Why the Best Financial Decision You Can Make Is to Slow Down
Imagine this. One day you’re worrying about crop prices, property taxes, or whether your business can make payroll. A few weeks later, the proceeds from selling your land hit your bank account. Instead of a few hundred thousand dollars, your checking account now has $10 million, $20 million, or even $50 million. For many Americans, the AI-driven data center boom is creating exactly this scenario. Families who have owned farmland or rural property for generations are suddenly becoming multi-millionaires almost overnight. Congratulations—you’ve won the financial lottery without buying a lottery ticket. But here’s the surprising part.
The most important financial decisions you’ll make aren’t the ones that led to the sale. They’re the ones you make during the next 90 days.
At PDS Planning, we’ve found that wealth is rarely lost because of one catastrophic investment decision. More often, it’s slowly eroded by rushed decisions, unnecessary taxes, poor coordination, expensive fee structures, and well-intentioned but misguided advice. Here are eight priorities to help protect what may become your family’s legacy.
1. Resist the Urge to “Do Something”
Receiving a large wire transfer creates an understandable sense that you should immediately put every dollar to work. You don’t have to. In fact, you probably shouldn’t. Markets will still be there next month. Interest rates will still exist. Investment opportunities won’t disappear because you took time to think. A period of intentional patience allows you to make decisions based on a long-term plan instead of excitement, fear, or pressure. Sometimes the smartest investment decision is simply giving yourself permission to wait. When dollars are this substantial, small pleasures like a new car, clothing, are not material so please feel empowered to spoil yourself a bit.
2. Protect the Cash First
Your first objective isn’t maximizing returns. It’s protecting principal. Until a comprehensive financial plan is developed, your proceeds should be held in a manner that prioritizes safety, liquidity, and appropriate FDIC or Treasury-backed protection where applicable. Think of this as a temporary parking place—not a permanent investment strategy.
3. Understand Your Tax Bill Before Spending
One of the biggest mistakes newly wealthy families make is assuming the entire check belongs to them. Depending on how the property was owned, your cost basis, state taxes, and the structure of the transaction, your eventual tax obligation could be substantial. Before purchasing vacation homes, vehicles, or investment property, understand exactly how much of your proceeds truly belong to you after taxes. A coordinated plan involving your CPA and financial planner can prevent expensive surprises.
4. Build Your Advisory Team Before Building Your Portfolio
The first professional you hire shouldn’t necessarily be the first person who asks to manage your investments. Instead, build your team intentionally. That may include:
- A CPA with experience in large liquidity events
- An estate planning attorney
- A fiduciary financial planner
The goal isn’t simply to manage investments. The goal is coordinating every major financial decision around a unified strategy.
5. Don’t Rush Into Hiring a Financial Advisor
This advice may surprise you coming from a financial planning firm. You do not need to hire the first advisor who calls. Interview several firms, and ask the following:
- How are you compensated? If they give you a percentage of assets schedule, ask them to calculate the dollar amount of the fees you will pay them. You may be shocked!
- Who owns the company?
- Do you sell proprietary products?
- Will you coordinate with my attorney and CPA?
- What services are included beyond investment management?
- Most importantly, understand how much you’ll pay—not just this year, but over the next 20 or 30 years.
- If our portfolio increases in value, will the dollar amount of fees I pay you increase?
Choosing an advisor is one of the most important financial decisions your family will ever make. It deserves careful thought.
6. Expect Friends and Family to See You Differently
Most people won’t ask for money. Some will. Others may ask for loans, investments, business opportunities, or financial help. These requests often come from people you genuinely care about, making them emotionally difficult to navigate. Before saying yes to anyone, establish clear personal policies regarding gifts, loans, and financial assistance. Having a written philosophy before requests begin can preserve both relationships and financial security.
7. Avoid Lifestyle Inflation
Buying a new vehicle or taking a dream vacation isn’t necessarily irresponsible. The danger comes when permanent spending increases are based on what may feel like unlimited wealth. A large investment portfolio can create the illusion of unlimited income. Those are two very different things. Financial independence isn’t determined by how much money you have. It’s determined by how much you spend relative to what your assets can sustainably produce over decades.
