(440) 530-9166Avon Asset Protection Attorneys
Strategic Asset Protection Planning to Safeguard Your Wealth
You have worked hard over the years to acquire your assets so you can live comfortably and provide for your family after you pass away. Even so, in today’s uncertain economy, you need an asset protection plan that can guard against unforeseen events, such as incapacitation, and safeguard your wealth.
The best way to address your estate planning needs is to work with an experienced attorney. A qualified lawyer can assess your situation and recommend the legal strategies that fit your circumstances.
Hallett Legal Group, LLC helps Avon residents protect their wealth and plan for the future through tailored asset protection and estate planning solutions. If you have questions about our legal services, reach out to our firm.
Contact our law firm today to schedule a free consultation.
How Can Asset Protection Planning Secure My Financial Future?
As many adults age, they focus on protecting their assets and financial future. Many individuals become concerned about the possibility of needing long-term care in a nursing home or shielding their assets from a lawsuit.
Ohio law provides individuals, regardless of age, with several options to protect their financial interests. One of the most common and effective methods is to create an irrevocable trust. Under Ohio law, an individual can establish a Domestic Asset Protection Trust (DAPT), also known as an Ohio Legacy Trust.
Like other irrevocable trusts, once you transfer assets into the DAPT, they are no longer considered your property. Instead, those assets now belong to the trust and, after 18 months, are usually protected from future creditor claims. Unlike other traditional trusts, you can continue to benefit from the trust through discretionary distributions.
If you are a business owner, you also have the option of forming a limited liability company (LLC), allowing you to separate your personal assets from any business liabilities you may incur.
Regardless of your needs, it is always best to consult an estate planning attorney who can help you determine what legal options will provide you with maximum asset protection.
What is the Difference Between a Revocable Trust and an Asset Protection Trust?
One of the most common questions that many clients ask concerns the difference between a revocable trust and an asset protection trust. While both types of trusts offer a level of asset protection, they serve different purposes.
Revocable Trust
Also called a living trust, individuals typically use this type of protection strategy to manage their assets should they become incapacitated and help their families avoid probate after their death. The person who creates the trust, the grantor, may serve as trustee, benefit from the assets, and amend or revoke the trust at any time. Even so, a revocable trust does not offer protection from creditors or lawsuits, nor does it assist with Medicaid planning, because the assets remain under the grantor’s control.
Asset Protection Trust
If you are concerned about protecting your assets from creditors or Medicaid, a Medicaid Asset Protection Trust (MAPT) is the best option. In exchange for giving up control once assets are transferred, the trust protects them from creditors and lawsuits and, after five years, from Medicaid’s look-back period. For many older Ohioans, a MAPT is the best strategy to keep the wealth they have worked hard to build while ensuring they can qualify for Medicaid if needed.
How Does a Medicaid Asset Protection Trust Shield Assets From Nursing Home Expenses?
As Ohioans age and may need long-term nursing care, many are concerned about how to pass their wealth to their heirs and beneficiaries. Nursing home care is costly and can quickly wipe out a family’s savings within a matter of months.
In Ohio, individuals can plan for the future and shield their assets by establishing a Medicaid Asset Protection Trust (MAPT). A MAPT is a type of irrevocable trust in which assets are placed so they do not count toward Medicaid’s strict income limits and help prevent individuals from having to “spend down” their savings to qualify for benefits.
Even so, there are strict rules governing MAPTs, and assets must be placed in the trust for at least 5 years due to Medicaid’s look-back period. Failure to do so can result in severe penalties and disqualification. Although the assets placed in the MAPT are no longer under the grantor’s control, they are exempt from Medicaid’s estate recovery guidelines and potential creditors.
Why is Timing Essential if I am Looking to Protect My Assets?
No matter if you are a business owner who is concerned about potential lawsuits or creditors or an older adult worried about the cost of nursing home care, time is everything when planning how to protect your assets.
Ohio courts are often suspicious when individuals transfer their assets after a problem arises, such as a lawsuit, and may view these actions as an attempt to hide financial resources. Planning early gives you time to decide which asset protection strategies best suit your needs.
Planning lends legitimacy to your legal strategies, whereas moving assets and other financial resources into trusts can look suspicious. When individuals are trying to qualify for Medicaid benefits, meeting the five-year look-back period requirements is essential to retaining hard-earned assets.
Having critical estate planning documents in place before a crisis occurs is the best way to ensure that you can manage your wealth effectively and pass it on to your family members and beneficiaries.
Why Is Legal Representation Critical for Effective Asset Protection?
If you are concerned about how you can protect your assets for yourself, minor children, or others in your life, the most effective strategy is to hire an experienced estate planning lawyer. Developing a comprehensive strategy can be overly complex and must withstand legal scrutiny.
Hallett Legal Group, LLC is passionate about helping Avon, OH, citizens plan for the future. Our estate planning attorneys have extensive experience helping clients protect what matters most. Contact our law firm today at 440-530-9166 to schedule a free consultation.