Morningstar's Year-End Tax Planning Guide

As 2016 comes to a close, it's a good time for investors to consider what moves they can make to ease their tax burdens.

Over the next three days, Morningstar's experts will share tax strategies to consider over the next seven weeks. We'll tackle what to expect during capital-gains distribution season, tax-gain harvesting and tax-loss selling, tax-saving strategies for the charitably inclined, and tax-smart strategies when taking required minimum distributions.

Stay tuned: We'll be updating this page all week with a new set of daily reports.

Monday: Managing Capital-Gains Distributions
5 Pitfalls to Avoid During Mutual Fund Capital Gain Distribution Season
Those unwanted distributions will be here before you know it; navigate them wisely.

What to Expect This Capital Gains Distribution Season
Redemptions among active equity funds coupled with a multiyear stock market rally could lead to sizable distributions this year, says Morningstar's Russ Kinnel.

A Rundown of Impending Mutual Fund Capital Gains Distributions
Which funds--and fund families--are dishing out big taxable distributions this year?

Index Funds and ETFs: Tax-Efficient, But Not Always
Don't assume one of these products will be a good fit for a taxable account without looking under the hood.

A Tax-Efficient Portfolio Makeover May Be Less Painful Than You Think
Proper accounting of cost basis is essential to avoid paying more taxes than you need to.

Tuesday:Tax-Loss and Gain Harvesting
Why Tax-Loss Selling Can Be a Worthwhile Strategy
It takes some work, but tax-loss selling can help ease your tax burden and improve the quality of your portfolio.

Low Tax Bracket? Consider Harvesting Gains
Some investors can step up their costs bases tax-free by pre-emptively selling appreciated positions.

Should You Tax-Loss Harvest in Your IRA?
Conversions and recharacterizations, rather than tax-loss selling, are the better strategy for most.

Don't Write Off Tax-Loss Selling in a Strong Market
Even buy-and-hold investors may be able to identify worthy candidates.

Tax-Gain Harvesting Can Be a Profitable Strategy
'Stepping up' cost basis can reduce tax bills for lower-income investors.

Wednesday: Charitable Giving and Required Minimum Distributions
These Charitable Investment Strategies Deliver a 'Three-fer'
These three maneuvers will tend to deliver a higher tax benefit than writing a check and deducting it, and may even improve your portfolio.

Tax-Saving Strategies for Charitably Inclined Retirees
The now-permanent qualified-charitable-distribution rules allow investors to donate to charity and reduce their tax bills, but that's by no means the only tax-friendly way to donate, says financial-planning expert Michael Kitces.

Benz: Top Tips for RMD Season
Morningstar's Christine Benz offers insight on navigating required minimum distributions, including the case for waiting late in the year and donating directly to charity.

8 Questions for RMD Season
We're coming into the year's home stretch. Do you know where your required minimum distributions are?

Is a Donor-Advised Fund Right for You?
A look at some of the pros and cons of these increasingly popular investment vehicles.