Bigstock-Marketing-background--Break-E-69885466

When It Comes To Medicaid, What Is The Break-even Point

by with No Comment Legal TechnicalMedicaid

The break-even point is the point at which it doesn’t matter whether the individual applies for Medicaid or continues to private pay.  Either way, the individual is going to pay the same amount. 

Bigstock-Marketing-background--Break-E-69885466Let’s say that the minimum months to qualify is 20 months.  The break-even point is 40 months.  (60 minus 20).  If at any time the individual goes into the nursing home and applies for Medicaid prior to 40 months, you will “flip the switch” and apply for Medicaid.  The penalty period is 20 months, so the individual private will have to private pay for those 20 months.  If that was done in month 10, then the individual will pay the penalty until the 30th month from the date of the funding of the iPug.  (10 months plus 20 months penalty = 30 months from funding).  The individual will begin to receive Medicaid benefits the 31st month.  The individual does not have to wait until month 60 from the date of the funding to get their benefits in that scenario.

If the individual applies for Medicaid on the break-even point – month 40, they will still have a 20 month penalty, which will push them to 60 months from the funding date.  If they don’t apply for Medicaid in month 40, then the individual would have to private pay for those 20 months until month 60.  After which time, the individual will apply for Medicaid and Medicaid won’t see the transfer 61 months earlier.  Either way it costs the same; it doesn’t matter whether you apply for Medicaid or not.  (That said, know your local rules too – in Texas for example, there is a slight benefit for being on Medicaid and in the penalty period, so I would probably go ahead and apply at the break-even point for Texas residence).

Now, if the individual becomes ill in month 45 and goes to the nursing home and applies for Medicaid, then applying for Medicaid still triggers the 20 month penalty.  This will push the Medicaid eligibility out past the 60 months to month 65 (45 months from funding plus 20 months of penalty).  This is beyond the initial 60 months from funding, so you don’t want to apply for Medicaid after the break-even point.  If the individual makes it past the break-even point before they need a nursing home, they will private pay the nursing home cost until month 60.  After month 60 passes, the individual can apply for Medicaid and answer “no” to the question of have you given any money away in the last 60 months and avoid the 20 month penalty.

David J. Zumpano, Esq, CPA, Co-founder Lawyers With Purpose, Founder and Senior Partner of Estate Planning Law Center

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How To Calculate The Minimum Months To Qualify & Assets At Risk To Break Even

by with No Comment Estate Planning Drafting SoftwareLegal Technical

What do they really mean? 

If you're an Lawyers With Purpose member, you know the minimum months to qualify is a term we use in to determine how many months that it will take to get a client’s excess assets down to zero by gifting money and paying for nursing home costs.  It is then used to calculate the breakeven point (60 – minimum months to qualify = breakeven point).

Bigstock-colorful-numbers-background---44896171Before a client can be eligible for Medicaid, their excess assets much be zero.  We know that we want to protect as much money as possible and that to do that we have to give the excess assets away (we have already performed our spend down analysis at this point).  If the penalty divisor for the state is $5000 / month, then we know that if we give away $5,000, then we must pay for one month of nursing home cost.  At the point, we have already done the analysis to figure out the monthly deficit – that is, how much money will the client have to pay from their resources after their current living expenses, allowable Medicaid exemptions, and nursing home costs are taken into account.  Let’s say that is $10,000.  So we know that if we give away $5,000, we pay for one month of nursing home cost.  If we have to pay for one month of nursing home cost we have to pay $10,000.  If our excess assets equals $100,000, then to get through month one, we give $5,000 away, we pay $10,000, and that reduces our excess assets by $15,000 and leaves excess assets at $85,000.  The next month, we do it again.  We give away $5,000, we incur one month of penalty, and we pay $10,000 to the nursing home.  That leaves us with $70,000 in countable assets.  The next month we do it again.  We give away $5000, we pay $10,000 to the nursing home, and our countable assets drop to $55,000.  (Longtime members may remember this as the “MPS Dance.”)  This continues until our countable assets drop to zero, then we add up how many times we had to do the dance, and that becomes our minimum months to qualify.  A short cut is to take the total excess assets and divide by the amount needed each month, in this case $15,000.  In our example, that will give us 6.67 months.  In other words, we have to give away $15,000 for 6.67 times in order to get the excess assets down to zero. 

