Insights topic

California Planning

Every guide where the state changes the answer

Almost every planning answer changes when you live in California. The state taxes capital gains as ordinary income, community property changes how a couple's basis steps up, property tax rules shape what happens to an inherited home, and a retiree who moves out of state faces questions that residents of no income tax states never have to ask.

This shelf collects every guide where the state changes the answer. It is a cross reference rather than a separate subject, so each guide here also lives on its own topic shelf. If you are relocating from the Bay Area to Placer County, selling a business, or inheriting property, this is where the California specifics are gathered in one place.

Featured guide

Tax Planning

Capital Gains Tax in California: Why a 15% Federal Rate Is Rarely 15%

A California resident who sells a concentrated position at the 15% federal long-term rate can still owe more than twice that once the state and the surtax are layered on, and most of the planning options close the day the sale does.

California has no preferential rate for capital gains, so a gain taxed at 15% federally can still face 9.3% or more in state tax.
Selling a concentrated position in one transaction can trigger federal capital gains tax, the 3.8% Net Investment Income Tax, and California tax at once.

Nyle Bayer · Published August 24, 2026 · 10 min read

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More in California Planning

Estate Planning

Inherited IRA Planning Guide: Navigating SECURE Act 2.0 Rules, RMDs, and Tax Strategies

What happens when you inherit an IRA, how the SECURE Act 2.0 10-year rule and RMDs work, and how step-up in basis applies to inherited homes and accounts, including California's community property rules.

Nyle Bayer · September 10, 2026 · 14 min read

Tax Planning

Roth IRA vs. Traditional IRA: A California Pre-Retiree's Guide

A plain-language comparison of traditional and Roth IRAs for California pre-retirees, covering deductions, income limits, the backdoor Roth, RMDs, and state tax treatment.

Nyle Bayer · September 8, 2026 · 11 min read

Estate Planning

Estate Planning When You'll Never Owe Estate Tax: What California Families Actually Need in 2026

A plain-English guide for California families with $1 million to $8 million in assets on the estate planning issues that actually apply to them in 2026, none of which involve the federal estate tax.

Nyle Bayer · September 3, 2026 · 12 min read

Tax Planning

Roth Conversion Strategy for Pre-Retirees: When, How Much, and Why Timing Is Everything

A pre-retiree's guide to Roth conversion strategy: timing, tax bracket management, the five-year rule, sequencing, and California tax rules.

Nyle Bayer · August 26, 2026 · 11 min read

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For general education only, not individualized tax or investment advice. Up Capital Management is a Registered Investment Adviser.