Special Needs Planning
Dignity, clarity and peace of mind for a lifetime of care
Dignity, clarity and peace of mind for a lifetime of care
Navigating the financial future of a family member with a disability requires more than standard wealth management. It requires deep empathy and specialized technical expertise. Guided by the Academy of Special Needs Planners and the Chartered Special Needs Consultant (ChSNC®) framework, we work alongside families and their professional advisors to help design a coordinated planning framework for every stage of life. Our focus is dual-purpose: helping families evaluate strategies that support long-term financial resilience that enhances your loved one's daily quality of life, while helping families evaluate asset ownership considerations and planning strategies intended to coordinate with government benefits like Medicaid and Supplemental Security Income (SSI).
Standard wealth transfer strategies create significant blind spots for families supporting an individual with a disability.
A direct inheritance, gift or standard life insurance payout may affect your loved one's eligibility for crucial public benefits like SSI and Medicaid.
Planning for a lifetime of care involves complex family dynamics, caregiver stress and deep emotional weight that extend beyond traditional financial planning.
Specialized planning can help coordinate financial planning strategies with legal structures, tax strategies and family vision into a more cohesive long-term strategy.
We partner with collaborative families navigating special needs, unexpected trauma or major life transitions. Because no two journeys are identical, our approach bridges advanced financial planning to guide families across three critical planning horizons.
Who it's for: Individuals adjusting to a recent diagnosis, or families managing a sudden legal settlement or inheritance.
Focus: Reviewing cash flows, evaluating potential benefit eligibility and supporting informed decision-making during periods of transition.
Who it's for: Families facing long-term care realities, such as an aging parent or primary caregiver managing a degenerative condition.
Focus: Evaluating future projected care costs, wealth transfer considerations and establishing governance structures to support continuity of care.
Who it's for: Parents planning a lifetime of dignity, financial security and personal fulfillment for a dependent child with a disability.
Focus: Exploring strategies involving Special Needs Trusts (SNTs), ABLE accounts and tax-aware portfolio management to fund a lifelong vision while considering public benefit eligibility.
When a medical diagnosis, developmental need or unexpected trauma affects a family, it fundamentally changes how they interact with money. Standard wealth management may not always address the emotional and relational dynamics of planning before diving into logistics. We incorporate Financial Therapy principles into special needs planning. Financial Therapy in this context refers to financial coaching and education, not licensed clinical mental health treatment.
We begin by understanding your family's vision, daily routines and care needs.
We explain government benefit rules, trust structures and wealth transfer concepts in an educational, step-by-step manner.
Our goal is to help you make informed decisions with greater confidence as you evaluate planning options.
We help translate your family's priorities into coordinated planning strategies. By collaborating with your legal and tax professionals, we help facilitate implementation of planning recommendations within each professional's scope of practice.
Education and planning support regarding First-Party, Third-Party and Pooled Special Needs Trusts, including funding considerations and coordination with your estate planning attorney.
Education regarding benefit rules and planning considerations related to programs such as SSI and Medicaid, in coordination with appropriate professionals.
Educational guidance for family trustees regarding trust administration concepts and distribution considerations, including discussions surrounding SSI In-Kind Support and Maintenance (ISM) rules.
Education regarding available savings vehicles, including IRC §530A Trump Accounts and ABLE accounts, contribution limitations, rollover considerations and coordination with broader planning objectives.
Guidance and educational resources to assist families in preparing Memorandums of Intent for successor caregivers and trustees.
Planning considerations for managing personal injury settlements, disability proceeds or inheritances while evaluating tax implications and public benefit considerations.
We start by listening to capture your family's unique story, care needs and long-term vision to define what a successful life looks like for your loved one.
We develop planning analyses that may include projected care costs and potential trust funding strategies.
We collaborate with your attorneys, CPAs and care managers to help promote consistency across planning recommendations.
We assist clients through the implementation process and provide educational support where appropriate.
Our practice integrates financial planning, financial therapy and family education, supported by the resources of an independent fiduciary firm.
Our team brings together interdisciplinary experience across financial planning, estate planning, advanced wealth management, tax-aware planning, special needs planning and financial psychology. Our professionals hold advanced credentials and designations, including JD, CPA, MBA, MSFS, ChFC®, CFP®, CPWA®, ChSNC®, CFT™, CFA, CTFA and CDFA®.
We strive to explain SSI/Medicaid rules, trust structures and tax concepts in clear, step-by-step guidance designed to support understanding and informed decision-making.
We act as fiduciaries and provide advice in accordance with our fiduciary obligations. We tailor our recommendations to each client's unique family dynamics, tax considerations, financial circumstances and long-term objectives.
A coordinated planning approach that considers both family care objectives and long-term wealth management.
Financial projections to help families estimate future care, housing, medical and lifestyle expenses as part of long-term planning.
Creating structured decision-making frameworks and preparing neurotypical siblings for future roles as trust advisors, co-trustees or primary advocates, and facilitating family discussions regarding future roles and governance considerations.
Education support for non-professional family trustees on making qualified disability expense distributions, trust administration concepts and in-kind maintenance and support (ISM) considerations.
Navigating compressed trust tax brackets in coordination with qualified tax professionals while evaluating trust taxation considerations, including grantor and non-grantor trust concepts.
While both options are designed to help preserve a beneficiary's eligibility for public benefits like SSI and Medicaid when properly structured, they serve complementary purposes.
ABLE Accounts: Tax-advantaged savings accounts for qualified disability expenses, subject to applicable IRS and SSA rules, including annual contribution limits. When used appropriately, ABLE accounts may provide greater flexibility for certain qualified disability expenses without affecting SSI resource eligibility, subject to applicable program rules.
Special Needs Trusts (SNTs): Legal trust structures built to hold major long-term assets, such as real estate, inheritances or life insurance proceeds, to fund supplemental needs during a lifetime of care.
Subject to applicable law, IRS guidance and program rules, IRC §530A Accounts may provide additional planning opportunities for certain families. These accounts may allow eligible families to save and invest assets for a child through age 17, subject to applicable contribution limits, eligibility requirements and statutory provisions.
Depending on individual circumstances and applicable rules, assets held in these accounts may receive favorable treatment when considering certain government benefit eligibility requirements. Under applicable law and if statutory requirements are satisfied, accumulated assets may be eligible for rollover treatment into an ABLE account during the year the beneficiary turns 17.
Contribution limits, rollover provisions, tax treatment and the interaction between these accounts and programs such as SSI and Medicaid are subject to change and depend on individual circumstances. Families should consult qualified legal, tax and financial professionals before implementing strategies involving IRC §530A Accounts, ABLE accounts or government benefit programs.
Navigating a lifelong care plan following a medical diagnosis or major transition carries significant grief, anxiety and family stress. By integrating Financial Therapy, we help families explore the psychological and relational aspects of financial decision-making alongside traditional planning, with the goal of fostering greater clarity, supporting productive family communication and helping clients approach complex financial decisions with increased confidence.
You don't have to navigate the financial, legal and emotional complexities of special needs planning alone. Our specialized team is here to provide the education, guidance and coordinated planning support you need to create continuity of care for your loved one.
Take your first step today with a Discovery Call — a brief, zero-pressure conversation to share your family's unique story and vision.
Schedule Your Introductory CallThis content is for educational purposes only and does not constitute legal, tax, investment, or benefits-eligibility advice. Special Needs Trusts, ABLE accounts, IRC §530A accounts, and government benefit programs are governed by complex rules that are subject to change and that depend on individual circumstances. Strategies and outcomes will vary. Consult qualified legal, tax, and financial professionals before implementing any planning strategy.