Financial Checkup
Three blind spots most
high earners miss
Free tools. No login required. See what your tax software and financial apps aren't showing you.
Tool 01 of 03
The SALT Torpedo
If your household income is approaching $500,000 — or if a raise, bonus, equity vest, or capital gain could push you past it — you may be walking into a hidden tax trap. The 2026 SALT (State and Local Tax) deduction cap of $40,000 phases out between $500K and $600K of income, shrinking your deduction by 30 cents for every dollar you earn above $500K. The result: every additional dollar gets taxed at a rate far higher than your normal tax bracket would suggest.
A couple earning $520K with $50K in state and property taxes could face an effective marginal rate above 50% in the torpedo zone — paying more in additional tax on each dollar than someone earning $700K. A well-timed Roth conversion, charitable donation, or income deferral could save thousands.
Adjust your inputs
Filing Status
SALT Cap (2026)
$40K
Peak Rate Spike
+9.6%
Torpedo Zone
$500K – $600K
At $500K, every additional dollar is effectively taxed at 41.6% — 9.6 percentage points above what the normal brackets would suggest. This is the SALT torpedo — as your income rises through this zone, the $40,000 SALT (State and Local Tax) deduction cap shrinks, effectively increasing your tax rate above what the normal brackets would suggest.
Effective Marginal Rate by Income
Lisle goes deeper
Lisle's full engine models your actual itemized deductions, Alternative Minimum Tax interactions, net investment income thresholds, and state-specific effects. It monitors your income throughout the year and alerts you before you enter the torpedo zone — not after.
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Total Compensation Decoder
Your offer letter says $350K. Your W-2 says $350K. But after federal tax, state tax, Social Security, Medicare, and — if you hold stock options — potential Alternative Minimum Tax, your real take-home could be $100K less. Most people never calculate the true after-tax value of their compensation package. They negotiate based on gross numbers and are surprised by net results.
Two offers that look identical on paper — $300K in California vs. $280K in Washington — can differ by $25K+ in take-home pay. An ISO grant worth $100K on paper might trigger $15K in additional taxes that you won't discover until filing. Knowing your real number changes how you negotiate, when you exercise, and whether that new role is actually a raise.
Your compensation
RSU Details
Your $310K compensation is actually worth
$191,970
38.1% effective tax rate
Lisle goes deeper
Lisle models your full compensation across multiple years, factoring in vesting schedules, exercise timing strategies, tax credit recovery, and state tax optimization. Compare offers side-by-side with true after-tax values, not just headline numbers.
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Lifestyle Creep Score
You earn more than 90% of American households. But are you building wealth at the rate your income should allow? Lifestyle creep — the gradual expansion of spending as income grows — is the defining financial challenge for high earners. It's not about lattes. It's about the $800/month difference between the apartment you had at $150K and the one you have at $300K, multiplied across every category of spending.
A household earning $300K with a 10% savings rate is accumulating wealth at the same pace as a household earning $150K saving 20%. The income doubled, but the wealth-building didn't. Over a 20-year career, that gap can mean the difference between retiring at 55 and retiring at 65.
Your numbers
Solid foundation. Targeted optimization in one or two areas could meaningfully accelerate your wealth-building timeline. Small adjustments here compound over decades.
Dimension breakdown
High earners at $250K average a score of 48. You are 29 points above your peer average.
Lisle goes deeper
Lisle tracks your actual spending patterns, identifies category-by-category lifestyle drift, and quantifies the long-term impact on your retirement timeline. Get proactive alerts when spending in any category grows faster than your income.
Get Early AccessThese tools provide simplified estimates for educational purposes only. They do not account for all tax provisions, credits, deductions, or individual circumstances. Tax figures are based on 2026 federal brackets, standard deductions, and approximate state effective rates. Consult a qualified tax professional before making financial decisions. Lisle.ai is not a registered investment advisor, tax preparer, or financial planner.
Beyond the checkup
Ready for the full picture?
These three tools scratch the surface. Lisle connects your tax position, equity compensation, cash flow, and retirement projections into a single intelligence layer — updated with every paycheck, every vest, every life change. The complexity you have deserves tools built for it.
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