This number is then used to calculate the amount of money we can protect – the penalty divisor times the minimum months to qualify.  Here that would be $5000 x 6.67, which would equal $33,350.  Because we give away $33,350, we know we will have to private pay for 6.67 months (the penalty).  That money is protected because it will not need to be spent on the nursing home.  Then we calculate the amount of money that is at risk until breakeven – that is, if the client or spouse goes into a nursing home prior to the breakeven point, then this is the amount that they will have to pay before Medicaid will begin to pay for their care.  We know that we have to pay for 6.67 months of nursing home care in this scenario, so we multiply the cost of the care each month, $10,000, by the number of months we will need to pay for the care, 6.67, which gives us the total cost that is at risk to having to pay the nursing home as $66,700.  So, worst case, they will have to pay that $66,700 to the nursing home in order to protect the $33,350.  Not great numbers in this particular scenario, but it is still better that spending it all down and applying to Medicaid.

Announcing NEW Pricing, Services, & Membership Changes—Effective Monday, October 27th

At LWP we are committed to innovation and continuous improvement. In an effort to augment our services and the value of our membership levels, LWP is excited to announce changes to our membership levels. All membership offerings were specifically designed to serve solo, small and medium sized firms based on their customized needs. Changes are applicable to all NEW memberships beginning Monday October 27th. 

If you have been considering joining the Lawyers with Purpose community, please contact mhall@lawyerswithpurpose.com to schedule a 15 minute demo to see the upcoming pricing, services, & membership structures! 

Existing LWP member? Great NEWS, you’re grandfathered in! 

Dave Zumpano,

David J. Zumpano, Esq, CPA, Co-founder Lawyers With Purpose, Founder and Senior Partner of Estate Planning Law Center

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What Is The MMMNA?

by with One Comment Asset ProtectionMedicaid

MMMNA means minimum monthly maintenance needs allowance.  MMMNA[1] is the minimum income that the community spouse (CS), or well spouse, gets to keep when the other spouse, the institutionalized spouse (IS), goes into the nursing home.  Medicaid law says that the income of the Medicaid applicant in excess of the limits must be used toward the cost of care. But if the applicant has a spouse, Medicaid, through the concept of the MMMNA, allows the CS to keep some or all of their income. 

Bigstock-Questions-and-Answers--Q-and--48848522Medicaid considers the gross income of the CS.  If the CS’s income is in excess of the MMMNA, then under the federal law, 25% of the CS’s income in excess of the MMMNA must be used for the IS’s cost of care. While New York is currently the only state that enforces that provision, we must be aware of the federal rules because it is probably only a matter of time before other states are assessing the 25%.

Now if the CS’s income is less than the MMMNA, then income from the applicant will be diverted to the CS to try to get the CS’s income up to the MMMNA.  If the CS’s income is still below the MMMNA, then assets needed to generate sufficient interest to fill the income up to the MMMNA are exempt. This is what we call the assets to income rule.

But there's a little more to it than that.  The federal law says there’s a minimum MMMNA and there’s a maximum MMMNA.  The states are allowed to set the MMMNA for the CS, but the federal government says the states can’t set a MMMNA below $1938.75 (we will call it $1,939 to keep the math easy) or above $2,931[2]. So your state’s MMMNA will be somewhere between those two numbers.

States vary in how they set the MMMNA.  About half of the states are what we call “max states.”  They set the MMMNA at the maximum end of the range and say that the CS can keep up to $2,931 in gross monthly income.  Other states are “range states.”  That is the MMMNA can fall somewhere between both the maximum and minimum range the feds allow for the MMMNA.  In a range state, if the CS's income is less than $1,939, then the CS can take the IS’s income up to that minimum amount of $1,939.  If the CS’s income was more than the minimum but less than the maximum, then income of the CS would be the MMMNA. 

