Buffalo, New York
Tax-smart retirement planning for Buffalo families
You spent thirty years filling the 401(k). Spending it down without second-guessing every withdrawal, or handing the IRS more than its share, is the harder part. That is the work I do.
Fee-only fiduciary · CFP® · Serving Western New York since 2019
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The logos above represent publications in which Brett Koeppel has been quoted for general market commentary. These appearances were facilitated through the Financial Planning Association's media platform, for which the firm pays an annual membership fee. Neither Brett nor the firm receives compensation from the publications, and the appearances should not be construed as endorsements, testimonials, or rankings of the firm or its services.
If this sounds familiar
You saved enough. Nobody told you the second half was harder.
Most of it has never been taxed
You did what you were told and filled the 401(k) for thirty years. Now you are realizing the IRS has been a silent partner in that account the whole time.
At 73 or 75, the IRS picks the withdrawal amount
Required minimum distributions start at 73, or 75 if you were born in 1960 or later, and they do not care what your tax bracket looks like that year. Left alone, a large pre-tax balance grows into a larger forced withdrawal.
Your spouse would be filing alone
The survivor keeps most of the income and loses half the brackets. It rarely comes up over dinner, and it is the part that wakes you at three in the morning.
Hover for the less formal version
Your guide
Hi, I’m Brett.
I am a born-and-raised Buffalonian and the only advisor at Eudaimonia Wealth. When you call, you get me.
I left the brokerage world in 2019 to build something narrower. I work with Western New York families at or near retirement, on one problem: turning a lifetime of pre-tax savings into income without overpaying for the privilege.
CFP®
CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional
Fee-only
No commissions, no products, no referral fees
Fiduciary
Legally bound to your interest, always
Buffalo
Born here, live here, work here
How this works
Four steps, and you can stop after any of them.
01
The intro call
30 minutes, by phone
A conversation to find out whether your situation is the kind of thing I am good at.
02
The discovery meeting
About 90 minutes, in person or virtual
The long conversation about your money, your family, and what you want this to look like.
03
The retirement strategy session
I do the work, you go about your life
I build the analysis and come back with what I found, whether or not you hire me.
04
The decision
Take as long as you need
We both decide, without pressure, whether to work together for the long haul.
What I do
Five decisions worth getting right.
Tax planning
How do you keep the IRS from taking more than its share?
Everything in the 401(k) went in untaxed, and the bill comes due on the way out. Left alone, that balance compounds until 73 or 75, when the IRS starts setting your withdrawal schedule and your bracket with it.
What this means for you
- You stop guessing in December
- RMDs arrive smaller
- Your spouse inherits a plan instead of a puzzle
Who I work with
Three versions of the same crossroads.
Five years out · Around 58
Still working, saving hard, and finally close enough to retirement to want the arithmetic done properly.
See their situation
Newly retired · Around 64
Six months in, learning that spending down a portfolio is a different skill than filling one.
See their situation
The conversion window · Around 68
A few years into retirement, watching a large pre-tax balance grow toward a required withdrawal schedule they did not choose.
See their situation
From clients
Verified reviews, not testimonials I picked.
These testimonials were provided by current Eudaimonia Wealth clients and may not be representative of the experiences of other clients. The clients were not compensated, nor are there material conflicts of interest that would affect the given testimonials. You can read every review on Brett’s Wealthtender profile, an independent review platform that verifies each reviewer is a real client.
What is at stake
Two versions of the same retirement.
On autopilot
- The pre-tax balance compounds into a bigger RMD problem.
- Social Security gets claimed at the first available moment because that is what a neighbor did.
- Medicare premiums jump two years after a conversion, with no warning.
- The survivor files single on nearly the same income, in half the brackets.
- You underspend for two decades to be safe, then leave more to the IRS than to your kids.
With a plan
- Conversions sized to a bracket you chose, in the years you control.
- A claiming decision made once, with the survivor in mind.
- IRMAA thresholds checked before you cross one.
- One deposit arriving monthly, funded in an order set in advance.
- Enough confidence in the arithmetic to book the trip and mean it.
Straight answers
Common questions
Saving and distributing are different problems. You solved the first one by being disciplined for thirty years. The second one is a sequence of decisions about taxes, timing, and the order you withdraw in, most of which you cannot undo once you make them. I earn my keep on that second problem, and you tend to see it in the taxes you never pay rather than the returns you earn.
I am one person who specializes in one thing: tax-efficient retirement income for families near or in retirement. I cannot be all things to all people and do not pretend to be. You will talk to me every time, not to whichever advisor your household is assigned this quarter.
At Charles Schwab, in accounts registered in your name. I never take custody of client assets. Schwab holds the money, sends your statements, and reports to the IRS. I have authority to manage the accounts and to deduct the agreed fee, and you can view every position and transaction directly at Schwab whenever you want.
As a fee-only advisor, I only get paid by you, never through commissions or product sales. I sell no insurance and no investment products, and I take no referral payments or third-party incentives. My fee ranges from 0.50% to 1.20% of assets under management, with a minimum annual fee of $12,000, and the percentage falls as the assets grow.
No. The first conversation is a 30-minute call at no cost, and there is no obligation attached to it. If I am not the right fit, I will tell you and point you toward someone who is.
Eudaimonia, pronounced you-day-MOH-nia, is an ancient Greek term for human flourishing. It describes a life of meaning and purpose rather than a pile of money. It is a strange name for a wealth management firm, which is why I chose it.
Let's find out if I can help.
The first conversation is 30 minutes on the phone, and you bring nothing to it. You describe what you are trying to sort out, and I tell you straight whether this is the kind of work I do well.