Fee-only financial advisors for LGBTQ+ individuals and families.
LGBTQ+ financial planning has specific complexities: estate planning for non-biological children, surrogacy and adoption costs, state-level marriage/partnership variations affecting benefits, healthcare access and gender-affirming care funding, Social Security spousal-benefit nuances for same-sex couples who married post-Obergefell, and higher-than
What our matched specialists handle
- Estate planning for a non-biological child — how do we lock it in?
- Surrogacy costs — how do we plan financially?
- Same-sex couple married in 2019 — Social Security spousal benefits?
- Gender-affirming care — how do I fund?
- Domestic partnership vs marriage — state tax and benefits differences?
- Chosen family beneficiaries — how to structure?
Tools & guides
Same-Sex Couple Social Security Strategy
Model Social Security claiming for same-sex couples including survivor optimization — eligibility for pre-Obergefell relationships affects historical claims.
Surrogacy Cost Calculator
Estimate your total surrogacy budget by state tier, agency route, egg source, and IVF transfer attempts. Includes savings timeline and LGBTQ+-specific planning notes.
Marriage vs. Domestic Partnership Financial Calculator
Calculate the annual dollar impact of legal status: federal tax bonus or penalty, employer health imputed income savings, and Social Security spousal benefit gap. Enter your incomes and see the net figure.
Adoption Tax Credit Calculator 2026
Calculate your federal adoption tax credit (up to $17,670 per child), phaseout based on MAGI, the $5,120 refundable portion, non-refundable carryforward, and Section 137 employer adoption benefit. Includes LGBTQ+-specific notes on second-parent adoption and special needs.
Domestic Partner Inherited IRA Tax Calculator
See exactly how much more a domestic partner pays in federal taxes on an inherited IRA vs. a married surviving spouse. Enter your IRA balance, the survivor's income, and expected years to inheritance — the calculator models the 10-year forced distribution gap against a spousal rollover strategy.
Gender-Affirming Care Cost Calculator 2026
Estimate your true out-of-pocket cost: insurance offset, HSA/FSA pre-tax savings, funding gap, monthly savings target, and recovery income gap. Works for hormone therapy, top surgery, bottom surgery, FFS, and more.
LGBTQ+ Financial Planning Guide
Detailed framework — rules, tradeoffs, and common mistakes.
Estate Planning for Chosen Families
Protect non-biological children, chosen family beneficiaries, and unmarried partners. Core documents, second-parent adoption, and state portability issues.
Social Security for Same-Sex Couples
Spousal benefits, survivor strategy, pre-2015 retroactive claims, and what the WEP/GPO repeal means for households with government pensions.
How to Fund Gender-Affirming Care
HSA/FSA rules for gender-affirming care, insurance navigation, cost ranges for hormone therapy and surgery, leave planning, and funding strategies.
Life Insurance for LGBTQ+ Families
Insurable interest for domestic partners, non-biological parent coverage gaps, cross-owned policies, ILIT structures for chosen families, and affirming underwriting for trans individuals.
Domestic Partnership vs. Marriage: Financial Differences
Federal taxes, Social Security gaps, imputed income on employer health coverage, inherited retirement accounts, and the FMLA blind spot — with a decision framework for when the math tips toward marriage.
Retirement Planning for LGBTQ+ Households
Pre-65 healthcare, Social Security spousal strategy, the inherited IRA 10-year rule for domestic partners, Roth conversion windows, where to retire, and LTC facility discrimination risk.
Adoption Financial Planning for LGBTQ+ Families
Adoption type cost table, the 2026 adoption tax credit ($17,670), employer adoption assistance, second-parent adoption legal stakes, and funding gap strategies.
Same-Sex Divorce: Financial Planning Guide
The 10-year Social Security marriage rule, QDROs for retirement accounts, post-TCJA alimony math, 36-month COBRA rights at divorce, and second-parent adoption stakes in custody.