Let’s consider some examples:

First, let’s say there is a CS who had $1,000 in monthly income. The applicant, the husband, was the predominant income earner, and the CS had $1,000 of income. In a max state, the law says the CS could keep the first $2,931, regardless of whom it came from.  So if the wife had $1,000 of income, she would be able to keep the first $1,931 of the income of the husband, who is in the nursing home. And if the husband didn’t have $1,931, then the assets to income rule would come into play. That means the law would say that, if the total income between the IS and the CS does not equal the MMMNA, then the CS can exempt additional assets needed to generate the income to get the CS up to the MMMNA. So again, if this is a max state, the threshold is $2,931. If the CS had $1,000 and the husband had $3,000 of income, the CS would be able to keep $1,931 of the applicant’s income.

In a range state, the CS is allowed to keep the minimum MMMNA, but if the income is below $1,939, then the CS gets to take income from the IS to get to the $1,939 limit.  For instance, if a CS’s income was $1,000, she could take $939 from the husband’s income. If she had income of $2,500, then her MMMNA would be $2,500 because her income is below the maximum and above the minimum MMMNA.  And if a CS earns more than the maximum MMMNA, then 25% of that amount in excess would have to be contributed toward the cost of care. Those are the federal rules. But remember, only New York currently applies the 25% rule. Most states allow the CS to keep any income in excess of the MMMNA.

REVIEW:

You should now be able to figure out the MMMNA for a few basic cases. So let's go through what the minimum and maximum would be, and what the MMMNA would be, in each of four scenarios.

Starting with scenario one and scenario two, the fact pattern is this:

  • The husband has $3,000 a month of income.
  • The wife has $1,000 a month of income.
  • The MMMNA minimum is $1,939; the maximum is $2,931.

In scenario one, the husband is in a nursing home, so we know that the wife is the CS, and she has $1,000 in income. Plus, let’s say that in this scenario that are in a max state, which means that the CS is entitled to the maximum income – $2,931.

What does that mean? That means of the total income of $4,000 between the husband and wife, $1,069 will be contributed toward the cost of care each month.  If the husband goes into the nursing home, the wife gets her $1,000 of income plus she gets to keep $1,931 of the husband’s monthly income.  The balance of $1,069 ($4000 – $1000 – $1931=$1,069) would go toward the cost of his care. (We are setting aside the discussion of his personal needs allowance, but whatever it is in this state, the amount contributed to the cost of care would be reduced by the personal needs allowance.)

What if the wife went into a nursing home? What’s the MMMNA in that case? It is still $2,931, but now the husband is the CS, so he would be able to keep $2,931 and he would have to contribute 25% of the amount over $2,931. So his $3,000 minus $2,931 comes out to $69, and 25% of that would be $17.25. But remember, New York is the only state that currently requires spousal contribution for incomes above the MMMNA.  In all the other states the husband as CS would get to keep his total $3,000 in monthly income, and the cost of care would be $1,000, the wife’s income, less whatever the personal needs allowance is for the state.

Why? Because every other state allows the CS to keep whichever is greater, the MMMNA or the CS’s actual income. Again, that distinction is made because the federal Medicaid law does not require it or even allow it.  The states allow it. Remember, the federal government sets the laws on Medicaid, and the states can be less restrictive, but they cannot be more restrictive.  So in most states if the husband, who is the CS in this scenario, has $3,000 a month of income, they will allow him to keep 100% of his income. That’s why we have shown it here as $3,000, and all you would lose is the IS’s income of $1,000.

So how would this be different in a range state? With the husband going into the nursing home, the wife is now the CS, so the range state would allow her to keep the bottom of the range. She has $1,000 of income, but the MMMNA says the minimum is $1,939, so she gets to keep her income, plus $939 of his income. In this scenario she would get $1,939, and the remaining $2,061 of his income would be contributed toward the cost of his care (again less the personal needs allowance amount, which he would get to keep).

Income Allowance:

As has been alluded to, the IS is allowed a personal needs allowance, which ranges from $30 to $106.50, depending on the state. The applicant is also given an allowance to help pay for health insurance.  The theory is that Medicaid does not want to get stuck being the primary insurance payer, so in addition to your personal needs allowance, it allows the applicant money to pay for a health insurance premium so the applicant’s insurance company can be the insurance of first resort and Medicaid can be the backup.

