by Bill Miller | Feb 2, 2020 | Blog, Estate Planning
An estate plan protects your family. It is not just for rich people. Everyone should have an estate plan in place to protect themselves, their businesses, their spouses, as well as their minor children or disabled children. Your estate plan needs to be in place as soon as possible to ensure your estate assets can go to the people you want them to go to in the event of your death.
While none of us want to consider a time when we will no longer be here to provide for our loved ones, we need to think about this as soon as possible. Estate planning can take many actions that protect your loved ones, and you. For example, through trust based estate planning, you can prevent irresponsible children from spending everything they inherit as soon as they get it. Another example allows you to potentially prevent family infighting after your passing by creating an estate plan that has your assets managed by an experienced guardian or trustee. Further, you can create an estate plan that will provide for and protect your minor children until they reach an age of your choosing.
The ultimate is for you to be able to create legal planning that can allow you to protect and care for loved ones long after you are gone. It often helps our clients to understand what happens in estate planning when they pass away. Let us give you more information right here. In almost all situations, after you die, a trustee or personal representative collects your remaining assets, pays your final bills and taxes, and retains the remaining assets for distribution according to the instructions contained in your last will and testament or trust agreement.
While last will and testaments are effective at handling relatively simple situations, trusts are much more flexible. For instance, trusts can be used if there is a minor child or disabled person left behind. The trust can name a trustee who has the authority to manage your assets and spend money on things necessary for the beneficiary’s absolute needs. The terms of the trust can state that the trust assets cannot otherwise be spent. It can also determine the age and circumstances for distribution, and guidelines for management of assets held within it.
Unfortunately, many people mistakenly believe that assets held in revocable trust agreements, which are created for estate planning purposes, will not be available for long-term care. This is almost never true. If a beneficiary is allowed to access trust assets, then the trust assets can be used to pay for the beneficiary’s long-term care. If you are concerned about a future that includes a need for long-term care, which we should all contemplate, then we need consider other planning alternatives.
One of the only ways to protect the trust assets from being used for long-term care is through an irrevocable trust agreement. This type of trust does not allow the beneficiary to access the trust assets. He or she only receives the type of distributions outlined in the trust document. An example of a type of such a protected irrevocable trust would be a special needs trust. Such a trust can insure that the government benefits for the disabled will also be available. Be careful, however, because if assets are transferred to an irrevocable trust, there is a five-year waiting period before the trust assets will be considered protected from long-term care expenses.
We know this article may raise more questions than it answers. For example you may ask yourself, how do you effectively plan for yourself and your loved ones when it comes to both estate planning and elder law concerns? We encourage you not to wait to get your questions answered by attorney Bill Miller in a consultation in our practice.
by Bill Miller | Jan 30, 2020 | Asset Protection, Blog, Estate Planning, trust
Revocable living trusts are very common today. They are known as a flexible way to manage your assets and a way to avoid probate. However, there are other little known facts about revocable trusts that you may need to know. As you develop your estate plan, consider adding a revocable trust.
Revocable Trusts Can Be Funded with Almost Any Asset
Once a trust document is signed, the grantor needs to transfer property to the trust. This is called funding the trust. Many people assume cash or real estate are the only assets that can be used to fund a trust.
However, the ownership of just about any asset can be transferred to a revocable trust. Along with cash and real estate, the grantor can transfer jewelry, art collections, boats, cars, business interests, and investments. Talk to your attorney before transferring assets. Some property can be passed to your heirs through other means, like beneficiary designations and joint property ownership.
Only Very Wealthy People Benefit from Revocable Trusts
This statement may be one of the primary reasons people don’t talk to an attorney about revocable trusts. Actually, revocable trusts are useful to people of modest means. Some of the more common reasons to form a revocable trust include:
- Incapacity Planning – If you become incapacitated while serving as trustee, your successor trustee can take over immediately. There’s usually no need for a conservatorship.