How to Find an LGBTQ+-Affirming Financial Advisor
What "affirming" means in practice: fee-only vs. commission, credentials that matter, questions to ask before hiring, and red flags that signal an advisor doesn't have real LGBTQ+ depth.
Transgender Financial Planning: A Complete Transition Checklist
Name change on every financial account, estate document updates, beneficiary designation review, insurance considerations during transition, and employment protections — sequenced in the order you need to do them.
LGBTQ+ Tax Planning: Filing Guide for Same-Sex Couples and Domestic Partners
MFJ vs. MFS, the marriage bonus and penalty with 2026 brackets, community property rules for domestic partners in CA/NV/WA, employer health imputed income, and year-end moves.
LGBTQ+ Homebuying & Real Estate Planning Guide
How to take title (JTWROS vs. TIC vs. community property with survivorship), the $250K capital gains exclusion for each co-owner, co-ownership agreements for unmarried partners, down payment gift rules, and fair housing rights in 2026.
LGBTQ+ Prenuptial & Cohabitation Agreements
How to protect pre-Obergefell assets, structure cohabitation agreements for domestic partners, navigate the ERISA retirement account trap, and what financial modeling you need before signing — with LGBTQ+-specific clauses most general prenup guides miss.
LGBTQ+ Employee Benefits: Open Enrollment Guide
How domestic partnership vs. marriage changes employer health insurance taxes, FSA and HSA eligibility for your partner's medical expenses, federal FMLA rights, and 401(k) survivor protections — with 2026 contribution limits.
LGBTQ+ Medicare & Long-Term Care Planning Guide
How Medicare works for same-sex couples and domestic partners, IRMAA cost planning, Medicare coverage for trans individuals, Medigap underwriting timing, LTC insurance, and the Medicaid spousal impoverishment gap that hits domestic partners hardest.
LGBTQ+ Inheritance & Estate Tax Planning
The marital deduction gap, the inherited IRA 10-year rule vs. spousal rollover, and gift tax asymmetry — how legal status creates real dollar differences when one partner dies, and what domestic partners can do about it.
Disability Insurance for LGBTQ+ Households
The SSDI spousal benefit gap for domestic partners, own-occupation definitions, transgender underwriting, FMLA rights for same-sex married vs. DP couples, and how to calculate income replacement without the married-couple safety net.
LGBTQ+ Interstate Relocation: Financial Planning Guide
What travels when you move states and what doesn't: domestic partnership portability gaps, estate document update timeline, tax filing changes out of community property states, state estate tax exposure for domestic partners, and a framework for evaluating retirement destinations.
Surrogacy Financial Planning for LGBTQ+ Families
The $150K–$220K cost reality: employer surrogacy benefits are taxable (unlike adoption's §137 exclusion), HSA covers your own IVF costs but not the surrogate's expenses, there's no federal tax credit, and pre-birth orders vs. second-parent adoption is a choice with lasting financial stakes.
IVF & Fertility Financial Planning for LGBTQ+ Families
IUI with donor sperm ($1,500–$5,000/cycle) vs. standard IVF ($15K–$30K) vs. reciprocal IVF ($20K–$35K+). What's tax-deductible under §213(d), which 8 states now mandate LGBTQ+-inclusive fertility coverage in 2026, HSA/FSA optimization, employer fertility benefit tax traps, and fertility preservation for transgender individuals.
LGBTQ+ Family Building: Surrogacy, IVF & Adoption Compared
Side-by-side comparison of every family formation path — costs, 2026 tax treatment (§23 adoption credit $17,670 with $5,120 refundable, §213(d) IVF deduction, zero deduction for surrogacy), employer benefit tax treatment, and a decision matrix by family type. Includes the second-parent adoption question that applies to almost every LGBTQ+ family regardless of how they built it.
LGBTQ+ Small Business Owner & Self-Employed Financial Planning
Retirement plans (Solo 401(k), SEP-IRA), the domestic partner health insurance deduction gap, QBI deduction differences for married vs. DP, buy-sell agreements for same-sex couple business partners, and community property business income rules — with 2026 limits.