To be clear, Medicaid only exempts the cost of health insurance for the IS, not the CS. So, only the IS gets the personal needs allowance and the health insurance allowance. The CS gets the MMMNA. In addition, about 25% of the states also have a housing and shelter allowance, and another 25% of the states have a heating and utility allowance. These allowances are a state specific issue, so be sure to check yours. The federal law does permit housing and shelter and heating and utility allowances, but not all the states do it. And it is for the CSs only, with the intent being to make sure that CSs have sufficient income to stay in their homes.

No matter what fact pattern you are looking at, the first thing you need to determine is whether you are looking at a max state or a range state, then follow the methodology shared in here. Next look at the income of both spouses and figure out which spouse is in the nursing home, and which spouse is in the community. Then you can calculate the MMMNA.  And in addition to the MMMNA, you will possibly have the housing and shelter allowance and the heating utility allowance, depending on the state.  Of course, if the applicant is not married, you don’t even have to worry about that MMMNA calculation. All of the income that a single applicant gets to keep is the personal needs allowance and the health insurance premium amount.

Did you know we are announcing NEW pricing, services & membership changes—Effective Monday, October 27th

At LWP we are committed to innovation and continuous improvement. In an effort to augment our services and the value of our membership levels, LWP is excited to announce changes to our membership levels. All membership offerings were specifically designed to serve solo, small and medium sized firms based on their customized needs. Changes are applicable to all NEW memberships beginning Monday October 27th.   If you are interested in learning more about joining the Lawyers with Purpose community, please contact mhall@lawyerswithpurpose.com to schedule a 15 minute demo to see the upcoming Pricing, Services, & membership structures prior to October 27th!

Existing LWP member? Great NEWS, you’re grandfathered in! 

David J. Zumpano, Esq, CPA, Co-founder Lawyers With Purpose, Founder and Senior Partner of Estate Planning Law Center

[1] MMMNA is usually pronounced “Triple M NA,” but others call it an “mmmmmmm –NA” 

[2] At least those are the amounts as of April 29, 2014. These numbers do change, so be sure to double check them.

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Uncovering “Hidden” Pre-Planning Opportunities with the Asset-to-Income Ratio

by with No Comment Estate Planning Drafting SoftwareLegal MarketingSystems & Processes

Uncovering “Hidden” Pre-Planning Opportunities is one of the biggest shocks from attendees at our Medicaid training is when they learn about the asset-to-income rule to qualify clients for Medicaid sooner. The Medicaid law states that, when the income of the community spouse of a Medicaid applicant is less than the minimum monthly maintenance needs allowance, then the community spouse may exempt additional assets needed to attain the minimum monthly maintenance needs allowance.

Bigstock-Five-years-old-little-cute-boy-41670169Said simpler, if the community spouse doesn't have enough income, they can exempt additional assets to ensure the necessary income is produced. This situation happens all the time, but the exemption is rarely used.

That's why Monday October 20-22nd we are hosting a 3 Day Asset Protection, Medicaid and VA CLE Program.

In this event we will be sharing crucial information such as:

 

●       Why clients don't care how much you know, and what they want from you.

●       There's no such thing as crisis Medicaid planning, and the preplanning you are missing out on is right in front of you.

●       The key features and provisions of grantor, non-grantor, and pure grantor trusts and when to use each for asset protection, Medicaid and VA planning.

●       The newest forms and procedures to file VA apps and appeals and receive timely decisions.

●       Why annuities are often the "lazy-attorney" approach to Medicaid planning and what that method fails to consider.

●       How to calculate whether an IRA should be liquidated and when not to use personal service contracts when Medicaid planning.

At a recent two-day summit we hosted with national veterans expert Victoria Collier, these were the biggest issues raised by your colleagues who attended. Are you prepared? Is your level of understanding in these areas sufficient to serve this growing marketplace? Here is what a few attendees said was the most useful to them:

"The most valuable thing about Day 1 was learning about asset to income rule."

— Carl, Baton Rouge, LA

"The worksheets and having a way to explain Medicaid planning to clients on their level was the most valuable part."

— Susan, Cypress, TX

"Was thrilled to learn there is no such thing as crisis planning and now I have so many more pre-planning opportunities I didn't see before."

