Financial Articles

Parents of children with special needs, such as those with cerebral palsy should visit a lawyer and set up a Special Needs Trust. A special needs trust is set up allow use of property for the beneficiary without losing access to essential government services and benefits. As it stands now a person who is disabled cannot inherit more than $2,000- it will interrupt his or her government benefits. Especially important are long-term care and nursing home benefits under the Medicaid welfare program.

Government benefit programs are now recognizing that family contributions can only improve a disabled person’s life. As long as the family’s contributions are supplementary and do not duplicate government benefit programs, they are allowed. Some current government benefit programs do let the family to provide some supplementary income and resources to the person with a disability. However, government regulations are very strict, and they are carefully monitored for abuse.

Special Needs Trusts are frequently used as a way to receive an inheritance or personal injury settlement proceeds on behalf of a disabled person in order to allow the person to qualify for Medicaid benefits.

A special needs trust can be used to buy such things as:

• uninsured medical and dental expenses, eyeglasses
• Maintenance of vehicles
• Insurance (including payment of premiums)
• Transportation (including buying a vehicle )
• Athletic training, gym membership or competitions
• Personal care attendant or escort
• Rehabilitation
• Essential dietary needs
• Purchase materials for a hobby or recreation activity
• Purchase a computer or other electronic equipment
• Pay for trips or vacations,concerts,outings
• Buy things that add to quality to life: movies,video games, books, crafts , etc.

It is strongly advised if you are a parent of a special needs child that you speak with an attorney regarding the set up of a special needs trust.

During our working lives, many people fail to realize the importance of saving for retirement. In order to live the lifestyle you desire after you quit working, it’s important to build a nest egg prior to your retirement years that you can support yourself on. It’s never too early to start saving, and the longer you wait the less money you’ll have accumulated by the time you reach your golden years. In order to ensure a comfortable lifestyle once you retire, it’s important to take steps now to save the money you’ll need to support yourself for the rest of your life.

In order to start saving money now, it’s important that you create a budget and stick with it! Living within a budget is one of the most effective ways to save money and plan for the future, because it allows you to live within your means without going overboard. By creating and maintaining a budget, you know exactly how much money is coming in and how much money is going out. Cut back on unnecessary expenses and consider setting that money aside in a retirement savings account.

You’ll also want to review your retirement plan with your company to understand every aspect of the plan and how it will work for you in the future. Whether you have a 401K or another type of retirement plan through your job, it’s important that you know how the plan will work for you. By following these simple steps, you can be well on your way to ensuring your retirement years are comfortable. Preparing for your retirement now will benefit you immensely in the long run by ensuring you have enough money to live on and won’t have to work past your retirement age.

Many people make the mistake that retirement is only something that older people need to worry about. Unfortunately, this way of thinking can longer be acceptable, because those in their 20’s and 30’s who do not plan for their future now will end up with very little come retirement age. If you engage in planning for retirement now, you’ll be able to rest assured that you can continue to live the lifestyle you’ve always dreamed about. Remember, it’s never too early to start planning for the future, and you want to make sure you have enough to support yourself by the time you can’t work anymore.

The first option when planning for your retirement is to open a Roth IRA. Your current employer may have this option available to you, and you might be able to open one for you and for your spouse. This type of IRA will grow for many years tax-free, and you don’t have to do anything to it. Once you’ve reached age 59 and a half, you can withdraw whatever money has accumulated or leave it there to continue to develop until you really need it. Because you never have to touch the IRA, this type of investment is a great way to plan for the future.

Alternatively, if your company has any sort of retirement fund program you can choose to participate in, it would be wise to do so. Many employers match the money you contribute to your fund, so if your company offers a retirement program it would be a good idea to take advantage of it. These are just a couple of simple things you can do to plan for the future, and if you start while you’re young that gives you more than enough time to build up a tidy nest egg you can live off of when you can’t work anymore.