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

The OBrien Law Firm

Estate & Trust Planning Information Center

Call Now: (216) 472-1500

Attend a Free Workshop
  • Home
  • Our Firm
    • About Our Firm
    • Attorney and Staff Profiles
  • Services
    • Asset Protection & Business Planning
    • Elder Law & Medicaid Services
    • Estate and Gift Tax Figures
    • Estate Planning Services
    • Family-Owned Businesses & Farms
    • Financial Planning Assistance
    • Incapacity Planning
    • IRA & Retirement Planning
    • Legacy Planning
    • LGBTQ Estate Planning
    • Pet Planning
    • SECURE Act
    • Special Needs Planning
    • Trust Administration & Probate
  • Workshops
  • Resources
    • Client Care Program
    • Elder Law Reports
    • Estate Planning Articles
    • Financial Advisors
    • Frequently Asked Questions
      • Estate Planning FAQ’s
      • Frequently Asked Questions for Families Without an Estate Plan
      • Legacy Wealth Planning FAQ’s
      • LGBTQ Estate Planning Frequently Asked Questions
      • Trust Administration & Probate Frequently Asked Questions
    • Newsletters
    • Reports
      • Advanced Estate Planning
      • Basic Estate Planning
      • Estate Planning for Niches
      • Trust Administration
  • COMMUNITIES WE SERVE
    • Beachwood
    • Cleveland
    • Willoughby
  • Contact Us
  • BLOG
Home / Estate Planning Articles / Helping Your Parents Age Gracefully

Helping Your Parents Age Gracefully

Compliments of Our Law Firm,
By: The American Academy of Estate Planning Attorneys

As you look back over your life, you realize just how much your parents’ support has meant to you. They were there as you took your first faltering baby steps, they supported you with advice and encouragement as you navigated adolescence, and, even as you ventured into adulthood, you knew your parents would be there to help you face life’s unending questions and challenges.

Years later, the roles are reversing. You watch your parents’ steps become unsteady, and you realize that they need help facing their own questions and challenges. You want to help your mom and dad age gracefully, and that means knowing how to meet their needs while helping them remain as independent as possible. It can be a tricky balance to strike, and planning ahead is essential.

Tax Planning

If your parents have accumulated substantial assets over their lifetimes, they’ll likely need to do some tax planning. Planning ahead will enable your parents to pass on as much of their estate as possible to family, friends, and charity rather than having their wealth eaten up by estate taxes.

Medicaid Planning

For those who don’t have significant wealth, Medicaid planning is a key concern. Without advance planning, nursing home care or assisted living costs could drain your parents’ savings, leaving them with a very low quality of life. Planning at least five years ahead can make all the difference. It can help your Mom and Dad qualify for Medicaid coverage and still have money to pay for a few of life’s pleasures – and maybe even allow them to leave a little behind for their children or grandchildren. Medicaid planning may even save the family home.

Trust Planning

No matter what your parents’ financial situation is, a Revocable Living Trust can be a helpful planning strategy. Your parents can place their assets in the Trust and manage the Trust as long as they are healthy and capable. They can name you Successor Trustee so that if their health begins to decline, the framework will be in place for you to take the reins and manage their finances for them.

The beauty of this arrangement is its flexibility. If your parents only need a little help – for example, if they need you to take care of their bills for a few months while your mom recovers from surgery – the Trust lets you help out for a while and then transition control back to your parents. If, on the other hand, there’s a sudden and permanent need for you to take over, the framework is there for you to do so, immediately, and without the need for court intervention or permission.

These are just a few of the planning tools available to smooth the transition for you and your parents as they age. An estate planning attorney can show your family all the options for helping your parents age gracefully.

Primary Sidebar

Download our free estate planning worksheet

There's a lot that goes into setting up a comprehensive estate plan, but with our FREE worksheet, you'll be one step closer to getting yourself and your family on the path to a secure and happy future.
  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Follow Us

  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter

Testimonials

default image

Michael and his team work very closely with you to help build a strategy for you regarding estate planning. They do not overdo it. They work hard to be certain their suggestions/recommendations fit your needs. Michael asks great questions, listens well and delivers on his commitments. I was very appreciative and hugely satisfied.

Anonymous Client Review September 8, 2020

default image

Personal, professional service and follow up. Did what he said he would do at the agreed price.

Paul Client Review September 8, 2020

default image

Michael has a comprehensive knowledge of estate palnning needs and trust issues. I trust his guidance and counsel completely.

Jim Client Review September 8, 2020

Willoughby Office

WILLOUGHBY
38027 Euclid Avenue
Willoughby, OH 44094
Phone: (440) 951-1525
Fax: (440) 951-1807

Beachwood Office

BEACHWOOD
25550 Chagrin Boulevard, Suite 100
Beachwood, Ohio 44122
Phone: (216) 472-1500
Fax: (216) 593-0914

Office Hours

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

Map

map for obrien law office

Footer

footer-logo
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter

The information on this 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. The 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.