— Lisa, West Palm Beach, FL

The asset-to-income rule is just one of several overlooked rules that are overlooked or not fully utilizes to help clients qualify for Medicaid. Feel confident using them in your practice! Click here to to join this must attend event to get the essential strategies you need to protect your clients.

See you there!

David J. Zumpano, Esq, CPA, Co-founder Lawyers With Purpose, Founder and Senior Partner of Estate Planning Law Center

Bellomo

Being A Competent Attorney Is Only Half The Battle

by with No Comment Asset ProtectionEstate Planning Drafting SoftwareLegal MarketingSystems & ProcessesVA

I've always thought of myself as an excellent attorney — well-versed in all of the strategies that we use on a daily basis to protect our clients, their loved ones, and their legacies.

BellomoIt wasn't until several years ago, however, that I really began to understand that a thriving practice is built on more than just being a great attorney — it requires systems to handle your marketing, to generate a steady flow of referrals to your door, and a tried and true method to increase your closing rate.

I invite you to take 90 seconds and check out the video – it's all about the systems I've put into place in my office, and how you can do the same in yours. Take your practice to the next level!  

Click here if you'd like to look at the agenda and all you'll learn at the Lawyers With Purpose Practice With Purpose Program in Phoenix October 20-22nd.

Warmly,

Jeff Bellomo, Esq., Certified Elder Law Attorney, Bellomo & Associates, LLC 

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Hidden Dangers of Medicaid Qualifying Annuities

by with No Comment Asset ProtectionEstate Planning Drafting SoftwareMedicaidSystems & ProcessesVA

Today, many elder law attorneys rely on Medicaid qualifying annuities to get their clients qualified to receive Medicaid benefits. They're also used when clients seek VA pension benefits.

While Medicaid qualifying annuities have become the default solution, they are not without risk. One challenge is that MQA's do not work well for single individuals. Second, even when used in married planning, there is no assurance the amount placed in the Medicaid qualifying annuity will actually be preserved. In fact, it could all be lost with the subsequent disability or death of the community spouse.

Bigstock-Problem-And-Difficulty-Concept-51429601These are just some of the issues (not to mention the Veterans Administration's changing position on annuities when applying for veteran pension benefits) that we will be discussing at the Asset Protection, Medicaid and VA Practice With Purpose Program October 20-22nd  in Phoenix, AZ.

National Asset Protection, Medicaid and VA experts and dozens of attorneys like you will be collaborating to identify the hidden risks in the different Medicaid and veterans' benefits strategies. This program promises to be the hands-on strategic solving many lawyers crave in their practice. Click here to get a full outline and to register for the program.

In these three days here is just some of what we will cover:

ASSET PROTECTION:

  • Recent updates to asset protection and Medicaid compliant strategies.
  • The new asset protection strategies dominating the marketplace.
  • The death of DAPT'S, FLP'S, GRATS, GRUTS, and tax planning, and what's replaced them.
  • The five essential trusts and key drafting needs to serve 99.7% of clients.
  • The Power of Powers of Appointment, in the right places.
  • Four "must have" drafting considerations and three "most forgotten" powers in trust.

MEDICAID:

  • Four steps to Medicaid eligibility for any client.
  • How to calculate the "breakeven" to ensure the proper filing date for the shortest penalty period.
  • Medicaid Qualifying Annuities: Hidden risks and how to properly disclose them to clients or protect from them.
  • The seven key factors to calculate any Medicaid case in seven minutes (or less!).
  • IRA's: Exemption versus taxes, how to calculate if IRA's should be liquidated or exempted in Medicaid and VA cases.

VETERANS' BENEFITS:

  • New fully developed claims process for veterans and widows.
  • Qualifying assisted living facilities as UME's.
  • Key language to complete the physician affidavit for more timely approvals.
  • Update on three year look back for VA benefits.
  • The key reports no longer required for VA applications.
  • Dangers of annuities in VA benefits planning.
  • The effects of the Supreme Court decision on DOMA related to veterans' benefits.

