Move concentrated stock into the asset class Washington does not tax
Your net worth is concentrated in one or two tickers, and you already intend to diversify eventually. What changed in 2025 is where the proceeds should go.
The situation
Gains built in a brokerage account will face up to 9.9% state tax when realized. Gains built in Washington real estate face none under current law. Once diversification is going to happen anyway, the destination asset matters.
The service
Your CPA sets the tax parameters. I run the property side end to end: submarket selection across the corridors, yield underwriting on actual operating numbers rather than optimistic pro formas, off-market sourcing, negotiation, and placement of property management. Common destinations: downtown Bellevue or Kirkland condos where liquidity matters, single-family long-term rentals in the RSU belt for yield, and STR-eligible lake properties where depreciation offsets remaining W2 income.
What a rotation looks like
$2M of appreciated stock is harvested across two tax years in tranches sized with your CPA. The proceeds fund down payments on two cash-flowing Eastside properties at conservative leverage. Future appreciation now accrues in the exempt asset class, depreciation shelters current income, and concentration risk falls. Every number is verified by your advisor before anything moves. Illustrative, not a promise.
This is not tax or legal advice. Aditya Kasturi is a licensed real estate broker, not a CPA, attorney, or financial advisor. Figures are illustrative, based on Washington and federal law as understood at the time of writing, and laws change. Confirm any strategy on this page with your CPA and, where relevant, your estate planning attorney before acting.
Common questions
What scale does this make sense at?
The economics work from roughly $500K of deployable proceeds. Below that, a single conservative purchase usually serves better than a structured rotation.
Do you sell my securities?
No. Your financial advisor handles the securities side. I handle sourcing, underwriting, negotiation, and execution on the property side.
Can I finance after leaving W2 employment?
It is harder, which is a large part of the argument for starting before you leave. Lenders qualify W2 income more cleanly than post-exit assets.
Start with your numbers
Tell me where you are in the decision and I'll come back with real figures, not a pitch.