Retiring in Nevada: Tax Benefits and the Advisors Who Plan the Move From California (2026)

Nevada retirement tax benefits

No state income tax. Nevada has no individual income tax, per the Nevada Department of Taxation. With no individual income tax, there is no Nevada tax on pension, IRA, 401(k) or Social Security income. Federal tax still applies to all of it.

No estate tax filing. For deaths on or after January 1, 2005, Nevada does not require an estate tax filing, per the Department's Estate Tax FAQs. The federal estate tax is a separate question that this guide does not cover.

Property tax cap. State law caps the yearly increase in property tax on residential property at 3 percent. Other property has a separate cap set by a formula that the Department describes as falling between zero and 8 percent, and the residential cap drops if that general cap falls below 3 percent, per its Tax Cap Explanation. The explanation on file is from 2016-17, so confirm the current figures with the county assessor. The cap limits how fast a bill can rise. It does not set the starting bill.

Sales tax. The base state sales tax rate is 6.85 percent. The Department's rate sheets list 8.265 percent for Washoe County (Reno and Incline Village), 7.10 percent for Douglas County (Minden and Gardnerville) and 7.60 percent for Carson City. Local rates change, so confirm the current sheet before you budget.

High-earner tax planning after a move

Once the state income tax is gone, the planning that remains is federal, plus the timing of when you stop being a California resident. Four federal items come up most for high earners who retire to Nevada.

• Net investment income tax. A 3.8 percent tax applies to the lesser of net investment income or the amount your modified adjusted gross income exceeds $200,000 for single filers or $250,000 for joint filers, per IRS Topic 559. Moving to Nevada does not change it.
• Holding period. A gain on an asset held more than one year is long-term, per IRS Topic 409. Check the dates on lots you plan to sell around the move.
• Required minimum distributions. Withdrawals from traditional IRAs and workplace plans must start at an age set by your birth year, per the IRS required minimum distribution FAQs.
• Rollovers. A retirement plan payment can be rolled over by depositing it in another plan or IRA within 60 days, or by a direct transfer, per the IRS rollover guidance.

Planning the move from California

Who California counts as a resident. The Franchise Tax Board treats you as a resident if you are present in California for other than a temporary or transitory purpose, or if you are domiciled in California but outside it for a temporary or transitory purpose, per its residency status page.

The nine-month presumption and the 183-day question. FTB Publication 1031 presumes you are a California resident for any tax year in which you spend more than nine months in the state. The publication does not set a 183-day test, so counting to 183 days does not settle California residency. The one safe harbor it describes covers people outside California under an employment-related contract for at least 546 consecutive days, which does not describe a retirement move. See FTB Publication 1031.

Domicile and closest connections. The publication says the underlying theory is that you are a resident of the place where you have the closest connections, and that the strength of your ties counts, not the number. No one factor decides. The listed factors include time spent in each state, where your spouse and children live, your principal residence, driver's license, vehicle registration, professional licenses, voter registration, bank accounts, the origin of your financial transactions and your doctors.

Why a partial move is risky. A move that changes your mailing address but keeps the California home, doctors, bank accounts and license leaves a close comparison between two states. Moving the ties that the publication lists, and dating the change, gives you a cleaner record. In the publication's examples, a taxpayer who sells the California home, relocates and has no intention of returning becomes a nonresident on the move date, with the year split into resident and nonresident parts.

Timing stock and business sales. The publication sources the gain from selling stocks or bonds to where you are a resident at the time of the sale. A sale before the residency change and a sale after it can land in different states for tax purposes. Gain on California real estate stays taxable by California even when you sell as a nonresident. Distributions from employer pension, profit-sharing, stock bonus and deferred compensation plans are not taxable by California if you receive them as a nonresident. Business sales follow separate income rules in the publication, so take the sale agreement and your move date to a CPA before you sign.

Property owners. A Californian selling rental or vacation property can look at a Delaware Statutory Trust under a 1031 exchange. Our DST and 1031 guide ranks the Nevada firms that say anything about it, and Abundance Wealth Solutions ranks 8 of 9 there. Its own DST and 1031 service page addresses Californians and former Californians who are selling property.

How we ranked

The list is the 13 Northern Nevada firms from our Reno high net worth ranking, with the same facts and the same scores. The formula tests regulator data, fees, office checks, designations, minimums and assets per client. It does not test California-move experience, so the order says nothing about who has handled one. Ask each firm whether it has coordinated a stock sale around a residency date and a California property sale.

Scoring formula

1. 20 points, fee model. Fee-only with no commissions scores in full, fee-based with a no-commission statement about half, fees plus commissions or brokerage zero, fee basis not stated one fifth.
2. 20 points, disclosures. Zero Item 11 events on the latest Form ADV Part 1 scores in full, one event 40 percent, anything else zero. Branches of broker-dealers score zero because their disclosure counts are firm-wide.
3. 10 points, office verification. A street office verified on the firm's own site or branch page scores in full; an office confirmed only through the regulator filing scores about half.
4. 10 points, designations. CFP, CRPC, ChFC or RICP named on the site or in the brochure scores in full; CFA or CPA only about half; none named zero.
5. 10 points, account minimum. A stated minimum of $250,000 or less, or a minimum fee of $5,000 or less, scores in full; mid-range minimums 60 percent; $1 million or more 20 percent; not disclosed 40 percent.
6. 30 points, depth. Regulatory AUM per client of $1 million or more scores in full, $500,000 or more two thirds, $250,000 or more one third. This is the household-size proxy for high net worth.