HERE'S WHAT YOUR PEERS HAD TO SAY ABOUT THE PROGRAM:

  • "It will change your practice and your life!" –John Koenig
  • "Great way to grow into a real firm and help one's community." –Antoinette Middleton
  • "Go to the training session and consider and evaluate upgrading your delivery of services, for me it's modernizing what I can offer." –Wally Kelleman

Are you going to miss or attend the most important event of the year? Click here now to join some of your most successful colleagues and leave confident in the strategies you provide to your clients every day. 

David J. Zumpano, Esq, CPA, Co-founder Lawyers With Purpose, Founder and Senior Partner of Estate Planning Law Center

LWP-Badge-Final-CMYK

Most Critical Strategies Around Today’s Estate Planning

by with No Comment Uncategorized

Are you going to the most critical event that will change your estate planning, asset protection and elder law practice? The Asset Protection, Medicaid and VA Benefits Practice with Purpose Program October 20-22 in Phoenix, AZ.

LWP-Badge-Final-CMYKNational Medicaid and VA experts Dave Zumpano and Victoria Collier will be hosting this three day program and bringing dozens of attorneys together to discuss and solve the most critical elements and strategies around today's Asset Protection, Medicaid and VA needs of our clients. Click here now for the course outline and to register.

In this program we will provide solutions to the following:

ASSET PROTECTION:

  • Recent updates to asset protection and Medicaid compliant strategies.
  • The new asset protection strategies dominating the marketplace.
  • The death of DAPT'S, FLP'S, GRATS, GRUTS, and tax planning, and what's replaced them.
  • The five essential trusts and key drafting needs to serve 99.7% of clients.
  • Four "must have" drafting considerations and three "most forgotten" powers in trust.

MEDICAID:

  • Four steps to Medicaid eligibility for any client.
  • How to calculate the "breakeven" to ensure the proper filing date for the shortest penalty period.
  • Medicaid Qualifying Annuities: Hidden risks and how to properly disclose them to clients or protect from them.
  • The seven key factors to calculate any Medicaid case in seven minutes (or less!)
  • IRA's: Exemption versus taxes, how to calculate if IRA's should be liquidated or exempted in Medicaid and VA cases.

VETERANS' BENEFITS:

  • New fully developed claims process for veterans and widows.
  • Qualifying assisted living facilities as UME's.
  • Key choices to complete the physician affidavit for more timely approvals.
  • Update on three year look back for VA benefits.
  • The key reports no longer required for VA applications.
  • Dangers of annuities in VA benefits planning.
  • The effects of the Supreme Court decision on DOMA related to veterans benefits.

ALL PARTICIPANTS IN THIS SUMMIT WILL RECEIVE:

  • Asset Protection, Medicaid and VA Practice Kit which includes:
    • 50 state Medicaid Reference Resource Guide (summarized in 3 pages)
    • 50 state Estate Recovery Article and updated state by state summary.
    • Grantor Trust Summary and use tool.

Click here for a full outline of the program and to register for this event that has SOLD OUT the past 5 programs.  There are ONLY 25 seats available…DON’T WAIT TO REGISTER! 

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How Efficient Is Your Law Firm?

by with No Comment Asset ProtectionEstate Planning Drafting SoftwareLegal MarketingMedicaidVA

Tom was making the same colossal mental mistake most attorney practitioners make, thinking he was doing everything he could to eke out a respectable living.  He certainly was working hard enough.

Bigstock-Stop-Doing-What-Doesn-t-Work-52434685Tom and his partner Richard started their practice together a few years ago.  They both thought they could earn a better living than working for their respective law firms.

It didn't take long for reality to set in. Their hours were longer and they earned far less per hour than they had when they had employers.

They hired an admin, Sally, about a year ago.  It definitely helped but there were still problems.

After Tom read the intro to the Revenue Focuser Workbook, he was definitely intrigued.

He coordinated two hours for himself, his partner, and their admin to watch the video and work through the workbook.

Tom and Richard thought about how much they really wanted to pay themselves every month.  Since they'd opened their doors, they had never been able to pay themselves that magic number.

They also recognized that, for some reason, their marketing efforts were unfocused and never attracted the right clientele. They could only help a small percentage of the prospects who called them.

