While the importance of setting up at trust to take care of the future needs of a loved one, sometimes the work and fees that are associated with it make it prohibitive for some families. In these instances, however, there is still another option: Pooled Trusts.
A pooled trust makes sound financial sense for those families for whom setting up an individual supplemental needs trust not be an option. While a pooled trust still enables you to put money aside for a person with disabilities, traumatic brain injury or autism without worrying about maximum income and asset requirements, the money is then pooled together with other clients’ money for management purposes, so the minimums to open the trusts and associated fees are typically lower.
There are a variety of pooled trust options available:
• Self Settled Trust: Protects the proceeds received from personal injury awards, inheritances or Social Security settlements, making funds available for life-enriching experiences like vacations and recreational activities or, medical expenses not covered by Medicaid or other insurance.
• Third Party Trust: Funded by family members, guardians and others, this trust puts aside assets for a loved one with a disability—without jeopardizing Medicaid or SSI benefits.
• Surplus Income Trust: Allows a person with excess income to deposit their monthly amount over the allowable income limit into the trust so that it can be used for monthly living expenses, instead of paying it to Medicaid.
At Life’s WORC, we utilize our 50-plus years of experience working with and supporting individuals with special needs and their families in all areas of their lives as the basis for Life’s WORC Trust Services. Choosing to partner with Life’s WORC for your trust needs has many advantages:
• All trust funds are professionally managed. We work in partnership with the seasoned team of investment managers at a reputable financial institution, which has extensive experience in the areas of individual and pooled trusts.
• We’re here when you need us. Unlike a family member who may be overwhelmed by administration of the trust, our trustees are knowledgeable about regulatory guidelines and are always available to address your concerns.
• We handle money responsibly. A 501(c)3 organization, we keep bureaucracy—and overhead—to a minimum by keeping our total administrative costs under 10%.
Life’s WORC Trust Services offers a full suite of individual and pooled trusts, including those mentioned above as well as Individual Supplemental Needs Trusts and trust administration services. For more information or to contact us, please visit our website at www.LifesWorcTrust.org
Paulette Elbers Trust Administrator Life’s WORC 1501 Franklin Avenue Garden City, NY 11530 Phone: (516) 741-9000, ext. 3600 Fax: (516) 302-1802 Email: pelbers@lifesworc.org Life’s WORC I Trust Services Phone: (516) 348-7878 Email: trustservices@lifesworc.org