Tandon Dorn CFP, CHFC, RICP, TPCP

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Tandon Dorn CFP, CHFC, RICP, TPCP

Partner & Certified Financial Planner® at OWM Inc. - Equipping Clients with Wealth Strategies & Tax Planning for Personal & Business Success

Cetera Investors is a marketing name of Cetera Investment Services. Securities and Insurance Products are offered through Cetera Investment Services LLC, member FINRA/SIPC. Advisory services are offered through Cetera Investment Advisers LLC. Securities and insurance products are offered through Cetera Investment Services LLC (doing insurance business in CA as CFG STC Insurance Agency LLC), member

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08/24/2026

Year-end tax planning works better before it feels like year-end.

By August, you usually have enough of the year behind you to see what is happening: income, bonuses, business revenue, capital gains, retirement withdrawals, and cash needs are starting to take shape.

But there is still time to adjust. For retirees, business owners, and families with changing income, August can be a better planning window than December.

Waiting until year-end can still help, but some planning options get harder the longer you wait. Withholding, estimated payments, Roth conversions, charitable giving, capital gains, and retirement contributions are all easier to think through before the year is almost over.

Good tax planning usually is not one big move at the end of the year. It is using the time you still have to make better decisions before the year is over.

08/03/2026

Trump Accounts vs. Custodial Accounts

In the last two posts, we compared Trump Accounts to taxable brokerage accounts and 529 accounts. Another comparison families should understand is Trump Accounts vs. custodial accounts.

At a high level, a Trump Account is more retirement-focused. It may offer tax-deferred growth, a potential $1,000 federal contribution for eligible children, and long-term compounding. The tradeoff is limited investment options and restricted access.

A custodial account is different. It can look similar to a taxable brokerage account from an investment standpoint, but the ownership is different. With a custodial account, the assets legally belong to the child. The custodian manages the account while the child is a minor, but the child eventually receives control under state law.

Here are a few areas to compare:

1. Tax treatment
Trump Account: tax-deferred growth.
Custodial account: investment income may be taxed each year, and kiddie tax rules may apply.

2. Liquidity and flexibility
Trump Account: limited access until adulthood, and future access is tied to retirement-account rules.
Custodial account: more flexible, but assets must be used for the child’s benefit.

3. Investment options
Trump Account: generally limited to broad U.S. stock index funds.
Custodial account: broader investment choice.

4. Control
Trump Account: child eventually owns the retirement account, but access is limited by IRA-style rules.
Custodial account: child legally owns the assets and eventually receives full control under state law.

5. Future use
Trump Account: strongest fit for long-term retirement savings.
Custodial account: broader child-related goals, but with less long-term parent control.

-> Planning angle for Trump Accounts: once the child becomes an adult, there may be an opportunity to convert some or all of the account to a Roth IRA during low-income years.

-> Planning angle for custodial accounts: they can be useful when the goal is truly to gift assets to the child, but families should be comfortable with the child eventually having full control.

Before we wrap up this comparison series, one more option is worth mentioning: a *ROTH IRA* for a child with earned income.

This may be one of the most powerful ways to save for a child, but it only works if the child has legitimate taxable compensation. For business owners, this can be an especially valuable planning opportunity when done correctly. The key words are legitimate work, reasonable pay, and good records.

The right choice depends on what the family is solving for: tax deferral, flexibility, investment options, control, and when the child should access the money.

07/27/2026

Trump Accounts vs. 529 Accounts

In the last post, we compared Trump Accounts to parent-owned taxable brokerage accounts. Another comparison families should understand is Trump Accounts vs. 529 accounts.

At a high level, a Trump Account is more retirement-focused. It may offer tax-deferred growth, a potential $1,000 federal contribution for eligible children, and long-term compounding. The tradeoff is that investment options are generally limited and access to the money is restricted.

A 529 account is more education-focused. It does not come with the same federal contribution, but it can be very tax-efficient when used for qualified education expenses.

Here are a few areas to compare:

1. Tax treatment
Trump Account: tax-deferred growth.
529 Account: tax-free growth and tax-free withdrawals when used for qualified education expenses.

