BW Tax Strategies

Tax Strategy · Scottsdale, Arizona

Keep more ofwhat you earn.

Our expertise lies in developing comprehensive tax strategies that help clients maximize savings, enhance efficiency, and achieve long-term financial success. We take a proactive, data-driven approach to tax planning, analyzing your unique financial situation to identify opportunities, mitigate risks, and ensure full compliance with current regulations.

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Proactive tax planningRoth conversionsEntity structuringCost segregationReal estate investorsIRMAA planningBusiness formationBookkeeping & payroll

The three pillars

Service one

Plan it, so the bill is smaller before it arrives.

Preparation reports what already happened; by the time a return is filed the decisions that mattered are behind you. Planning is forward-looking. As a Tax Planning Certified Professional, Steve builds a written strategy per client — where income lands, when to convert, how to draw down — aimed at what you pay over a lifetime, not what you owe this April.

Service two

File it, by the person who did the planning.

Individual and business returns, prepared by the same advisor who built the plan, so nothing gets filed that quietly undoes it. When the IRS is already involved, we handle the resolution too. Software cannot substitute for a preparer who saw the whole year coming.

Service three

Run it, with the books and payroll handled.

For business owners, the back office that keeps the plan real: bookkeeping, payroll, part-time CFO guidance, entity formation and QuickBooks set up so the numbers are ready when a decision has to be made rather than reconstructed at year end.

Who we are

By April, the decisions that mattered are already made.

Most tax work is preparation — reporting what already happened. By the time a return is filed, the Roth conversion was or was not done, the income landed in whatever bracket it landed in, and the entity was whatever it was. Filing it accurately is necessary and it is also too late to change the number.

We work the other way around. As a Tax Planning Certified Professional, Steve builds the strategy before the year closes and then prepares the return that carries it out — so what gets filed reflects a plan rather than reconstructing one after the fact. The goal is what you pay over a lifetime, not what you owe this April.

How the work runs

Discovery

We look at where you actually are.

We start with your recent returns, your income sources, and how each of your accounts is taxed today — taxable, tax-deferred, tax-free. Not what the plan was supposed to be. What it is right now.

The three buckets

We sort what you have by how it is taxed.

Taxable money is invested with after-tax dollars and you pay on interest, dividends and gains. Tax-deferred lowers your taxable income now and is taxed as ordinary income later. Tax-free is invested with after-tax dollars, grows deferred, and comes out untaxed. Most people have never seen their own split.

The strategy

We write the plan, forward from here.

Bracket management, conversion timing, IRMAA thresholds, entity and compensation choices for owners, cost segregation for real estate. Each piece is chosen against the others, because the expensive mistakes almost always happen where two decisions meet.

Filing

We prepare the return the plan intended.

The same advisor who built the strategy prepares the return, so nothing gets filed that undoes it — and if the IRS is already involved, the resolution runs on the same desk.

Ongoing

We stay in it, because the code and your life both change.

Tax law moves, and so do you — a sale, a move, a new property, a change in income. With regular review the plan adjusts before the year closes rather than after, which is the only time changing it is worth anything.

The difference

Not every advisor is held to the same standard.

Proactive planning

How BW Tax Strategies works

A filing-only preparer

Alternative

When the work happens

The timing that decides whether it can help

Before the year closes, while decisions can still change the outcome.

In April, after the decisions that mattered are already made.

What it looks at

How much of your situation is in view

Your whole picture — income, entities, accounts and how each is taxed.

Last year's numbers, as reported to them.

Who does it

Whose judgement is in the plan

A Tax Planning Certified Professional who also prepares the return.

Whoever is assigned that season.

What it aims at

The outcome the work is measured against

Aimed at what you pay over a lifetime.

Aimed at getting this one return filed.

The relationship

What happens after this return

A written plan, revisited as the code and your life change.

A transaction that ends when the return is e-filed.

In their words

Clients who have trusted Steve with the decisions that matter.

  • When considering what is truly critical in a relationship with a financial adviser, it comes down to trust. Over the years, Steve Boeckmann has earned my trust. He understands current trends, looks for future opportunities and adjusts the sails as needed.

    Tammy Moerer, Ph.D.

