YES, YOU DO NEED TO PLAN:
- Even for families with modest assets, comprehensive, integrated financial, care, and legal planning are critical. In most states, the threshold for triggering a loss of Medicaid benefits is only $2,000. Most families will leave that or more behind.
- Without proper planning, the benefits you anticipate your loved one receiving may not be there. Losing benefits at the same time as losing a parent is an avoidable crisis – if YOU plan.
- Assuming your other children, or another family member can handle everything, rarely works out the way families think. Ask yourself: How well do they understand your child’s needs? What about their family and work obligations? Do they understand trusts and government benefits regulations? Are they prepared for a lifelong commitment? Are they an age appropriate appointment that will align with your child’s lifetime?
- Half a plan is not much better than no planning at all. Special need planning requires a team approach, and interdisciplinary expertise.
- Financial, legal, and care planning are interwoven. Protecting benefits and creating a trust and financial plan that accomplish your goals will lead to better care. Work with advisors to determine the right role for government, family, and professionals to meet your child’s needs, and make your goals achievable.
- No one knows when their time will be up – don’t leave your loved one’s future up to chance. Lack of planning will never lead to a better outcome than a well thought out plan.
Charlie Munger once said, “All I want to know is where I’m going to die, so I’ll never go there.” Absent knowing the when, or the where, the best we can do is be prepared, have a plan, and make sure that we have done all that we can to protect our loved
“Without proper planning, the benefits you anticipate your loved one receiving may not be there.”
“Without proper planning, the benefits you anticipate your loved one receiving may not be there.”
YES, YOU DO NEED TO PLAN : SO, WHERE SHOULD YOU START?
1 DON'T DELAY AND DON'T BE OVERWHELMED.
Believe it or not, creating a comprehensive plan is not nearly as difficult, or expensive as you think. When working with the right professionals, all your legal, financial, and care planning can be done in as few as 10, but more commonly 20 hours, spread out to meet your schedule. Depending on where you are located, total cost could be under $5,000 for everything — including your supplemental needs trust and a review of your existing benefits, which may actually increase your household's monthly cash flow.
2 MEET WITH AN ATTORNEY WHO HAS AN EXPERTISE IN SPECIAL NEEDS PLANNING.
This is not your brother-in-law the real estate attorney! Look for an attorney who is a member of the Special Needs Alliance, Academy of Special Needs Planners, or has the CELA designation. Ask them about their special needs planning experience. Topics to include in your discussion:
- Wills
- Living Wills
- Powers of Attorney
- Supplemental Needs Trusts
- Successor Guardians (if applicable)
- Appropriate roles for family, friends and professional trustees
- Integration with spouse's or ex-spouse's planning
- Stand-alone trusts and potential for gifts from other family members
3 MEET WITH A FINANCIAL ADVISOR WITH EXPERTISE IN SPECIAL NEEDS PLANNING.
All financial advisors are not created equal. Look for an advisor with the ChSNC designation from the American College, or members of the Academy of Special Needs Planners. Ask about how they approach special needs planning, and how it is different from their ordinary retirement planning. Topics for your discussion:
- How much money would be needed to maintain my child's current lifestyle? What is the budget for your child and how will it evolve over time?
- Review all qualified plans and existing life insurance. Do beneficiary designations align with your trust?
- Are there tools or products that can be used to meet your goals?
- Do you have the right government benefits in place, or should you be receiving more support?
- Are there strategies to save more, such as funding an ABLE account, that will help protect your child?