2. Liquidity and flexibility
Trump Account: generally limited access until adulthood, and future access is tied to retirement-account rules.
529 Account: flexible for qualified education expenses, but taxes and penalties may apply if used for non-qualified expenses.

3. Investment options
Trump Account: generally limited to broad U.S. stock index funds.
529 Account: investment options depend on the plan, but often include age-based portfolios and education-focused choices.

4. Parent control
Trump Account: designed for the child’s long-term retirement benefit.
529 Account: parent or account owner generally keeps control and may be able to change beneficiaries.

5. Future use
Trump Account: strongest fit for long-term retirement savings.
529 Account: strongest fit for education funding, including college and certain other qualified education expenses.

-> Planning angle for Trump Accounts: once the child becomes an adult, there may be an opportunity to convert some or all of the account to a Roth IRA during low-income years.

-> Planning angle for 529 accounts: unused 529 funds may be moved to a Roth IRA over time, subject to rules and limits. Some states, including Nebraska, may also offer a state tax benefit for contributions.

The main point is not that one account is automatically better than the other. They are designed for different purposes.

If the goal is retirement savings for the child, a Trump Account may become a useful tool, especially for eligible children who qualify for the federal contribution. If the goal is education funding, a 529 is still hard to beat from a tax-efficiency standpoint.

Next, we’ll look at custodial accounts and a few other ways families can save or invest for kids.

07/20/2026

Trump Accounts vs. Taxable Brokerage Accounts

We have been getting a lot of questions about Trump Accounts lately. One comparison worth thinking through is how they stack up against a regular taxable brokerage account for a child.

At a high level, a Trump Account is more retirement-focused. It may offer tax-deferred growth, a potential $1,000 federal contribution for eligible children, and long-term compounding. The tradeoff is that investment options are generally limited and access to the money is restricted.

A taxable brokerage account is different. In this case, we are referring to an account owned by the parent, not a custodial account owned by the child. The parent can keep ownership until they decide whether, when, and how to gift assets to the child.

It does not offer the same tax deferral, but it gives the parent more control, more investment flexibility, and more options for how the money may eventually be used.

Here are a few areas to compare:

1. Tax treatment
Trump Account: tax-deferred growth.
Taxable brokerage: taxable along the way, but potentially more tax planning flexibility.

2. Liquidity and flexibility
Trump Account: generally limited access until adulthood, and future access is tied to retirement-account rules.
Taxable brokerage: parent can access, gift, or redirect the money more freely.

3.Investment options
Trump Account: generally limited to broad U.S. stock index funds.
Taxable brokerage: broader investment choice.

4.Parent control
Trump Account: designed for the child’s long-term retirement benefit.
Taxable brokerage: parent can retain ownership and decide if or when assets should be gifted.

5. Future use
Trump Account: strongest fit for long-term retirement savings.
Taxable brokerage: can be used for education, a first car, a house down payment, starting a business, future gifting, or simply staying invested.

-> Planning angle for Trump Accounts: once the child becomes an adult, there may be an opportunity to convert some or all of the account to a Roth IRA during low-income years.

-> Planning angle for taxable brokerage: appreciated investments may be gifted in-kind, and a future low-income sale may allow for a planned basis reset at a 0% capital gains rate. The kiddie tax, student status, and support rules still need to be reviewed.

The main point is not that one account is automatically better than the other. Trump Accounts may become a useful tool, especially for eligible children who qualify for the federal contribution. But for additional savings, taxable brokerage accounts deserve to be part of the conversation because of their flexibility, investment choice, and parent control.

We’ll break down the 529 comparison next, then look at custodial accounts and a few other ways families can save for kids.

07/06/2026

“Financial Freedom” gets thrown around a lot in our industry. Usually it lands somewhere between a beach photo, a retirement countdown, and a calculator telling you how big your portfolio needs to be.

With America celebrating 250 years, it feels like a good time to revisit what that phrase actually means.

