Medicaid Asset Protection Trust Attorney in Atlanta, Georgia
Plan for Nursing Home Costs More Than Five Years Before You Need Care
A Medicaid asset protection trust is an irrevocable trust for nursing home planning. When it is funded more than five years before you apply, Medicaid generally does not count the trust's principal. Any income the trust pays you still counts as your income.
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The Five-Year Lookback and Why Timing Is Everything
When you ask Medicaid to pay for nursing home care, Medicaid looks back five years (60 months). The five years run from the day each asset goes into the trust, not from the day you sign it. Assets moved in less than five years before you apply count in full toward a penalty. You do not get credit for the time that has passed.
How Georgia Medicaid Spend-Down Works
Georgia Medicaid long-term care benefits require an individual to spend down to $2,000 in countable assets before coverage begins. A married couple can protect up to $162,660 for the community spouse in 2026. Everything above those limits must be spent on care before Medicaid pays anything.
Countable assets include bank accounts, investment accounts, retirement accounts, and non-exempt real estate. The primary residence does not count while the applicant or community spouse lives in it, as long as the equity is under $752,000 (2026). After both spouses have died, Georgia can seek recovery from it, though it must wait while there is a child under 21 or a child who is blind or disabled. At about $8,821 to $9,429 a month in nursing home costs (2025 Georgia median), a family with $400,000 in savings can exhaust everything above the protected minimum within months of admission.
How a Medicaid Asset Protection Trust Works
A Medicaid asset protection trust (MAPT) is an irrevocable trust built for Medicaid planning. You transfer assets into the trust and name a trustee — typically an adult child or trusted person. You designate beneficiaries who inherit the assets at your death. You give up control of the principal. That loss of control is what makes the planning work. After five years, Medicaid generally does not count the trust’s principal when it decides if you qualify. You may keep the income the trust assets earn during your lifetime, but that income still counts as your income for Medicaid.
The five years run from the day each asset goes into the trust, not from the day you sign it. If you apply sooner, the full value of what you moved in counts toward a penalty. No trust is a guarantee. We prepare the trust document, fund it with deeds and account transfers, so each asset goes into the trust as early as possible.
Revocable Trust vs. Medicaid Asset Protection Trust
Same legal family. Different jobs. Here's how to tell which one your situation needs.
Revocable Trust
$3,500
For most Georgia families — avoids probate, keeps you in control.
Medicaid Asset Protection Trust
$6,500
For families preparing for nursing home or Medicaid planning.
| Feature | Revocable Trust | MAPT |
|---|---|---|
| Price at Atlanta Estate Planning | $3,500 | $6,500 |
| Avoids probate | Yes | Yes |
| You can change or cancel it | Yes | No — it’s irrevocable |
| You keep control of assets | Full control | Trustee controls |
| Protects assets from nursing home | No | Principal generally not counted after 5 years |
| Protects from Medicaid spend-down | No | Generally, after 5 years. No trust is a guarantee |
| Daily access to assets | Unrestricted | Through trustee |
| Timing to be effective | Immediately | Funded more than 5 years before you apply |
| Best for | Most Georgia families | Long-term care planning |
Without a Trust
- Countable assets above $2,000 must be spent on care before Medicaid begins
- The home becomes subject to Medicaid estate recovery after your death
- Transfers made in the five years before application create penalty periods
- No protection for assets that remain in your name at time of application
With a Trust
- Each asset starts its five years the day it goes into the MAPT
- After five years, Medicaid generally does not count the trust's principal
- The home in the trust is generally outside what Georgia Medicaid can claim, but a right to live there that you keep may still count
- Income from trust assets can still be received during your lifetime
How It Works
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Book your 15-minute free strategy call with Shawn. No cost, no commitment.
Meet With Melissa
Melissa reviews your assets, your family situation, and your exposure. Virtual or in-person.
Get Your Plan
Receive a written plan with clear recommendations for protecting your family and your assets.
