Elder Law and Estate Planning Attorney
Do you have a friend or loved one who receives Social Security and is unable to manage her payments? If so, you can request that the Social Security Administration (SSA), the government agency that disburses Social Security, name you as Read More …
To qualify for Supplemental Security Income (SSI), a federal program that provides people with disabilities a monthly stipend, individuals must conform to very strict income and asset limits. Often, SSI beneficiaries who could hold a job opt not to because they worry about Read More …
Affordable, safe housing is one of the most crucial aspects of a person’s life, especially if that person has a disability. Parents and guardians must plan for this as early as possible to make sure their loved one has a Read More …
If you have a child with a disability, providing for them into the future will likely stand among your top priorities. However, if you also wish to apply for Medicaid to cover your own long-term care expenses, first consider establishing Read More …
ABLE (Achieving a Better Life Experience) accounts offer people with disabilities a great, tax-free way to accumulate money without jeopardizing their qualifications for Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and other means-tested programs. Withdrawals are tax-free as long as the money is used Read More …
The maximum amount that can be contributed each year to an ABLE account for a person with disabilities rose $1,000 to $16,000 on January 1, 2022. The figure, which is tied to the inflation-adjusted value of the IRS’s gift tax exclusion, had Read More …
If you have a child with disabilities, it is crucial to set money aside for the child’s future. At the same time, you need to consider your child’s access to public benefit programs such as Medicaid and Supplemental Security Income (SSI), Read More …
One of the most important roles in a special needs plan is that of trustee, the person who administers a special needs trust (SNT). Of a trustee’s many responsibilities, record-keeping is perhaps the most crucial. Because the trustee is managing accounts on behalf Read More …
The year was 1983: The U.S. invaded Grenada. A gallon of gas cost 96 cents. Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” video premiered. That year was also the last time that recipients of Social Security disability benefits saw a cost-of-living increase steeper than the Read More …
Unique tax benefits are available to families who have children with special needs. And thanks to recent changes in the tax code, there are opportunities to save substantial amounts of money at tax time. Thomas M. Brinker, Jr., a professor of accounting Read More …
Among the costs of caring for a dependent with special needs are the fees for professional advice. Some families are tempted to save on these costs by setting up a plan on their own. This can be attractive because so Read More …
The SECURE Act, passed at the end of 2019, changed a number of rules regarding inherited IRAs, making it more difficult for most beneficiaries to save on taxes by “stretching” distributions over many years. (Read our post, SECURE Act Increases Tax Read More …
More than six million people whose disabilities arose later in life will be able to open ABLE savings accounts if a bill just reintroduced in Congress, the ABLE Age Adjustment Act, becomes law. In 2014, Congress passed the Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE) Read More …
President Biden has signed the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan into law. Among its benefits are $1,400 checks that are already landing in the bank accounts or mailboxes of most Americans to help them weather the economic downturn caused by Read More …
A New Jersey man has been charged with stealing $330,000 from the special needs trust (SNT) of a man living in a long-term care facility. The case highlights the importance of having a professional trustee manage a special needs trust. Read More …
One area that particularly vexes trustees of special needs trusts is how to get beneficiaries what they need without running afoul of the strict rules for public benefits like Supplemental Security Income (SSI). Monitoring how money is being spent, collecting Read More …
People not familiar with children with special needs often find it surprising when we explain our areas of expertise are estate planning, long term care planning, elder law and special needs planning. They usually haven’t considered that children with disabilities Read More …
Even when you’ve taken all the precautions, met with an estate planning attorney and have all your documents and financial planning done, there are several times when you will want to make changes, or at minimum, re-evaluate, your estate plan. Read More …
A stretch IRA was an estate planning strategy that applied to an Individual Retirement Account (IRA) inherited by a non-spouse, such as a child beneficiary. By using the stretch strategy, IRAs could be passed on, taking advantage of tax-deferred and/or tax-free Read More …
It is possible that an individual, once diagnosed as a person with special needs, sometime in the future will no longer qualify as “disabled” according to IRS regulations. The individual’s condition might have improved through remission or medical treatment, for Read More …