- Protecting Your Children – Maybe your children are minors and cannot inherit directly or perhaps one of the kids cannot be trusted with a lump sum inheritance. A revocable trust can dole out the inheritance in smaller payments. In addition, you can give the trustee the ability to pay an adult child’s bills instead of handing over cash.
A Revocable Trust Usually Remains Private
When you file a Will, it becomes a public record that anyone can view. The same is true for most documents filed in a probate case.
However, a revocable trust typically does not have to be filed with the Court. As such, the contents of your trust should be kept confidential. One exception that could cause your trust to go public is if someone files a lawsuit involving your trust. Even then, it might be possible to shield some or all of the details from public scrutiny.
Find Out More About Revocable Trusts
Often, people think they will not get any benefit from a trust. However, many of those same people would be amazed to learn how revocable trusts help people every day.
The attorneys at Miller Estate and Elder Law help their clients make informed, thoughtful decisions. Contact Bill Miller at 256-251-2137 to schedule an appointment. Though our office is now located at 818 Leighton Avenue in Anniston, we serve clients in Gadsden, Hoover, Talladega, Vestavia Hills, and surrounding areas.
Also, check out the free legal resources on our website!
by Bill Miller | Jan 23, 2020 | Blog, Elder Care Planning, Medicaid, Medicaid Qualification, Nursing Home
Hearing a doctor say that your loved one needs skilled nursing care, 24/7, can be a real shock. Chances are, you have not given much thought to planning for long-term care. If you have just learned that your dad or mom needs 24/7 care – or think this may happen in the future – continue reading to learn more about what you can do to help.
The Realities of 24/7 Care
If your mom needs 24/7 care, you are not alone. In fact, the following statistics tell an interesting story about long-term care:
- 52% of people age 65 right now will need long-term care at some point.
- 47% of men and 58% of women age 65 or older face long-term care.
Some people will need skilled nursing care for years. The cost of 24/7 care can be staggering. In Alabama, the monthly costs for long-term care in 2018 were:
- $3,241 for homemaker services or a home health aide
- $3,271 for an assisted living facility
- $6,279 for a semi-private room in a nursing facility
- $6,661 for a private room in a nursing facility
What can you do to help someone who needs 24/7 care?
Applying for Medicaid
Once you find a good nursing home, you need to figure out how to pay for it. This can be tricky. There are basically three ways to pay for long-term care: self-pay, long-term care insurance, and Medicaid.
You may need the Medicaid money now but don’t know how to get it or even if you will be eligible.
Medicaid offers a number of programs to provide medical care for people with limited assets and resources. To qualify, the application will need to meet certain asset and resource tests. For example, someone who needs 24/7 care must not earn more than $2,250 per month or have more than $2,000 in resources.
Applying for Medicaid can be frustrating and time consuming, in part because of the amount of supporting documentation. In addition, Medicaid case workers will review the applicant’s finances for a 60-month period prior to the application date. Certain transactions made during that time may disqualify the applicant from or delay benefits.
Medicaid Is Complicated. We Can Help.
It’s possible – and highly recommended – to plan ahead for incapacity and long-term care. Estate
planning can help, especially if Medicaid planning is included.
For a free consultation with an experienced Alabama estate planning attorney, contact Bill Miller
at 256-472-1900. Miller Estate and Elder Law is now located at 818 Leighton Avenue in
Anniston, but we serve clients in Gadsden, Hoover, Talladega, Vestavia Hills, and surrounding
areas.
by Bill Miller | Jan 6, 2020 | Blog, Long-Term Care
When you think about your New Year’s Resolutions, what comes to mind? Is it the tried and true: get healthy, lose weight, and spend more time with family and friends? Do you find yourself focusing more on setting business or personal goals? When it comes to the future, how far out are you planning? This year? Next year? Or five years down the line?
