When most people ask an accountant how to save money on taxes, they usually get one of two answers:
- “There’s not much you can do.” This is what W-2 employees are often told.
- “Just buy more for your business.” This is the advice many business owners hear.
The first response is usually false. The second is only half true.
Yes, spending money on business expenses can lower your taxes. But what if you do not need more things for your business? What if you want to use that money for your personal life?
Are you just out of luck from a tax perspective? Absolutely not. And here is why.
Why the Worst Tax Advice Persists
We first noticed something interesting while working with clients who had incredibly complex financial lives, including multiple businesses, trusts, and investments all under one umbrella.
One client in particular was worth billions. You might expect their tax strategy to be handled by a specialist focused only on business taxes or trusts. But the person leading the entire engagement was someone who could zoom out, connect the dots, and understand how every decision across those different entities flowed up into the client’s individual tax return.
That big-picture approach ended up saving the client hundreds of thousands of dollars.
And it is a good reminder: real tax planning is not about chasing one deduction or focusing on one business. It is about seeing how everything fits together, including your companies, investments, trusts, and personal finances, and making them work in sync.
How This Applies to You
You do not need to be a billionaire to benefit from this approach. The same principle works for high earners and small business owners.
For example, let’s say you are a business owner or a W-2 professional making more than $300,000 a year. Your CPA might tell you to:
- Buy more equipment for your business.
- Keep your mortgage so you can claim the deduction.
That advice keeps you focused too narrowly. Instead, you should ask bigger questions.
Better Questions to Ask
- Beyond my job or business, where else am I building wealth?
- Can I take income from one area and use it to create tax-efficient opportunities in another?
The answer is usually yes. Here are some strategies that go beyond the worst tax advice of “just buy more.”
Smarter Alternatives to the Worst Tax Advice
- Outside business investments: Certain investments can be structured to generate losses.
- Real estate for professionals: If you qualify as a real estate professional, rental property losses may offset your income. IRS Real Estate Professional Rules
- Short-term rentals: Even if you are not a real estate professional, short-term rentals can create powerful deductions.
- Oil and gas investments: Special tax rules allow for accelerated deductions. IRS Publication 535 on Oil & Gas
- Conservation easements: These can generate deductions worth multiples of your investment.
- Defined benefit plans: Ideal for high earners who want to move significant sums into retirement while lowering taxable income.
Each of these is a way to strategically move money, reduce taxes, and align with your long-term goals.
Why You Need a Tax Strategist
Here is the problem with relying only on a CPA: many accountants are focused on tax preparation, not tax planning. They look backward at what has already happened instead of forward at what could save you money.
That is why so many people end up hearing the worst tax advice. It is not that accountants are bad at their jobs. It is that their job often stops at compliance.
A tax strategist looks at your entire financial picture, connects the dots, and helps you apply strategies that actually save you money.
Final Thoughts
The worst tax advice most accountants give—telling you there is nothing you can do or that you should spend more to save—misses the bigger picture. Real tax savings come from planning across your whole financial life.
If you want to avoid costly mistakes and find smarter strategies to reduce your tax bill, schedule a strategy session with Bement Company.