designations, and trust ownership all have different implications and they need to line up. It may also be worth considering an upgrade to your estate planning. Perhaps a trust or more advanced estate planning is needed?
Finally, take a look at your insurance coverage. Life, disability, and liability protection should reflect where you are today, not where you were five or ten years ago. Often, these risk management tools need adjusting as life’s circumstances change over time.
If you have significant assets, consider whether an umbrella liability policy is part of this picture. Standard homeowners and auto policies have liability limits that can be exhausted surprisingly fast in a serious claim. An umbrella policy typically provides an additional layer of liability coverage at a relatively low cost and it’s worth knowing whether your current coverage has a gap. An asset left unprotected by a missing umbrella policy could jeopardize an entire portfolio’s gain.
A Few More Things to Review
While you’re at it, the mid-year mark is also a natural time to revisit your emergency fund (still adequately funded?), any outstanding financial goals you set at the start of the year (still relevant?), and whether your living expenses are still adequately covered by income sources.
None of this needs to happen in a single afternoon. But it should happen. A few focused hours now can prevent the kind of scrambling that tends to show up in October and November when everyone suddenly realizes the year-end is closer than they thought.
We’re Happy to Walk Through This With You
Whether you’re a client who wants a mid-year check-in or you’ve been thinking about getting a more coordinated approach to your finances, the FSA team would be glad to talk.
To schedule a meeting, call (301) 949-7300 or email jim@FSAwealthpartners.com.
Frequently Asked Questions
How often should I rebalance my portfolio?
There’s no universal answer, but using disciplined rebalancing bands (rather than a fixed calendar schedule) tends to be more effective. When a position drifts beyond a set threshold from its target, that’s the trigger to act. This keeps you from rebalancing too frequently (which can generate unnecessary taxes) or not enough.
What if I’m already behind on retirement contributions for the year?
You still have six months to catch up. Review your current contribution rate and consider whether you can increase it now, even temporarily. If your cash flow allows, bumping up contributions for the remainder of the year can help close the gap. Also confirm you’re getting the full employer match before making any other decisions.
Why do beneficiary designations take priority over a will?
Retirement accounts, life insurance policies, and annuities are governed by contract law, not by the terms of your will. The beneficiary named on the account form is who receives the money, regardless of what your will says. Keeping those designations current is one of the simplest—and most important—things you can do in estate planning.
How do I know if I need an umbrella insurance policy?
If your total assets exceed the liability limits on your existing homeowner’s and auto policies, an umbrella policy deserves a look. It provides an additional layer of protection above those limits and can be especially valuable for people with significant investment accounts, real estate, or other assets that could be at risk in a lawsuit.
About Jim
Jim Joseph, CFP®, is the President and Partner of FSA Wealth Partners in Rockville, Maryland, where he has provided personalized financial advice and risk management strategies since 2004. Drawing on a financial career that began in 1997 at firms like Charles Schwab and Morgan Stanley, he specializes in guiding pre-retirees and retirees using the firm’s proactive FSA Safety Net® strategy to protect capital. A West Virginia University finance alumnus whose insights have appeared in The Wall Street Journal, Jim spends his free time with his three daughters, playing ice hockey, and working toward his private pilot’s license.
FSA’s current written Disclosure Brochure and Privacy Notice discussing our current advisory services and fees is available at www.fsawealthpartners.com/disclosures or by calling 301-949-7300.
