• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Parman & Easterday

Oklahoma Estate Planning Attorneys

Call Now: (405) 843-6100

Attend an Education Program-OK
  • Home
  • Our Firm
    • About Our Firm
    • Attorney and Staff Profiles
    • What Our Clients Say
  • Estate Planning
    • Asset Protection
    • Estate and Gift Tax Figures
    • Estate Planning Services
    • Family-Owned Businesses & Farms
    • Financial Planning Assistance
    • IRA and Retirement Planning
    • Legacy Planning
    • LGBTQ Estate Planning
    • Pet Planning
    • Powers of Attorney
    • Probate
    • SECURE Act
    • Special Needs Planning
    • Trust Administration and Probate
    • Young Families
  • Elder Law
    • Coping With Alzheimer’s
    • Elder Law
    • Emergency Medicaid
    • Guardianship & Conservatorship
    • Hospice Care
    • Medicaid Planning
    • Veteran’s Benefits
  • Resources
    • Asset Protection Worksheet
    • DocuBank
    • Elder Law
      • Elder Law & Medicaid Definitions
      • Elder Law Reports
      • Elder Law Resources
        • Edmond Elder Law
        • Oklahoma City Elder Law
        • Overland Park Elder Law
        • Yukon Elder Law
      • Medicaid
      • Nursing Home Resources
    • Estate Planning
      • An Overview of Estate and Gift Taxes
      • Estate Planning Checkup
      • Estate Planning Definitions
      • Estate Planning Reports
        • Advanced Estate Planning
        • Basic Estate Planning
        • Estate Planning for Niches
        • Trust Administration
      • Incapacity Planning Definitions
      • Is Your Estate Plan Outdated?
      • Top 10 Estate and Legacy Planning Techniques
    • Free Estate Planning Worksheet
    • Frequently Asked Questions
      • Alzheimer’s FAQs
      • Asset Protection Planning
      • Estate Planning
      • Elder Law
      • Frequently Asked Questions for Families Without an Estate Plan
      • Inheritance Planning for Minors
      • Legacy Wealth Planning
      • LGBTQ Estate Planning
      • Medicaid Planning
      • Nursing Home Asset Protection
      • Probate
      • Trust Administration
      • Trust Administration & Probate
      • Wills and Trusts
    • Newsletters
    • Probate and Trust Administration
      • Bereavement Resources
      • How to Know if You Need Extra Help With Your Grieving
      • Loss of a Loved One
      • Probate Checklist
      • The Mourner’s Bill of Rights
      • Things You Need To Do When a Loved One Passes Away With a Trust
      • Things You Need To Do When a Loved One Passes Away With a Will
      • Trust Administration & Probate Definitions
    • Probate Resources
      • Midwest City Probate
      • Moore Probate
      • Oklahoma City Probate
      • Overland Park Probate
    • Published Books
    • Pre Consultation Form
  • Communities We Serve
    • Edmond
    • Midwest City
    • Moore
    • Norman
    • Oklahoma City
    • Yukon
  • Reviews
    • Our Reviews
    • Review Us
  • BLOG
  • Contact Us
Home » Guardianship » What Is the Difference Between a Revocable Living Trust and a Medicaid Trust?

What Is the Difference Between a Revocable Living Trust and a Medicaid Trust?

August 12, 2014 by Larry Parman, Attorney at Law

What Is the Difference Between a Revocable Living Trust and a Medicaid Trust?

There are a variety of trusts that are used in the field of estate planning, and they serve different purposes. In this post we will look at revocable living trusts and Medicaid trusts, and we will explain the differences between them.

Revocable Living Trusts

Revocable living trusts are popular among people who want to avoid probate. This is a legal process that comes into play if you maintain sole and direct personal possession of your assets through to the time of your death. If you execute a last will, the executor must admit the will to probate before the heirs receive their inheritances.

Probate can be time-consuming, and there are expenses that are typically incurred that reduce the value of the estate while the process is underway.