LGBTQ+ Nonprofit & Government Employee Financial Planning
PSLF loan forgiveness strategy for same-sex couples (MFS vs. MFJ), 403(b) and 457(b) limits and the 15-year catch-up rule, the FEHB domestic partner coverage gap, and FERS/CSRS survivor annuity rights — with 2026 contribution limits.
LGBTQ+ College Savings & Education Financial Planning
How FAFSA treats same-sex couples vs. domestic partners, who owns the 529 when legal parentage isn't finalized, education tax credits for non-biological parents, the 2026 ABLE account expansion (disability onset before 46 now eligible), and the 529-to-Roth rollover escape valve for over-funded accounts.
LGBTQ+ Bi-National Couples: Financial Planning Guide
When one partner is not a U.S. citizen: the $194,000 non-citizen spouse gift exclusion (vs. $19,000 for domestic partners), QDOT trust mechanics for estate tax deferral, FBAR and FATCA foreign account reporting, Social Security spousal benefits for non-citizen spouses, and the citizenship timeline as an estate planning tool.
LGBTQ+ Investment Strategy & Portfolio Building
How legal status shapes your optimal account mix: the Roth tilt case for domestic partners facing the inherited IRA 10-year rule, capital gains harvesting differences for married vs. single filers, the single-filer IRMAA trap, ESG and values-aligned investing via the HRC Corporate Equality Index, and asset location strategy for LGBTQ+ households.
LGBTQ+ Military & Veteran Financial Planning
VA benefits for same-sex spouses (DIC: $1,699/month in 2026), Survivor Benefit Plan elections and the widow's-tax fix, TRICARE for same-sex spouses vs. domestic partners, TSP spousal rollover rights, GI Bill transferability — and how veterans discharged under DADT can upgrade their character of discharge to access VA health care, disability compensation, and home loans.
Same-Sex Newlywed Financial Checklist
30 financial steps after your same-sex marriage — sequenced for same-sex couples: Social Security registration (starts the 1-year spousal-benefit clock), ERISA beneficiary updates, health insurance QLE window, estate document rewrites, MFJ vs. MFS tax decision, FMLA rights now in force, and the pre-Obergefell retroactive SS claims many couples miss.
Beneficiary Designations for LGBTQ+ Households
How your 401(k), IRA, life insurance, and bank accounts actually pass at death — and why your will doesn't control any of them. Covers the ERISA spousal default (domestic partners are not protected), the 10-year inherited-IRA rule vs. spousal rollover, naming non-biological children and chosen family, per stirpes vs. per capita, and the annual review triggers specific to LGBTQ+ households.
LGBTQ+ Blended Family Financial Planning
When one or both partners bring children from prior relationships: the ERISA 401(k) spousal-default conflict with biological children's inheritance, QTIP trusts for married same-sex couples, the adoption tax credit surprise (step-parent adoptions don't qualify but domestic-partner second-parent adoptions may), and Social Security survivor benefit coordination across complex family structures.
Powers of Attorney & Healthcare Proxies for LGBTQ+ Households
Without a healthcare proxy, hospitals default to biological next-of-kin — not your partner. Covers the five-document stack (financial DPOA, healthcare proxy, HIPAA authorization, advance directive, hospital visitation authorization), the 2010 CMS hospital visitation rule, choosing a chosen-family agent, multi-state recognition risks, and special considerations for transgender individuals.
LGBTQ+ Surviving Partner Financial Planning
When your same-sex spouse or domestic partner dies, your financial outcome depends on legal status at the time of death. Covers Social Security survivor benefits (zero for domestic partners), the inherited IRA spousal rollover vs. 10-year rule difference, ERISA 401(k) protections, estate administration without marital status, and the pre-planning checklist every LGBTQ+ couple needs now.
