Stephanie Dailey case study: over $20,000 saved in taxes in her first year

This is one client's story, from one recorded interview with Preston. Every number below was said out loud on that call. Nothing was added.

Who Stephanie is and where she started

Stephanie and her husband are software engineers. Both have worked in the field for more than 20 years. She works in identity and security architecture, and she also consults on the side.

They have five kids. She calls it a family of seven. The kids are in a mix of private school and homeschool.

On paper, the money looked good. At 4:31 she says the household made over $300,000 in W-2 income alone, plus contract work. But the month never felt easy. They invested, saved for college, carried the right insurance and kept up the cars, which she notes are Toyotas. Still, nothing was left over. At 3:40 she put it plainly: "There are no slush funds."

She found Preston's content, joined the email list, then spoke with a consultant. She was careful. It took her two to four months to decide.

What Stephanie did

She joined in mid-2025. She did not try everything at once. She worked through it in order.

1. She checked the accounts every week

Once a week she looked at what had come in and gone out. That alone found subscriptions she should have cancelled and costs that landed on the wrong card.

2. She kept real books and separate bank accounts

For the 2025 tax year she started keeping real books for the businesses. She also opened business bank accounts and stopped mixing business and personal money. In her words, that was a really huge piece.

3. She deducted her startup costs

She says she probably would not have known startup costs could be deducted at all. They became one of the biggest items of the year, at $27,000.

4. She deducted the bridge loan interest

They bought a new house before the old one sold, so they carried an interest-only bridge loan in between. She says she would not have thought to send anything besides the standard form from the mortgage company. The interest came to over $60,000.

5. She put her kids on payroll

She signed up with Gusto, a payroll company, so it handled the tax forms and withholding. Her old CPA was not a fan of the idea, so she kept it small in 2025 to test it. She plans to do more in 2026. Here is how hiring your kids works in general.

6. She picked a provider for the entity work

She went with Prime, which gives a discount through the program.

Next, she is moving income from W-2 pay to the business side. Her husband quit his job to work on their startups full time, and they gave it six months to see where it lands. Still on her list are SEP IRAs and other retirement accounts, health reimbursement plans, and accounts for the kids' education.

The numbers

Every number here was said on the call by Stephanie or Preston. The time shows where it comes up in the interview.

Two things to know about this table. First, the deduction figure comes up twice. At 6:28 she says one business had over $20,000 in deductions. At 14:30 she puts startup costs at $27,000. She does not say how the two fit together, so both are listed as she said them.

Second, the $40,000 to $50,000 is a forecast, not money already saved. Preston asked her for a rough 12-month number and she gave one. She also redid her long-range math. At 19:18 she says paying off the house had been about a 10-year plan. Now it looks more like seven to eight.

In Stephanie's words

These are her words from the interview. Only filler sounds and repeated words were removed.

"it might have otherwise taken me years to get where we got in six months"

"we were just really blown away by how quickly it paid off"

"I'm a lot more strategic now about everything. I always have that tax number on my mind whenever I'm doing anything."

Preston asked what she would tell herself right before she joined. At 21:23 she said, "I would say, don't hesitate." She also says she went back and forth for months and calls the program a significant investment. She would have accepted a three to five year payback, and it came faster than that.

What to take from this

This is one client's result, not an average and not a promise. Stephanie has high W-2 income, consulting income, five kids, a bridge loan and two new businesses. Change any one of those and the numbers change with it.

Her first steps were plain habits: weekly account checks, real books and separate bank accounts. The bigger deductions came after. Nothing here is tax, legal or investment advice, so review your own situation with a qualified professional who can see all of it. Every Legacy Wealth Blueprint case study, the written client results and the Trustpilot reviews are on the reviews and client results page.