An Asset Protection Plan is Vital to a Secure Retirement
Posted by Jerrold Bartholomew on March 31, 2008
Retirement for many people is defined as the time when they are able to live off of the income from their assets combined with Social Security and perhaps a pension. But anything from a car accident to a stay in long term care can quickly deplete retirement assets and jeopardize the fruits of a lifetime’s work. This can be particularly devastating for a married couple when one of the spouses falls ill and the assets of both must be devoted to the care of the other. Medicaid law permits the Community Spouse (the spouse not in long-term care) to retain a maximum of $104,400.00 in non-exempt assets, but without planning, in many cases that amount can be lower.
Modern estate planning offers solutions to this problem and provides financial security in retirement. This form of estate planning is far more than naming beneficiaries on accounts or providing a list what is to go whom. It is a matter of restructuring an estate to be sure that assets are protected and preserved for their intended purposes. These techniques allow security, tax benefits, and even asset protection for one’s heirs.
One often hears of estates consumed by the cost of long term care. See, for example this story. A modern estate plan can help you to ensure that you will receive the benefits of your assets without exposing those assets to the claims of creditors or the cost of nursing home care.
