There are some obvious downsides to an Irrevocable Trust. The main one is the fact that you can't change an Irrevocable Trust once it's finalized.
Homes held in an irrevocable trust are generally protected from nursing home claims because they are no longer part of your personal estate.
From my experience, loan officers at banks do not like dealing with irrevocable trusts because (1) they do not have the requisite knowledge on how to deal with them; or (2) irrevocable trusts provide asset protection that lenders do not like dealing with.
Revocable, or living, trusts can be modified after they are created. Revocable trusts are easier to set up than irrevocable trusts. Irrevocable trusts cannot be modified after they are created, or at least they are very difficult to modify. Irrevocable trusts offer estate tax benefits that revocable trusts do not.
They can be sold, but these transactions are typically more complicated than traditional home sales. Selling a home in California will take time. Even if you have a motivated buyer, the transaction still might not be completed for several weeks or months after an offer has been accepted.
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.
Putting a house in an irrevocable trust protects it from creditors who might come calling after your passing – or even before. It's removed from your estate and is no longer subject to credit judgments. Similarly, you can even protect your assets from your family.
When the grantor of an irrevocable trust dies, the trustee or the person named successor trustee assumes control of the trust. The new trustee distributes the assets placed in the trust according to the bylaws of the trust.
With the new IRS rule, assets in an irrevocable trust are not part of the owner's taxable estate at their death and are not eligible for the fair market valuation when transferred to an heir. The 2023-2 rule doesn't give an heir the higher cost basis or fair market value of the inherited asset.
In an irrevocable trust, the trustee holds legal title to the property, bearing the fiduciary responsibility to manage it in the best interest of the beneficiaries.
One of the biggest mistakes parents make when setting up a trust fund is choosing the wrong trustee to oversee and manage the trust. This crucial decision can open the door to potential theft, mismanagement of assets, and family conflict that derails your child's financial future.
The IRS and Irrevocable Trusts
This means that generally, the IRS cannot touch your assets in an irrevocable trust. It's always a good idea to consult with an estate planning attorney to ensure you're making the right decision when setting up your trust, though.
Orman was quick to defend living revocable trusts in her response to the caller. “There is no downside of having a living revocable trust. There are many, many upsides to it,” she said. “You say you have a power of attorney that allows your beneficiaries, if you become incapacitated, to buy or sell real estate.
No one “takes” assets from the patient; the nursing home simply requires payment for its services if the patient intends to reside in the nursing home.
The nursing home must have a system that ensures full accounting for your funds and can't combine your funds with the nursing home's funds. The nursing home must protect your funds from any loss by providing an acceptable protection, such as buying a surety bond.
If you are single, need care, and are unable to return home, your home is now an available asset that the government can take to pay for your care. If you are married and your spouse goes into a nursing home, your home is protected as long as you do not need care and it is under the equity limit.
At the end of the payment term, the remainder of the trust passes to 1 or more qualified U.S. charitable organizations. The remainder donated to charity must be at least 10% of the initial net fair market value of all property placed in the trust.
A transfer into an irrevocable trust can be considered a gift for Medicaid eligibility purposes. This gift status/condition works as a significant negative for people applying for Medicaid assistance. In particular, both “penalty period” and 60 months “look-back period” rules apply.
There is no Ideal Time to Consider a Living Trust
Unfortunately, there is no real answer to the “right time” to create a living trust because it is not solely based on your age. Instead, wealthier people with expensive assets, regardless of age, should consider one of these documents.
It is not unusual for the successor trustee of a trust to also be a beneficiary of the same trust. This is because settlors often name trusted family members or friends to both manage their trust and inherit from it.
Changes to an Irrevocable Trust
The trustee and any named beneficiaries would need to agree to a change mutually. They would need to decide that removing assets would best serve the trust and would need to go to court to explain the reasoning. Even then, the assets could not come back to you directly.
The property in the irrevocable trust belongs solely to the trust, and the irrevocable trust itself is a separate tax entity for all intents and purposes. This also means the irrevocable trust (or, more specifically, the trustee managing the trust) has to file its own tax return.