8. Think Beyond Investments
Many newly wealthy families immediately focus on investment returns. Ironically, investments may be the least urgent issue. The bigger questions often include:
- Should we establish trusts?
- How much should we give our children?
- Should we update our wills?
- Are we adequately insured?
- Should we establish a charitable giving plan?
- How do we prepare future generations to manage wealth responsibly?
These decisions often have a greater long-term impact than selecting one mutual fund over another. An advisor focused on advice, and not investments, understands how to navigate these challenges.
Your Wealth Deserves a Plan—Not Just a Portfolio
A sudden liquidity event changes more than your balance sheet. It changes the opportunities available to your family, the risks you’ll face, and the decisions you’ll be asked to make. At PDS Planning, we believe families who experience a once-in-a-lifetime wealth event deserve advice that extends far beyond investment management. Taxes, estate planning, retirement income, charitable giving, insurance, family governance, and long-term decision-making all deserve thoughtful coordination. Most importantly, you don’t have to make every decision immediately. Sometimes the greatest financial advantage isn’t acting quickly. It’s making sure every major decision is the right one.
The PDS Perspective
Receiving millions of dollars from the sale of land is a life-changing event—but it doesn’t have to become a life-complicating one. If your family has recently experienced a significant liquidity event, or expects to in the near future, start by slowing down. Assemble the right team. Ask difficult questions. Understand how every advisor is compensated. And remember that preserving wealth for future generations requires much more than simply investing the proceeds. Your land may have appreciated overnight. Protecting what it becomes is a much longer journey.
About PDS Planning
PDS Planning, Inc. is a fee-only fiduciary wealth management firm based in Columbus, Ohio. Unlike firms that charge a percentage of the assets they manage, PDS Planning operates on a flat-fee model designed to align our compensation with the complexity of your financial life—not the size of your investment portfolio. Your large windfall should not dictate how much money you pay your advisor. We specialize in comprehensive financial planning, tax-aware strategies, retirement planning, estate coordination, and helping families navigate significant liquidity events with confidence.
IMPORTANT DISCLOSURE INFORMATION: Please remember that past performance is no guarantee of future results. Different types of investments involve varying degrees of risk, and there can be no assurance that the future performance of any specific investment, investment strategy, or product (including the investments and/or investment strategies recommended or undertaken by PDS Planning, Inc. [“PDS”]), or any non-investment related content, made reference to directly or indirectly in this blog will be profitable, equal any corresponding indicated historical performance level(s), be suitable for your portfolio or individual situation, or prove successful. Due to various factors, including changing market conditions and/or applicable laws, the content may no longer be reflective of current opinions or positions. Moreover, you should not assume that any discussion or information contained in this blog serves as the receipt of, or as a substitute for, personalized investment advice from PDS. To the extent that a reader has any questions regarding the applicability of any specific issue discussed above to his/her individual situation, he/she is encouraged to consult with the professional advisor of his/her choosing. PDS is neither a law firm nor a certified public accounting firm and no portion of the blog content should be construed as legal or accounting advice. A copy of the PDS’ current written disclosure Brochure discussing our advisory services and fees is available for review upon request or at www.pdsplanning.com. Please Note: PDS does not make any representations or warranties as to the accuracy, timeliness, suitability, completeness, or relevance of any information prepared by any unaffiliated third party, whether linked to PDS’ web site or blog or incorporated herein, and takes no responsibility for any such content. All such information is provided solely for convenience purposes only and all users thereof should be guided accordingly. Please Remember: If you are a PDS client, please contact PDS, in writing, if there are any changes in your personal/financial situation or investment objectives for the purpose of reviewing/evaluating/revising our previous recommendations and/or services, or if you would like to impose, add, or to modify any reasonable restrictions to our investment advisory services. Unless, and until, you notify us, in writing, to the contrary, we shall continue to provide services as we do currently. Please Also Remember to advise us if you have not been receiving account statements (at least quarterly) from the account custodian.
