What are the Metro and Multnomah County taxes, and do they apply to us?

They're local income taxes layered on top of Oregon's: the Metro supportive housing services tax and the Multnomah County preschool for all tax, each applying above income thresholds that a dual professional income commonly exceeds. They are frequently under-withheld, so the first year often produces a surprise bill. We build them into your withholding and estimates rather than letting April find them.

Oregon's estate tax starts at $1 million. What do we do about it?

Plan for it, because the federal exemption is irrelevant here. Oregon has no portability between spouses, so credit shelter or disclaimer trust provisions matter for married couples. An irrevocable life insurance trust can move a death benefit outside the taxable estate, and lifetime gifting reduces it — Oregon has no separate gift tax. These are document and titling changes, and they're most effective done early.

Do we have to live in Northwest Portland to work with Aequitas?

No. Aequitas is fee-only and virtual-first — we work with LGBTQ+ households in Northwest Portland the same way we work with clients across Portland and the rest of the US. This page is written for the Northwest Portland demographic, not as a residency requirement.

Is there a minimum account size?

No asset minimum. Engagements are priced based on planning complexity, not portfolio size, so we can work with LGBTQ+ high earners still building wealth — not just clients who already have it.

What happens on the intro call?

Twenty minutes, video or phone. We ask what you're actually trying to figure out, share how Aequitas would approach it, and decide together whether an engagement makes sense. No pressure, no product pitch.

LGBTQ+ couple in Northwest Portland, Portland reviewing their financial plan

Portland · Northwest Portland

LGBTQ+ financial planning for Northwest Portland

You've owned here a long time. The estate side matters more than any other part of the plan right now — Oregon has real teeth.

Schedule a free intro call 20 minutes · video or phone · no product pitch

Quick answer

Is there a financial advisor for LGBTQ+ households in Northwest Portland?

Yes. Aequitas Financial is a fee-only fiduciary practice serving LGBTQ+ professionals, couples, and families in Northwest Portland and across Portland. Meetings are virtual, there is no asset minimum or commission, and plans are built around OR tax, titling, and chosen-family protections.

Source: CFP Board — Code of Ethics & Standards of Conduct

Who this is for

Built for Northwest Portland LGBTQ+ households

Northwest Portland — the Alphabet District and Nob Hill — hosts long-partnered LGBTQ+ owners in Victorian and Craftsman single-family, plus younger professionals in condos.

Oregon's $1M estate exemption without portability quietly makes long-term owners of NW Portland real estate a target.
Your trust hasn't been reviewed since before you married (or before Oregon's tax rules last changed).
Roth conversions in your lower-income years have never been modeled.
The Multnomah surtax on income is unavoidable but plannable.
NW Portland's long-established queer-friendly market carries a $900–$1,400/mo safety premium over Salem or Eugene — baked into decades of appreciation that the Oregon estate-tax structure will eventually notice.

On the ground

Northwest Portland: Oregon's tax reality

Northwest Portland households are typically professionals — healthcare, law, tech, and creative leadership — and their central financial fact is Oregon's tax structure. There's no sales tax, but the state income tax reaches a top rate near 9.9% and starts biting at modest income levels. Portland adds more: the Metro supportive housing tax and the Multnomah County preschool tax apply above income thresholds that catch plenty of dual-income households.

Stacked together, a high-earning Portland couple can face a combined marginal rate that rivals California's. That makes pre-tax deferrals unusually valuable, and it makes the Oregon 529 credit worth capturing. Oregon's estate tax is the other overlooked piece: it starts at a $1 million estate — the lowest threshold in the country — which means a home, retirement accounts, and a life insurance policy can create a state estate tax exposure for households nowhere near the federal exemption.

How we help Northwest Portland households

Oregon $1M estate-tax planning

Oregon's $1M exemption bites earlier than most people expect. Bypass-trust structure, gifting cadence, and beneficiary review keep the state out of the middle of your inheritance.

Estate documents that actually reflect your life

Wills, trusts, healthcare directives, and beneficiary audits refreshed for who you actually chose — not defaults written for someone else's family. Especially the pieces most NW Portland couples wrote a decade ago and haven't looked at since.

Roth conversion timing

The lower-income years between careers, sabbaticals, or before RMDs are the ones to fill up cheap Roth space. We map the multi-year plan instead of one-off flips in December.

Next step

Go deeper, or just talk to us

Skim the broader context if you want more before reaching out — or book the call and we'll cover it live.

LGBTQ+ financial advisor in Portland

The city-wide overview: how Aequitas works with Portland LGBTQ+ households across cash flow, tax, investing, and estate.

LGBTQ+ tax & cost-of-living guide: Portland

State income tax, property tax, estate tax, and LGBTQ+ planning overlays specific to Portland.

Schedule Your Intro Call

FAQ

Northwest Portland planning FAQs

This page is part of our wider guide to LGBTQ+ financial planning — how fee-only, fiduciary planning works for queer households, and which topic to start with.

Ready to talk through your plan?

On a free intro call we'll walk through where you are, what you're trying to figure out, and whether an engagement makes sense — no pressure.

Schedule Your Intro Call