Because financial freedom is not just having a large portfolio at retirement. In some cases, a large portfolio can actually create more stress: more accounts to manage, more tax decisions, more estate questions, more uncertainty around how much can safely be spent, and more concern about making the wrong move.

The freedom we tend to see is different. It usually comes when someone has a plan they understand and feel confident in. A plan that connects:

• Their investment portfolio
• Their income strategy
• Their tax plan
• Their estate plan
• Their cash flow needs

That is when the conversation changes. Not just, “How much do we have?” But:

• Where will income come from?
• How will taxes affect it?
• What happens if one of us passes away?
• How much can we spend and still feel comfortable?
• What do we want this money to do for us and our family?

That is the version of financial freedom we have found actually matters. Not a certain portfolio number on a statement, but a plan that helps turn that portfolio into clarity, confidence, and better decisions when life changes.

06/15/2026

Where is the money actually flowing today, and where will it come from in retirement?

That is the heart of cash flow planning. It is not just tracking expenses. It is understanding how income, savings, taxes, investments, and future withdrawals all connect.

That question applies in a lot of situations:

• A young family deciding how much cash to keep.
• A business owner planning around uneven income.
• A couple preparing for retirement.
• A retiree deciding which account to withdraw from.

Once the flow of money is clear, the strategy usually becomes more focused:

• Should income come from a brokerage account, IRA, Roth, or business distribution?
• Should more cash stay liquid or be invested?
• Should gains be realized this year or later?
• Should assets be spent during life or preserved for heirs?

Good planning often starts with cash flow because cash flow connects everything else:

Taxes. Investments. Retirement income. Estate decisions.

Before choosing a strategy, it helps to understand how the money moves.

06/02/2026

Something we’ve noticed lately. A lot of people feel financially "stuck" right now and its not because things are going badly.

Most are actually doing a lot right:
• good careers
• decent savings
• low mortgage rates
• growing assets

But almost every decision feels harder than it did a few years ago:
• Move or stay?
• Keep the house or rent it out?
• Invest more or hold cash?
• Retire soon or work longer?

It feels like people are trying to make the “perfect” financial decision in an environment where every option has tradeoffs.

Most of the time, good financial planning isn’t about finding the perfect answer. It’s about creating flexibility in your initial decisions so you can pivot when life happens, tax laws change, estate rules evolve, or markets pull back.

This mindset shift alone can reduce a lot of financial stress.

05/04/2026

Something we’ve been noticing as we review 2025 tax returns.

There are a number of planning opportunities showing up that simply weren’t there in previous years.

A lot of that is tied to recent tax law changes, but more importantly—it’s how those changes are interacting with real-world situations.

What’s interesting is that many of these opportunities don’t come from doing something new.

They come from:
• timing income differently
• using accounts more intentionally
• coordinating decisions across tax, investment, retirement planning, and estate.

In other words, the rules didn’t just change, the planning window changed.

So for the next OWM Planning Guide, we pulled together a few areas where we’re seeing the most opportunity right now.

03/31/2026

A situation that’s coming up more often lately.

You bought a home a few years ago and locked in a great interest rate…

Now you’re thinking about moving — but instead of selling, you’re considering keeping it as a rental to take advantage of the low interest rate for longer.

There’s one tax rule worth knowing before making that decision.

If you lived in the home for at least 2 of the last 5 years, you may still qualify for the capital gains exclusion when you sell it.

That creates a planning opportunity:

In some cases, you can move out, rent the home for a few years, and still sell it while preserving that tax benefit.

A common strategy is to keep the rental period under ~3 years, so you stay within that 5-year window.

But timing is everything.

Wait too long, and that opportunity can disappear.

So what looks like a real estate decision often becomes a planning decision:

• Keep it as a rental for a period of time
• Sell within the eligibility window
• Balance rental income vs. potential tax savings

There isn’t one right answer.

But this is one of those situations where understanding the rules before making the move can make a meaningful difference.

Address

1121 N 102nd Court
Omaha, NE
68114

Telephone

+14023475379

Website

https://owm.ceterainvestors.com/

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