  • I have been a client of Steve's for over 10 years. I have found him to always be available to listen and advise me based upon my investment goals. I have total confidence in his recommendations, which take into consideration level of risk and market trends.

    Jennifer Looney

  • Steve approaches his work with integrity, meticulous attention to detail, and a strong commitment to achieving financial security and growth. He takes the time to listen, assess individual needs, and develop tailored strategies. Not only has he safeguarded and enhanced our savings, but he has given us peace of mind.

    Donna Barron

  • Over the last two years, Steve has proven to be an indispensable partner in ensuring our financial security and growth. One of the most remarkable aspects of his service is his deep understanding of the markets and his ability to provide tailored advice.

    Michael Knowles

These clients describe Steve's investment-advisory work, offered through BW Wealth Management and LPL Financial — a separate entity from BW Tax Strategies. See the disclosures below.

Credentials

Letters that have to be earned, and kept.

Steve Boeckmann holds five professional designations and is pursuing a sixth — the IRS Enrolled Agent credential.

More about Steve →
  • TPCP®Tax Planning Certified ProfessionalGranted by The American College of Financial Services, the TPCP® recognizes advanced expertise in tax planning and strategy. It is the credential the whole practice is built around.
  • CFP®Certified Financial Planner™Only those who complete the CFP® Board's education, examination and experience requirements — and pledge to keep clients' best interests first — may use the mark.
  • ChFC®Chartered Financial Consultant®Also from The American College, the ChFC® signifies advanced training across insurance, taxation, retirement and estate planning.
  • CRPC®Chartered Retirement Planning CounselorFocused on the complexities of retirement — Social Security, Medicare, income strategies and tax-efficient withdrawals.
  • CMT®Chartered Market TechnicianThe professional standard in technical market analysis, from Steve's years trading NASDAQ and NYSE stocks before he moved into planning.
  • EAEnrolled Agent — in progressThe highest credential the IRS awards, allowing a federally licensed practitioner to represent taxpayers directly before it. Steve is pursuing it now.

Questions we get asked

The things people ask before they move anything.

How we work

What is the difference between tax planning and tax preparation?

Tax preparation reports what has already happened. By the time a return is filed, the decisions that mattered have already been made. Tax planning is forward looking: it asks how you can pay less over the course of your lifetime rather than what you owe this April.

What should I bring to a first meeting?

Your most recent federal and state returns, documentation for your current income sources, and balances for retirement and investment accounts. For business owners, your entity documents and recent financials. If you have had a recent life change — a sale, a move, a new property, a change in income — bring that too. A list of your own questions helps more than anything else.

Who do you work with?

Business owners, high-net-worth families, physicians and real estate investors are the situations we see most, because those are the situations where proactive planning saves the most. That said, anyone for whom tax is a meaningful lifetime expense is a fit.

Services

Do you prepare returns, or only plan?

Both, and by the same person. The advisor who builds your plan prepares the return, so what gets filed reflects the strategy rather than undoing it. We handle individual and business returns, and IRS resolution when it is needed.

Can you help with my business's books and payroll?

Yes. Bookkeeping, payroll, part-time CFO guidance, new business formation and QuickBooks setup are all part of the practice, kept in sync with the tax plan above them.

What is cost segregation?

For real estate investors, cost segregation accelerates depreciation by reclassifying parts of a property into shorter recovery periods — turning a slow deduction into a faster one. Whether it fits depends on the property, and it is one of the strategies we evaluate in planning.

Credentials & security

What is a Tax Planning Certified Professional?

The TPCP®, granted by The American College of Financial Services, recognizes advanced expertise in tax planning and strategy — the forward-looking work, as distinct from preparing a return after the fact. It is the credential this practice is built around.

What is an Enrolled Agent, and are you one?

An Enrolled Agent is a federally licensed tax practitioner authorized to represent taxpayers before the IRS — the highest credential the IRS awards. Steve is pursuing it now.

How do I send you documents securely?

Through the Client Portal, which gives you a secure place to upload documents and see your files rather than sending sensitive tax information over email. The office can help you set it up.

Next step

Start with a conversation, not a pitch.

An initial conversation, at no cost and no obligation. We look at what you have and how it is currently taxed before anyone recommends moving anything.

Scottsdale and the greater Phoenix valley · Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm