AICPA Personal Financial Planning (PFP)

A footnote in the Joint Committee on Taxation's Blue Book may create significant tax consequences for trusts and estates beginning in 2026. In this episode, Bob Keebler joins Cary Sinnett to explain why Footnote 102 has raised concerns about applying the new 2/37ths limitation to distributable net income, charitable deductions and other trust and estate deductions. They explore how the limitation could create phantom income and affect charitable planning, inherited IRAs, Roth conversions, fiscal-year elections and trusts with multiple levels of distribution. What you'll learn Why Footnote 102 is generating so much discussion among trust and estate professionals.  How the new limitation could create unexpected tax consequences.  What it may mean for charitable giving, inherited IRAs and beneficiary planning.  Why fiscal-year elections could become more valuable.  How the rules could affect Roth conversion and trust planning strategies.  Why planners should prepare clients for multiple possible outcomes. Bob Keebler also explains why practitioners should carefully communicate the current uncertainty, review beneficiary and charitable planning strategies, and evaluate potential outcomes before making recommendations. PFP Resources: Archive: Understanding the Estate of Grace and its Progeny Resource: Generation Skipping Transfer Tax Chart Podcast: Jeff Levine on the Planning Tug-of-War: Income vs. Estate Resource: Useful Estate and Trust Decision Charts This episode is brought to you by the AICPA's Personal Financial Planning Section, the premier provider of information, tools, advocacy, and guidance for professionals who specialize in providing tax, estate, retirement, risk management and investment planning advice. Also, by the CPA/PFS credential program, which allows CPAs to demonstrate competence and confidence in providing these services to their clients. Visit us online to join our community, gain access to valuable member-only benefits or learn about our PFP certificate program. Subscribe to the PFP Podcast channel at  Libsyn to find all the latest episodes or search "AICPA Personal Financial Planning" on your favorite podcast app.

The real challenge for planners is not always giving better advice. It is understanding why clients do not act on the advice they already have. In this episode, Cary Sinnett talks with behavioral finance expert Carl Richards about what gets in the way of follow-through. They explore why clarity, purpose and trust often matter as much as technical precision, and how planners can help clients move from understanding a recommendation to actually acting on it. What you'll learn: Why the best financial plan is not necessarily the most technically precise plan, but the one a client will implement. How planners can help clients move forward confidently despite uncertainty. Why advice adherence often breaks down when recommendations are disconnected from a client's sense of purpose. How linking financial decisions to personal goals and values can motivate clients to take action. How empathy, curiosity and active listening can help planners recognize hesitation and uncover a client's real concerns. The simple questions Carl uses to encourage deeper conversations and better client outcomes. How the best planners balance technical expertise with humility and curiosity about what matters most to their clients. Carl also explores how financial planners can move from being problem solvers to sense makers, helping clients interpret uncertainty, connect decisions to their goals and move forward with greater confidence. PFP Resources: Archive: Financial Planning for Aging Clients Resource: AICPA Personal Finance Scorecard Archive: From Risk to Resilience: Disaster Planning for CPA Financial Planners Resource: Top 40 Planning Opportunities This episode is brought to you by the AICPA's Personal Financial Planning Section, the premier provider of information, tools, advocacy, and guidance for professionals who specialize in providing tax, estate, retirement, risk management and investment planning advice. Also, by the CPA/PFS credential program, which allows CPAs to demonstrate competence and confidence in providing these services to their clients. Visit us online to join our community, gain access to valuable member-only benefits or learn about our PFP certificate program. Subscribe to the PFP Podcast channel at  Libsyn to find all the latest episodes or search "AICPA Personal Financial Planning" on your favorite podcast app.