Together the three identified their key revenue-generating services.  They added up the hours they spent delivering each service.

Tom and Richard also looked at the total hours they spent in the office each week.  They felt a knot in the pit of their stomachs when they discovered their office was operating at less than 20% of efficiency.  In fact, they barely operated at 19% efficiency.

Tom and Richard realized it was time to figure out how to retool their processes so they could handle their clients more efficiently; they also needed to determine how to attract the right clientele.

If you haven't worked through your Revenue Focuser, it could be the most important hour you spend.  When you decide it's time to eliminate the long hours and the feeling of being overwhelmed,take 1 hour and Complete the Lawyers With Purpose Revenue Focuser.

The income you want to earn and the ease you want to experience is within your reach.

If you have any questions about your Revenue Focuser results, send us your questions on the form on our contact page. Just send an email to info@lawyerswithpurpose.com.

And, if you're interested in learning more about Lawyers With Purpose, please click here and register today to attend our Practice With Purpose Program in Phoenix, AZ, October 20-22nd.  We'll see you then!

To your success,

Dave Zumpano 
Lawyers With Purpose

Bigstock-Old-Keys-42114148

The Five Key Trusts You Must Know

by with No Comment Asset ProtectionEstate Planning Drafting SoftwareLegal MarketingMedicaidVA

Did you know that when it comes down to it there are only *five* trusts that serve 99.7% of all client needs? These include:

  1. The revocable living trust;
  2. The income only irrevocable trust;
  3. The control only irrevocable trust;
  4. The third party irrevocable trust; and
  5. The completed gift irrevocable trust.

Bigstock-Old-Keys-42114148This is all you need to serve 99.7% of all clients. The overindulgence in conversation about DAPT'S, GRATS, GRUTS, FLPs, and other advanced tax planning strategies are for mental exercise only and apply to less than 3 in 1,000 Americans.

The correct trust choice for clients when designing planning to protect their businesses, ensure they qualify for Medicaid, if the need for long-term care occurs, or the preservation and maximization of veteran's benefits, trust choice is critical. But more important than trust choice however, is the drafting utilized inside the trust chosen.

That's why the national Medicaid and VA experts are hosting a three day program to bring you together with your colleagues to show you the solution they have created to these often misused trusts. Click here for the course outline and to register. This three day program will not only address trust drafting and trust use, but also address all of the core elements in today's Asset Protection, Medicaid, and VA Benefits environment.

In just three days, we will show you…

ASSET PROTECTION:

  • Recent updates to asset protection and Medicaid compliant strategies.
  • The new asset protection strategies dominating the marketplace.
  • The death of DAPT'S, FLP'S, GRATS, GRUTS, and tax planning, and what's replaced them.
  • The five essential trusts and key drafting needs to serve 99.7% of clients.
  • Four "must have" drafting considerations and three "most forgotten" powers in trust.

MEDICAID:

  • Four steps to Medicaid eligibility for any client.
  • How to calculate the "breakeven" to ensure the proper filing date for the shortest penalty period.
  • Medicaid Qualifying Annuities: Hidden risks and how to properly disclose them to clients or protect from them.
  • The seven key factors to calculate any Medicaid case in seven minutes (or less!).
  • IRA's: Exemption versus taxes, how to calculate if IRA's should be liquidated or exempted in Medicaid and VA cases.

VETERANS' BENEFITS:

  • New claims process for veterans and widows.
  • Qualifying assisted living facilities as UME's.
  • Key choices to complete the physician affidavit for more timely approvals.
  • Update on three year look back for VA benefits.
  • The key reports no longer required for VA applications.
  • Dangers of annuities in VA benefits planning.
  • The effects of the Supreme Court decision on DOMA related to veterans benefits.

ALL PARTICIPANTS IN THIS SUMMIT WILL RECEIVE:

  • Asset Protection, Medicaid and VA Practice Kit which includes:
  • 50 state Medicaid Reference Resource Guide (summarized in 3 pages)
  • 50 state Estate Recovery Article and updated state by state summary.
  • Grantor Trust Summary and use tool.