If you use a revocable living trust to facilitate future asset transfers, you are referred to as the grantor of the trust. The grantor can act as the trustee and the beneficiary initially, so you do not lose control of assets that you convey into a revocable living trust.

Because the trust is revocable, you can revoke or rescind the trust at any time that it would no longer exist.

When you create the trust agreement you name a successor trustee and successor beneficiaries. After you die, the successor trustee can distribute assets to the beneficiaries outside of probate.

Medicaid Trusts

Many seniors seek Medicaid eligibility late in their lives, because Medicare will not pay for long-term care. Most elders will eventually need assistance with their day-to-day needs, so this is something that is relevant to everyone.

Medicaid is a need-based program, so people who were never financially needy typically engage in something called a Medicaid spend down. This is somewhat self-explanatory: you spend or give away assets until you have very little left in your own name if and when you apply for Medicaid coverage.

You could give your children their inheritances in advance in a direct manner when you are spending down, but you have another option. It would be possible to create and fund a Medicaid trust. A Medicaid trust is an irrevocable trust. Because you cannot revoke the trust, assets that have been conveyed into the trust would not be counted when Medicaid is determining your eligibility.

On the other hand, a revocable living trust would not be good for Medicaid planning purposes, because you do in fact retain direct control of the assets that have been conveyed into the trust.

Free Report on Medicaid Planning

If you would like to learn more about Medicaid trusts, download our special report on Medicaid planning. The report is being offered free of charge at the present time, and you can obtain access to your copy through this link: Medicaid Planning Report.

Blaine Peterson
Attorney
Parman & Easterday

  • Author
  • Recent Posts
Larry Parman, Attorney at Law
Larry Parman, Attorney at Law
Founder and Owner at Parman & Easterday
After helping his own family deal with a lengthy probate and the IRS following his father’s untimely death in a farm accident, Larry Parman made a decision to help families create effective estate plans designed to reduce taxes, minimize legal interference with the transfer of assets to one’s heirs, and protect his clients’ assets from predators and creditors.
Larry Parman, Attorney at Law
Latest posts by Larry Parman, Attorney at Law (see all)
  • Did You Know There Are Different Types of Wills? - June 23, 2022
  • Does Medicaid Count Assets in a Living Trust? - June 21, 2022
  • Medicaid Waiver Can Facilitate In-Home Care - June 14, 2022

Filed Under: Guardianship

Other Articles You May Find Useful

incapacity planning
Take Proactive Steps to Prevent a Guardianship
Parman & Easterday
Estate Planning For Domestic Partners
Overland Park estate planning attorney
Are Your Assets In Harm’s Way?
overland park probate attorneys
Understanding Guardianship Proceedings in Probate Court
Parman & Easterday
How Does a Court Choose a Guardian or Conservator?
Parman & Easterday
Guardians, Conservators, and More – What Does a Guardian/Conservator do?

Primary Sidebar

Parman & Easterday, LLP

DOWNLOAD OUR FREE ESTATE PLANNING CHECKLIST

SUBSCRIBE TO OUR BLOG

Follow Us

  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Where We Are

OKLAHOMA CITY, OK
13913 Quail Pointe Drive, Suite B
Oklahoma City, OK 73134
Phone: (405) 843-6100
Fax: (405) 917-7018

MAP

parman_sidbr_map

Office Hours

Monday9:00 AM - 5:30 PM
Tuesday9:00 AM - 5:30 PM
Wednesday9:00 AM - 5:30 PM
Thursday9:00 AM - 5:30 PM
Friday9:00 AM - 12:00 PM

Footer

footer-logo

The information on this Oklahoma Law Firm website is for general information purposes only. Nothing on this or associated pages, documents, comments, answers, emails, or other communications should be taken as legal advice for any individual case or situation. This information on this website is not intended to create, and receipt or viewing of this information does not constitute, an attorney-client relationship.

Privacy Policy | Contact Us | Disclaimer | Site Map | Powered by American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys


© 2022 American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys, Inc.
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter
  • YouTube