The future of personal financial planning depends in part on whether today's professionals help the next generation see what the career can become. In this episode of the PFP Podcast, Cary Sinnett talks with Dr. Brianne Smith about how firms can expose students and early-career professionals to the human side of financial planning and give them meaningful opportunities to grow into advisory roles. Drawing on her experience as both a practitioner and accounting professor, Brianne shares practical ideas for developing future financial planners, from bringing real client stories onto college campuses and creating PFP internships to inviting young professionals into client meetings before they feel fully "ready." What you'll learn: How real client stories can help students see financial planning as a meaningful career Why firms should consider creating dedicated PFP internship experiences How "graduated responsibility" can build confidence, from analysis to client meetings and recommendations Why pre- and post-meeting conversations can turn client exposure into professional development The importance of cultivating curiosity, problem-solving, communication, and the human side of advice As technology continues to reshape the profession, Brianne argues that the ability to troubleshoot, ask better questions, communicate effectively, and connect with clients will become even more valuable. Developing those capabilities starts by intentionally giving the next generation opportunities to observe, participate, and eventually lead. AICPA Resources: Resource: Pathways to Practicing Personal Financial Planning Archive: A story of tax to personal financial planning Podcast: Why the Future of Financial Planning Runs Through the CPA This episode is brought to you by the AICPA's Personal Financial Planning Section, the premier provider of information, tools, advocacy, and guidance for professionals who specialize in providing tax, estate, retirement, risk management and investment planning advice. Also, by the CPA/PFS credential program, which allows CPAs to demonstrate competence and confidence in providing these services to their clients. Visit us online to join our community, gain access to valuable member-only benefits or learn about our PFP certificate program. Subscribe to the PFP Podcast channel at Libsyn to find all the latest episodes or search "AICPA Personal Financial Planning" on your favorite podcast app.

What can the latest research teach us about helping clients make better financial decisions? In this episode Cary Sinnett talks with Dr. Megan McCoy, who leads the personal financial planning program at Kansas State University, about bringing academic research and real-world financial planning practice closer together. They explore what emerging research in client psychology, communication and financial behavior can teach planners about helping clients navigate difficult decisions, financial anxiety and major life transitions. What you'll learn How research can add another layer of insight to financial planning practice. What client psychology can teach us about financial decision-making and plan implementation. Why effective communication becomes especially important when clients experience major life events. How the client check, problem check and self check can help planners recognize when a client may need support beyond the planner's scope of competence. How emerging techniques such as motivational interviewing and financial anxiety assessments could influence the future of financial planning. Dr. McCoy also explores an important opportunity for the profession: making valuable academic research more accessible and actionable for practitioners so evidence-based insights can translate into better conversations and better client outcomes. AICPA Resources: Archive: 2026 Best Financial Planning Ideas for your Clients Podcast: Andrea Millar, From Financial Expert to Trusted Guide This episode is brought to you by the AICPA's Personal Financial Planning Section, the premier provider of information, tools, advocacy, and guidance for professionals who specialize in providing tax, estate, retirement, risk management and investment planning advice. Also, by the CPA/PFS credential program, which allows CPAs to demonstrate competence and confidence in providing these services to their clients. Visit us online to join our community, gain access to valuable member-only benefits or learn about our PFP certificate program. Subscribe to the PFP Podcast channel at Libsyn to find all the latest episodes or search "AICPA Personal Financial Planning" on your favorite podcast app.

Technical expertise may earn a client's confidence, but human connection earns their trust. In this episode of the PFP Podcast, Cary Sinnett continues his conversation with Dr. Brian Portnoy, author of The Geometry of Wealth, exploring how CPA financial planners can move beyond numbers and into the conversations that truly matter. Together they discuss why "funded contentment" should be at the center of financial planning, how advisors can uncover what clients truly want their wealth to accomplish, and why emotional intelligence may become one of the profession's greatest competitive advantages. What you'll learn: Why funded contentment starts with defining what "enough" means. Questions that help clients move beyond financial goals to purpose and values. How empathy, active listening, and emotional intelligence strengthen client relationships. A simple communication technique that creates deeper, more meaningful conversations. Why the human side of financial planning is becoming more valuable in the age of AI. Key takeaway: As technical planning becomes increasingly automated, an advisor's greatest value may no longer be producing the right answer but helping clients discover the right questions. Financial planning is ultimately about funding a meaningful life, not simply accumulating wealth. Resources Article: Why EQ is the future of personal financial planning Resource: Personal Financial Planning Body of Knowledge (BOK) Podcast: Andrea Millar, From Financial Expert to Trusted Guide This episode is brought to you by the AICPA's Personal Financial Planning Section, the premier provider of information, tools, advocacy, and guidance for professionals who specialize in providing tax, estate, retirement, risk management and investment planning advice. Also, by the CPA/PFS credential program, which allows CPAs to demonstrate competence and confidence in providing these services to their clients. Visit us online to join our community, gain access to valuable member-only benefits or learn about our PFP certificate program. Subscribe to the PFP Podcast channel at Libsyn to find all the latest episodes or search "AICPA Personal Financial Planning" on your favorite podcast app.