While we find that most of us share similar resolutions for personal improvement and spending more time with loved ones, we often find that most of us are not looking far enough into the future. Our goals address our needs now, not twenty to thirty years from now. Further, most of us do not contemplate the potential need for long-term care of any kind.
Unfortunately, during this time of celebration and planning, we can tell you that there is never a wrong time to plan for potential long-term care needs. This planning, whether in the New Year or not, needs to be undertaken sooner rather than later. After all, where you are thinking about personal goals and planning for loved ones, this must include a look at your potential future in any setting.
Research tells us that less than fifty percent of all Americans today do not have any form of estate planning. We are also told that half of two-thirds of all Americans will need some form of long-term care in the future. Combined, these factors are a recipe for disaster. In the former scenario, you have not made any plans to protect yourself or your loved ones. In the event of incapacity, there will be no legal documents in place to give a trusted loved one the legal authority to make your financial and health care decisions. Your future decision making may then require court involvement, which can be time consuming and costly, to allow anyone to have authority to make your decisions.
The latter planning scenario is perhaps even more concerning, yet we find many people have not started long-term care planning in any form. This is the type of planning in which you and your elder law attorney work together to ensure that in the event of long-term care crisis you, and your loved ones, know how to both find the right care for you and are able to afford it. Unfortunately, many people do not realize that Medicare will not pay for the majority of the high costs associated with an assisted living facility or skilled nursing facility, and they will be forced to pay for it out of hard earned savings.
You do not want to leave yourself, or your loved ones, in a position of not knowing what to do in the event of your incapacity or death. You can plan ahead and make these decisions early to ensure that you are provided for under any possible future scenario. We can help you create an estate plan and a long-term care plan that is able to support you now, and in the future when your needs may change. Do not hesitate to contact our law firm now, or any time throughout the New Year.
by Bill Miller | Dec 12, 2019 | Aging Parents, Blog, Nursing Home
There is never a wrong time to visit a loved one who is in a nursing home. Simply seeing the visitor or family member may be more meaningful to the person confined to the long-term care facility than you know. With that said, each of us needs to be prepared as our loved one may find it difficult to effectively communicate due to his or her unique health concerns.
Despite there being little communication during the visit, oftentimes, just being present with a family member or friend can be satisfying to the patient. We know you may have questions on the ”right way” to visit with a loved one. We want you to know that there is no one “right way” but the following are some suggestions on how to make a visit to a person confined to a long-term nursing home meaningful.
As a visitor, you want to consider bringing with you items that can be of interest to the patient. For example, if the patient previously had a pet, it could be meaningful if the visitor brought his or her pet for a visit with the patient at the nursing home. Similarly, if the patient enjoyed music or played a musical instrument, the visitor could bring a cassette player and discs to play music that would be meaningful to the patient. Simply reading aloud can also be helpful.
Oftentimes, as nursing home residents decline, they lose the ability to communicate. Unfortunately, we see that this is a time when many families stop visiting as often because they do not know what to say or how to make the visits meaningful for the family, as well as their loved one. It can also be difficult to see a loved one when he or she cannot communicate. It is crucial to remember again that just being present can be rewarding for all involved.
Talk with your loved one about events going on in the community or family. Even if they are nonverbal, do not assume they cannot understand. Just hearing your voice could bring comfort and keep them connected with the outside world. It may also be helpful to prepare or purchase a special food or dessert they love or of an ethnic origin that is not offered at the nursing home. Before you do this, however, you will want to be sure that the dietitian and physician agree that the patient can tolerate this new food.
Looking at old family picture albums with a patient may be meaningful. This may cause the patient to reminisce about past life experiences. Bring in old family photographs and scrapbooks, if you have them. The patient may enjoy just listening to you explain the pictures and the memories.
We know this article may raise more questions than it answers. We are here to answer your questions on this or any elder care issue you may be facing. We guide and work to protect families throughout our community to ensure that they have the long-term care support they need. Do not wait to schedule a meeting with our team.
