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Special needs planning gets harder when a family does not fit the traditional mold. Most articles on special needs trusts assume one set of parents, one child with a disability, and one household. Real families in New Jersey often look different. Parents remarry....
Special needs planning is not one document you sign and file away. It is a process that changes as your child grows, from the early years of diagnosis and services, through the teen years, into the legal turning point of age 18, and beyond into adulthood. The tools...
You want to leave something behind for a family member with a disability. That's a kind thing to do. But if you're not careful, a gift or inheritance can cost them their Medicaid or Supplemental Security Income. Here's why that happens, and what you can do instead....
Yes, a special needs trust can own a house in New Jersey. But the rules around it get tricky fast. If you're thinking about putting a home into your child's trust, you need to understand a few key details first. Let's walk through how this works. Why Owning a Home...
When you set up a special needs trust for your child, you're planning for their life. It's natural that planning for the end of that life feels like the last thing you want to think about. But understanding what happens to the trust after your child passes away helps...
Most families with a disabled loved one want to leave them something. A little money, a life insurance policy, a share of the house. It comes from a good place. But if that gift is structured the wrong way, it can cost your loved one their Medicaid or Supplemental...
When your child with a disability turns 18, New Jersey law treats them as a legal adult, and your authority as a parent ends automatically. Guardianship and supported decision-making are the two primary legal tools families use to fill that gap. Guardianship transfers...
Life insurance is the most common way families fund a special needs trust. When you name the trust as the beneficiary of your policy rather than your child directly, the death benefit flows into the trust without counting against your child's Supplemental Security...
Choosing the right trustee for a special needs trust in New Jersey is one of the most consequential decisions you will make in the entire planning process. The trustee controls every dollar that flows from the trust and every distribution that affects your loved one's...