HERE'S WHAT YOUR PEERS HAD TO SAY ABOUT THE PROGRAM:

“You don't know what you don't know. Come learn how to best serve your clients.” –Matthew Donald

“I would consider this mandatory training for any elder law/estate planning attorney. If not, they should plan for a mediocre practice at best.” –Tim Jarvis

“Just do it. The tools and training will absolutely be worth it!” –Rod Halstead

If you are ready for strategic solutions that you can see, touch, and feel, this is not an event you will want to miss. Click here now to begin your strategic approach to solving your clients' trust needs.

To Your Success,

Dave Zumpano
Co-Founder, Lawyers With Purpose
Practicing Attorney, Just Like You! 

 

The Most Important Part of Any Business System

by with No Comment Uncategorized

You're probably familiar with the concept of IQ…maybe you've even taken a quick IQ test online or in the back of an in-flight magazine.

Many years ago, it was believed that IQ and intelligence were synonymous — that there is some sort of magic number that everyone has that can be determined by the right test, and that that number is a reflection of how intelligent they are. Even today, if you ask the average person on the street what intelligence is, the term “IQ” is going to come up more often than not.

Fortunately, these days we know better…as far back as 1983, a psychologist at Harvard named Howard Gardner proposed his theory of “multiple intelligences.” The idea behind Gardner's framework is simple — namely that intelligence takes many different forms, and that everyone's “intelligence” is actually a unique combination of their strengths across many different categories. Currently, Gardner has advocated for nine different forms of intelligence:

  • Musical – Rhythmic and Harmonic
  • Visual – Spatial
  • Verbal – Linguistic
  • Logical – Mathematical
  • Bodily – Kinesthetic
  • Interpersonal
  • Intrapersonal
  • Naturalistic
  • Existential

When you look at the list above, it's not difficult to come up with examples of what Gardner was talking about — history is full of people who achieved at the highest levels in their field, independent of what they may have scored on a traditional IQ test.

IQ wasn't related to Beethoven's successes…it was his musical intelligence. Michael Jordan's IQ had nothing to do with his ability to drive the lane or hit a jump shot — but he absolutely is gifted in the realm of bodily-kinesthetic intelligence. Margaret Thatcher would likely have scored well on a traditional IQ test, but you can also make the case that it was her inter- and intra-personal intelligence that helped her ascend to the top of her field.

So by now you might be wondering why I'm talking about intelligence on an e-mail to attorneys? It's a fair question, and the answer is actually pretty simple…

When you think about the examples I've given above, and the others that surely came to your mind as you read through Gardner's list, what do they have in common? They all benefited from an extraordinary fit between their gifts and the endeavors they chose to pursue.

So often you've heard me discuss the idea of systems, and how having the right system in place makes all the difference in your practice. Well, an important component in that is making sure that the people – the most important part of any business system – are a good fit with the responsibilities they have.

Take a minute now and think about your team — who is particularly gifted verbally? They have a way with words — are they getting the opportunity to leverage that talent for the benefit of your whole firm? What about your analytical thinkers? Are they getting the opportunity to solve problems and help things run more smoothly on a day-to-day basis?

LWP is hosting a three day event in Phoenix where we'll be talking systems automation and how you can leverage the right tools, systems, and the natural talents of your staff to exceed your revenue goals! And the beauty is that you are freed up to focus on the people (i.e., meeting with clients and power partners).

The Next Practice with Purpose Program is October 20-22 in Phoenix. Yikes, that's closer to “year end” than “New Year!”

We'll provide you with the road map — we'll teach you how you can use your natural gifts (and those of your team) to get more done at the office and get more time at home as well!

That doesn't mean that it's going to be easy, though…one of the benefits of attending an event like this with some of your most successful and forward-thinking peers from around the country is that we're going to challenge you to break through the roadblocks you're currently facing…to focus on what's really important in your practice…and to eliminate the distractions that take away from your time and focus.

That's our promise to you…that you'll return home with a clear vision for taking your practice to the next level. Taking the all-important first step is up to you - click here to register now. We fully expect that the program will sell out, and you don't want to be left without a seat!

To Your Success,

David J. Zumpano, Esq, CPA, Co-founder Lawyers With Purpose, Founder and Senior Partner of Estate Planning Law Center