Depth is regulatory AUM divided by clients. It is a proxy only; Form ADV counts a family as one client at some firms and several at others. Ties break on regulatory AUM.

Abundance Wealth Solutions scores 34.0 and ranks 13 of 13: fee model 0 (advisory fees plus broker-dealer representative), disclosures 0 (firm-wide), office 10, designations 10 (CRPC), account minimum 4 (not disclosed, 40 percent of 10), depth 10 (regulatory AUM of $2.1 billion across 6,470 clients is about $324,600 per client, which earns one third of 30).

Comparison table

All 13 firms, ranked by the formula above. Regulatory AUM and counts come from Form ADV Part 1 Item 5; fee model and minimum from Part 2A or the firm's site; "Since" is the first registration year IAPD shows.

† Branch or office of a national firm. AUM, accounts, clients, employees and disclosures are for the parent entity named in each firm's Data line, not for the local team.

Firm profiles

How to choose

1. Get the move date in writing first. Pick the date you stop being a California resident, then list which ties moved on that date: home, license, voter registration, bank accounts and doctors.
2. Ask about sale timing. Ask the advisor to model a stock or business sale before and after the residency date, with your CPA in the room.
3. Look up the firm, not the person. Search the CRD number from the table on adviserinfo.sec.gov and read Item 11 before the first call.
4. Ask how the firm is paid. Fee-only firms say it in writing; "fee-based" can include commissions.

Related guides

• Best retirement planning advisors in Reno and Northern Nevada. 401(k) rollovers, Social Security timing, CRPC advisors and the Reno ranking.
• Best wealth management firms in Reno for high net worth families. The ranking this list is drawn from.
• Best financial advisors in Reno. Twelve Reno firms ranked on ADV data for retirement planning.
• Best wealth managers in Lake Tahoe and Incline Village. North Shore and Incline Village firms, with the $2 million portfolio question.
• Best DST and 1031 exchange advisors in Nevada. Nevada advisors who can place a 1031 exchange into a Delaware Statutory Trust.
• Wealth managers hub. How wealth management firms win AI search visibility.
• All ProCloser rankings. Every guide, by industry.

Sources

• Nest Egg Financial Advisors: IAPD firm summary, CRD 297602, Form ADV Part 1 PDF
• Schultz Financial Group Incorporated: IAPD firm summary, CRD 108724, Form ADV Part 1 PDF
• 3Rd Creek Investments: IAPD firm summary, CRD 115945, Form ADV Part 1 PDF
• Rb Capital Management, Llc: IAPD firm summary, CRD 125678, Form ADV Part 1 PDF
• Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services, Llc: IAPD firm summary, CRD 116407, Form ADV Part 1 PDF
• Aljian Capital Management: IAPD firm summary, CRD 167381, Form ADV Part 1 PDF
• Mercer Global Advisors Inc.: IAPD firm summary, CRD 147363, Form ADV Part 1 PDF
• Elevage Partners, Llc: IAPD firm summary, CRD 158386, Form ADV Part 1 PDF
• Gk Wealth Management Llc: IAPD firm summary, CRD 296847, Form ADV Part 1 PDF
• Cwm, Llc: IAPD firm summary, CRD 155344, Form ADV Part 1 PDF
• Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated: IAPD firm summary, CRD 7691, Form ADV Part 1 PDF
• Ubs Financial Services Inc.: IAPD firm summary, CRD 8174, Form ADV Part 1 PDF
• Nest Egg Financial Advisors office: https://nesteggfa.com/
• Schultz Financial Group office: https://sfginc.com/
• 3rd Creek Investments office: https://3rdcreek.com/
• RB Capital Management office: https://www.rbcapitalmanagement.com/
• Wealth Enhancement Group (Reno) office: https://www.wealthenhancement.com/location/reno-nv
• Aljian Capital Management office: http://aljiancapital.com/
• Mercer Advisors (Reno) office: https://www.merceradvisors.com/location/reno/
• Elevage Partners office: https://www.elevagepartners.com/
• GK Wealth Management office: https://gkwealthmanagement.com/
• Carson Wealth (Reno) office: https://www.carsonwealth.com/locations/reno-nv-kietzke-ln/
• Merrill Lynch Wealth Management (Reno) office: https://advisor.ml.com/sites/nv/reno-nv
• UBS Wealth Management (Reno) office: https://local.ubs.com/reno-nv/
• Nevada Department of Taxation
• California Franchise Tax Board Publication 1031, Guidelines for Determining Resident Status
• College for Financial Planning, CRPC designation
• Social Security Administration, retirement benefits by age
• IRS, rollovers of retirement plan and IRA distributions
• SEC Investment Adviser Public Disclosure
• FINRA BrokerCheck
• Abundance Wealth Solutions: DST and 1031 service page
• Nevada Department of Taxation, Income Tax in Nevada
• Nevada Department of Taxation, Estate Tax FAQs
• Nevada Department of Taxation, Tax Cap Explanation
• Nevada Department of Taxation, Sales and Use Tax rate sheets
• California Franchise Tax Board, Residency Status
• California Franchise Tax Board, Publication 1031 (2025)
• IRS Topic 559, Net investment income tax
• IRS Topic 409, Capital gains and losses
• IRS, Required minimum distribution FAQs
• IRS, Rollovers of retirement plan and IRA distributions