By Scott Frush, CFA, CFP, President, Frush Financial Group, Author of Understanding Hedge Funds, and Optimal Investing

The end of the year is a traditional time of celebration, excitement, reflection, and planning - not withstanding the hectic holiday shopping of course. However, the end of the year means it's time to review your investment and estate plans and make the moves that will safeguard your estate from unnecessary taxation. It is also a critical time to make sure your investments are in line with changing objectives for yourself and your family. Remember that managing your personal finances always begins with you.

The end of the year is not only the optimal time to address all personal finances, but also is the deadline for completing some specific tasks. For example, the last trading day in December is the final opportunity to sell losing investments and offset resulting capital losses against existing capital gains for that tax year.

By not completing certain essential tasks, you risk making costly mistakes and not taking advantage of some important financial and tax strategies. The benefits of completing these financial tasks typically include protecting and growing your investments, cutting your tax bill, safeguarding your estate, and ensuring the financial well-being of your family.

The following are ten essential year-end financial tasks every affluent investor should know about and consider accomplishing:

1. Rebalance Your Portfolio: Due to fluctuating market prices over the year, your portfolio and respective holdings may have changed. To ensure that your portfolio remains optimal - or aligned to achieve your goals and objectives - you may need to sell some investments and buy other investments with the proceeds.

2. Minimize Capital Gains: Capital gains taxes can significantly reduce total portfolio performance and increase your tax bill. As a result, harvest appropriate capital losses to offset against existing capital gains.

3. Bunch Itemized Deductions: If you are close to benefiting from itemizing your deductions, consider "bunching" them in alternating tax years. One year you itemize deductions - and benefit from the excess itemized deductions over the standard deduction - and the next tax year you take the standard deduction. Obviously you should be getting the best thinking of your accountant and other financial advisors.

4. Ensure Estate Planning is Up To Date. Having an estate plan (will, living will, trust, power of attorney, etc) is essential for avoiding probate, minimizing estate taxes, and ensuring assets go to whom you designate. Consider revising your documents if they are out of date.

5. Make Tax-Efficient Charitable Gifts: Making gifts of highly appreciated assets, namely stocks, can be very beneficial by reducing your tax bill. In most cases, taxpayers benefit by obtaining both a charitable tax deduction and avoiding capital gains tax on the highly appreciated asset.

6. Minimize Portfolio Management Expenses: Over time, the compounding effect of portfolio management expenses can be quite large, thus depriving you of better portfolio returns. For this reason, focus on minimizing these expenses, specifically trading costs and investment management fees.

7. Make Financial Gifts to Family Members: Consider taking full advantage of the $12,000 per year per donee gift tax exclusion. Gifting appreciated stock to family members is usually a good move and makes the gift more tax efficient. Use it or lose it is the golden rule here.

8. Consider Having Your Art Collection Appraised. It is important to make sure that market appreciation hasn't made your insurance policy out of date. Depending on the size and value of your art collection, you made need to review its value at least once or may be twice a year.

9. Tidy Up Your Portfolio: Obtain cost information for any investment holding that is missing this information. Consider liquidating one or two share positions or those with fractions. Discuss any move with your advisor beforehand to ensure trading costs are acceptable.

10. Double Check Named Beneficiaries: Substantial time may have passed since you named beneficiaries to your life insurance policy, Wills, and retirement account(s). As a result, identify those beneficiaries, determine if changes need to be made, and consult with your financial advisor if an update is needed. Now is also a good time to review your plans for transferring wealth to the next generations.

With the end of the year fast approaching, it is crucial that you address your personal finances and complete certain essential tasks, especially those with deadlines. Don't wait for your wealth manager to take the initiative.