Medicaid Asset Protection Trusts (MAPT) can be a valuable planning strategy to meet Medicaid's asset limit when an applicant has excess assets. MAPTs enable someone who would otherwise be ineligible for Medicaid to become eligible and receive the long-term care they require, be that at home or in a nursing home.
With a trust, there is no automatic judicial review. While this speeds up the process for beneficiaries, it also increases the risk of mismanagement. Trustees may not always act in the best interests of beneficiaries, and without court oversight, beneficiaries must take legal action if they suspect wrongdoing.
While revocable trusts offer flexibility as they can be changed or revoked by the trustor, they won't protect assets from Medicaid. Irrevocable trusts, like Medicaid asset protection trusts (MAPTs), on the other hand, remove assets from an owner's control, rendering them eligible to meet Medicaid requirements.
The beauty of a properly drafted MAPT is that while the grantor will not be considered the owner of trust assets after five years for Medicaid eligibility purposes, the grantor is still considered the owner for tax purposes, enabling a basis step-up at death.
The person you care for can transfer assets into an irrevocable trust to protect them from Medicaid spend-down or penalties, as long as they set up the trust more than five years prior to applying for Medicaid. Any assets in the trust must stay in the trust until after your loved one passes away.
Examples of Assets That Do NOT Step-Up in Basis
Individual retirement accounts, including IRAs and Roth IRAs. 401(k), 403(b), 457 employer-sponsored retirement plans and pensions. Real estate that was gifted prior to inheritance. Tax-deferred annuities.
If a home owned by a Medicaid Asset Protection Trust is sold, the Grantor is not entitled to the proceeds from the sale. But, if the Trustee invests the proceeds from the sale, the Grantor could collect any interest or dividends generated.
A revocable living trust will not protect your assets from a nursing home. This is because the assets in a revocable trust are still under the control of the owner. To shield your assets from the spend-down before you qualify for Medicaid, you will need to create an irrevocable trust.
Parents and other family members who want to pass on assets during their lifetimes may be tempted to gift the assets. Although setting up an irrevocable trust lacks the simplicity of giving a gift, it may be a better way to preserve assets for the future.
Disadvantages of Trust Funds
Costs: Setting up and maintaining a trust can be expensive. Loss of Control: Some trusts mean giving up control over your assets. Time and Compliance: Maintaining a trust requires time and adhering to legal requirements. Tax Implications: Trusts can sometimes face higher income tax rates.
Selecting the wrong trustee is easily the biggest blunder parents can make when setting up a trust fund. As estate planning attorneys, we've seen first-hand how this critical error undermines so many parents' good intentions.
The problem with Income Only Trusts is that if money remains in the trust at the death of the grantor, it is subject to Medicaid estate recovery. If assets are distributed out of the trust during the lifetime of the grantor, there is a transfer of asset penalty.
Other states, such as California and Texas, prohibit Estate Recovery after the surviving spouse dies. The only exception is if the surviving spouse was also a Medicaid recipient.
Once assets are placed in an irrevocable trust, you no longer have control over them, and they won't be included in your Medicaid eligibility determination after five years. It's important to plan well in advance, as the 5-year look-back rule still applies.
Unless you anticipate the need for nursing home care within the next eight to ten years, the preferred way to plan is to set up a revocable trust along with powers of attorney. This provides that if you are unable to implement your own nursing home planning in the future, someone will be designated to do so for you.
Establishing legal trusts: Though usually related to estate planning, trusts legally shift ownership of assets whenever you decide. This can help protect your assets from the government, as you will not own certain assets anymore.
Special needs trusts help you to manage inheritance money so it won't count toward income-based benefits like Medicaid and Supplemental Security Income (SSI). The money in special needs trusts must pay for expenses your government benefits don't cover.
And while a nursing home itself cannot take your home, those relying on Medicaid may have their home seized by the federal government after passing away as the government's means of recouping their investment in your care.
Any appreciation in the hands of the inheritor is taxable when sold. However, if the executor of a person's estate files an estate tax return, they may be able to elect to use an alternate valuation date of 6 months after the date of death to value the estate.
(e) investment properties. Financial assets, and inventories that are produced over a short period of time, are not qualifying assets. Assets that are ready for their intended use or sale when acquired are not qualifying assets.”
The rule is a tax exemption that lets you use a trust to transfer appreciated assets to the trust's beneficiaries without paying the capital gains tax. Your “basis” in an asset is the price you paid for the asset. A “step-up” in basis is when the IRS lets you adjust the basis of the asset to its current value.