Financial Planning After Coming Out
Coming out triggers financial transitions that most financial guides don't address: building independence when family support is uncertain, leaving a mixed-orientation marriage (divorce, QDRO, COBRA, the 10-year Social Security ex-spouse rule), estate plan overhauls when you're 50+ with adult children and a new same-sex partner, and the universal financial safety net everyone needs. Covers every life stage from 22 to 65+.
LGBTQ+ Financial Resilience: Protection That Doesn't Depend on Legal Status
How to build a financial structure — beneficiary designations, JTWROS titling, revocable living trust, durable powers of attorney — that holds regardless of changes to marriage law or domestic partnership recognition. Covers the status-independent protection stack for every LGBTQ+ household type, plus specific hardening strategies for married same-sex couples and the built-in advantages domestic partners who planned without marriage rights already have.
LGBTQ+ Health Insurance Planning: ACA, COBRA & Open Enrollment Strategy
How legal status changes every major health insurance decision: domestic partners must apply for ACA coverage separately (not as a household), the 2026 return of the 400% FPL subsidy cliff, the imputed-income tax on employer-sponsored DP coverage, the federal COBRA gap for domestic partners, Section 1557 trans coverage after the 2025 federal court vacatur, HSA/FSA access for gender-affirming care, and the pre-65 Roth conversion strategy that keeps marketplace premiums manageable.
LGBTQ+ Financial Planning for Singles
Single LGBTQ+ individuals face a distinct financial landscape: no Social Security spousal or survivor benefit (making delay-to-70 even more valuable), no default partner caregiver for LTC planning, Medicaid spend-down to $2,000 without spousal protections, and the IRMAA Medicare surcharge hitting at $109,000 — half the married threshold. Covers estate planning for chosen families without the default-spouse safety net, retirement savings strategy, disability insurance sizing, and LGBTQ+-specific risks like hostile biological family override.
LGBTQ+ Trust Planning: Revocable Trusts, QTIP Trusts & Special Needs Trusts
Trusts are more valuable for LGBTQ+ households than for most married couples — because the law's probate and intestacy defaults don't protect chosen families or domestic partners. Covers revocable living trusts (probate avoidance for chosen families), QTIP trusts (married same-sex couples with blended families), special needs trusts for disabled partners (preserving Medicaid/SSI eligibility), ILITs for large life insurance policies, and how to fund a trust so it actually works.
Roth Conversion Strategy for LGBTQ+ Households
Why domestic partners need a more aggressive Roth conversion plan than married couples: the 10-year inherited IRA forced-distribution problem, how to size conversions to fill brackets without triggering IRMAA, the single-filer IRMAA trap at $109K (vs. $218K for MFJ), Roth 401(k) vs. traditional for DP households, and a decade-by-decade worked example for a domestic-partner couple approaching retirement.
LGBTQ+ FIRE Planning: Financial Independence & Early Retirement
Why the FIRE number for LGBTQ+ households is larger than standard projections assume: no Social Security spousal or survivor benefit for domestic partners, no Medicaid spousal protection floor, solo long-term care exposure, and ACA income management across the healthcare gap. Covers account access before 59½, DP vs. married same-sex FIRE differences, Social Security delay strategy for singles and DPs, IRMAA sequencing, and a pre-FIRE checklist.
Gender-Affirming Care Insurance Denied? Appeals, Rights & Financial Plan
An insurance denial for gender-affirming care is not final. Covers why claims get denied, the internal appeal process (180-day ERISA window, documentation that works), external independent review rights under ACA §2719, state insurance mandates, filing complaints with the DOL or state commissioner, and financial planning while you wait — HSA/FSA, financing options, and documenting for reimbursement.
How matching works
Get matched with a specialist
Fee-only advisor with no commission conflict. Free match.
LGBTQ Advisor Match is a matching service. We connect you with vetted fee-only financial advisors in our network — we don't manage money or provide advice ourselves. Advisors in our network are fiduciaries who charge transparent fees (not product commissions), and we match you based on your specific situation.