It’s A Great Time Of Year For A Retirement Plan Financial Assessment

Let’s look at what is taken into consideration during a retirement plan financial assessment.

Holidays can often stir up quite a bit of financial distress along with the joy of the season. Especially for those who are nearing retirement and have not actually sat down to determine long-term financial needs.

As we draw to the end of another year and look toward the start of another, this is a good time for people who haven’t established any kind of legal plan for long term needs to take that next crucial step. Find a reputable and experienced attorney who will do a financial assessment to determine if your situation is a good candidate for asset leveraging. In a thorough financial assessment you need to consider your tax strategies concerning retirement accounts.

Most people who have retirement accounts think that is all they need. And, when a crisis happens, they spend down their assets needlessly. If you work with an attorney to establish a plan before a crisis occurs, the financial stress is eliminated and your retirement assets get to be used for your retirement.

Consider Long-Term Care And Taxes

For starters, you’ll want to consider a variety of long-term care options. These can include home health care, adult day programs, independent living facilities, assisted living facilities and nursing home care. Traditional ways to pay for care include personal savings, “traditional” long-term care insurance, Veterans benefits and Medicaid benefits. The reality is that 50% people of elderly adults will need some kind of long-term care assistance.

If you own a retirement account, it may be to your advantage to take advantage of a provision that allows rolling all or a portion of the account into a life insurance policy with a long-term care rider. This accomplishes two important things. First of all, if you die and leave your retirement account to your children, they must pay up to 30% in taxes on the account. If you roll it over into the government approved life insurance policy, all money withdrawn for care is tax-free. And, any amount not used for your long-term care that is subsequently distributed to your beneficiaries upon death is also tax-free. Most importantly, and unlike a traditional long-term care insurance, if you don’t use the funds for care, the asset is not “lost” and as mentioned, is payable to beneficiaries tax-free.

Give Yourself A Gift That Will Give You Peace Of Mind

In a thorough financial assessment you need to consider your tax strategies concerning retirement accounts such as a 401k or IRA. The Estate & Asset Protection Law Firm can perform a free financial assessment to determine if your situation is a good fit for asset leveraging and tax savings. There’s no time like the present to make sure your future care can be tended to as stress free as possible.

Looking to find an experienced estate lawyer in the Georgia area who is skilled in asset protection and estate plan preparation? Shannon Pawley is an attorney in Georgia with expertise in estate planning and asset protection. Shannon can provide assistance with creating an estate plan to include making a will and how to establish a trust properly. If you have questions about asset protection or questions about making an estate plan, reach out to Shannon and she will be glad to help answer all the estate planning questions you might have!