5 Things From the First Half of 2026 Worth Knowing About
We hope your summer is off to a great start. As we hit the midpoint of 2026, we wanted to share a few things that have been top of mind in our client conversations lately - new legislation, some market perspective, and a handful of planning updates that are relevant to where many of you are right now.
Rather than publishing a recap of every headline, we narrowed it down to the five things we think matter most for your financial life right now, and what to do about each one. See below:
1. Markets were noisy for the first half of 2026, but your plan was specifically built to withstand this.
The first half of 2026 was anything but quiet. Tariffs took effect, a conflict in the Middle East sent energy prices higher, and the market dropped roughly 10% in the weeks after. But, the market recovered - Q1 corporate earnings came in nearly 28% higher year over year, well above what most analysts expected and the individuals and families who stayed the course with their strategic, long-term plan were rewarded.
This type of volatility is exactly what your plan was built for - not to predict the turbulence (because no plan can do that), but to withstand it without requiring you to make a decision in the middle of it. That’s why we work so closely with you to plan ahead and for the long-term.
One thing worth keeping an eye on is the fact that consumer prices have risen over 25% since 2020. That means the same dollar buys meaningfully less than it did just 6 years ago. If you have cash sitting on the sidelines, it isn’t keeping up with the rate of inflation - and, over time, that gap adds up in ways that are easy to miss because there's no single moment when it becomes obvious.
If you moved money to cash during the volatility and haven't moved it back, it's worth a conversation - not urgently, but intentionally.
What to do: Nothing dramatic! If you moved money to cash during the volatility and haven't moved it back, it's worth a conversation. And, if the past six months raised other questions, we’re always glad to walk through them together - that’s what we’re here for.
2. Your estate plan may no longer be doing what you planned for.
The federal estate tax exemption rose to $15 million per person ($30 million for married couples) and is now permanent. To be clear, this is good news. But, it also means plans drafted before 2026 were built around different numbers and some of them need refining now. Some decisions designed to minimize estate tax under the old rules can accidentally shortchange a surviving spouse or create unnecessary income tax bills for your heirs under the new ones.
What to do: If your estate plan hasn't been reviewed in the past two years, it’s time to schedule a review and this is the year to do it.
3. There’s a new tax law that impacts your charitable giving deduction.
Starting in 2026, the first 0.5% of your income worth of charitable contributions no longer counts toward your deduction. On $1 million of income, that's $5,000 off the top before your deduction even starts. The benefit is also capped at 35 cents on the dollar for top-bracket donors.
What to do: Talk to us about bunching gifts through a donor-advised fund or giving directly from your IRA if you're over 70½ - both sidestep the new limits.
4. 529 plans just got more useful and something new launches this month.
529 distributions can now cover up to $20,000 per year in K-12 expenses (double the old limit), plus tutoring, credentialing programs, trade school, and homeschooling costs. So, if you have a 529 for a child whose education plans have changed, you may still be able to use it.
Additionally, starting July 4th, a new account becomes available for children - a tax-deferred savings account with a $1,000 government contribution for children born between 2025 and 2028, and up to $5,000 per year in contributions from anyone.
What to do: If you have children or grandchildren with eligible birth years, set up their new tax-deferred savings account this month - the $1,000 is free. And if you have an existing 529 you haven't revisited, let's take a look at how the new rules change your options.
5. Your second home may be losing its asset value.
Most families think of their real estate as a reliable, liquid asset - something that can be sold when the time comes. But a shift in the insurance market is changing that assumption, particularly for vacation and second properties.
More and more carriers are pulling back from entire states and regions. Insurers now use satellite imagery and AI to flag properties for non-renewal based on roof age, proximity to water, or wildfire exposure. And here's the part that catches most owners off guard: a home that can't be insured is a home that can't be sold, because buyers can't secure a mortgage without coverage.
That turns what looks like a valuable asset on paper into one that's difficult to move when you need to. For families where real estate is a meaningful part of the overall picture, this is an important conversation to have as it relates to your estate plans, liquidity, and how the property fits into the long-term picture.
What to do: If you own property in a coastal, mountain, or high-risk area and haven't thought through what happens if it becomes hard to sell or transfer, let's add it to our next planning conversation.
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The first half of 2026 brought more change than most years - new legislation, market swings, and updates across taxes and estate planning that have come up in nearly every client conversation we've had this year. We put this together to make sure those changes are on your radar, and because how each one affects you depends entirely on where you are in life - what you own, what you've built, what you're planning for, and how much time you have to get there. The information matters, but what matters more is knowing how it applies to your specific situation.
If any of these updates raised questions for you - or for a family member or friend who might not be working with a professional partner - we're always just a call away: (860) 838-3730