Move Forward
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Melissa Breyer
Georgia Estate Planning Attorney
Melissa Breyer is a Georgia-licensed estate planning attorney focused exclusively on trust-based planning for individuals and families. She personally meets with every client and designs every plan from scratch. No templates. No associates handling your case. Every plan is built for your specific family, your specific assets, and your specific wishes.
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What Our Clients Say
The whole process of creating a family trust felt simple, clear, and stress-free. We really appreciated how patient, helpful, and easy to communicate with the team was throughout everything. Shawn and Melissa gave us great guidance and helped us feel confident every step of the way. We're grateful for their support and would definitely recommend them.
After my father passed away, my mother had to rely on my father's employer to navigate the estate. It was a disaster. After this experience, I knew I needed a plan. I turned to Atlanta Estate Planning Attorneys to set up a trust. I no longer have to worry about my wife and children going through a difficult process if something happens to me. I highly recommend Atlanta Estate Planning Attorneys!
My biggest fear was that if I died first, my wife would have no idea how to navigate the estate and legal system. I reached out to Atlanta Estate Planning Attorneys and they put my mind at ease immediately. Their process is easy to follow and they took care of everything. Atlanta Estate Planning Attorneys is the best decision I've made for my family's future.
Working with Melissa Breyer to set up our Living Trust was one of the best decisions Scott and I have made. We did this so our boys are protected from confusion and chaos if something happens to us. Melissa was knowledgeable, patient, and made what felt overwhelming completely manageable. I would absolutely recommend Melissa Breyer.
Working with Shawn and Melissa at Atlanta Estate Planning Attorneys has been an excellent experience. They asked great questions during our initial call and clearly explained what we needed. We feel confident we're in good hands and would highly recommend them.
Frequently Asked Questions
A Medicaid asset protection trust (MAPT) is an irrevocable trust built for Georgia families who are planning ahead for nursing home costs. You transfer assets into the trust, give up control of the principal, and name a trustee to manage them. You may keep the income the trust assets earn, and that income still counts as your income for Medicaid. The beneficiaries you name receive the assets at your death. After five years, Medicaid generally does not count the trust’s principal when it decides if you qualify. This is the main legal tool Georgia families use to plan ahead for nursing home costs. No trust is a guarantee.
The five-year lookback decides whether moving assets into a Medicaid asset protection trust causes a penalty. When you ask Medicaid to pay for nursing home care, Medicaid looks back 60 months. If you moved assets into a MAPT less than five years before that, the full value counts toward a penalty period. That is a number of months during which Medicaid will not pay the nursing home. It is found by dividing the amount you moved by Georgia’s average private-pay nursing home rate ($11,122 a month as of April 2026). The penalty does not start on the day you made the move. It starts once you are in care, have applied, and would qualify for Medicaid if not for the move. Assets you moved in more than five years before you apply are outside the lookback, so that move causes no penalty. That is why funding the trust early is the most important timing decision in Medicaid planning.
You can still live in your home after it goes into a Medicaid asset protection trust. A MAPT is commonly used to protect the family home while you continue living in it. The trust can include a retained life estate — a legal provision allowing you to continue using and occupying the property as your primary residence for the rest of your life. The home is deeded to the trustee. After five years, Medicaid generally does not count it when it decides if you qualify. The home is also out of your probate estate, so it passes to your beneficiaries at your death without going through court. After your death, Georgia’s Medicaid estate recovery program can claim against more than the probate estate. Because you no longer own the home, it is generally outside what Georgia can claim. But Georgia’s rules do mention trusts, and Georgia puts a value on a life estate and can claim it, so the right to live there that you keep may still count. No Georgia court has settled the question, so no trust is a guarantee.
When you die, the assets in the MAPT pass to the beneficiaries you named in the trust — typically your children or other heirs. The distribution does not go through probate. The trustee distributes the assets according to the trust terms. Because you no longer owned the trust assets, they are generally outside what Georgia Medicaid estate recovery can claim. The reason is ownership, not probate: Georgia’s rules count property passing outside probate too, but federal law lets a state claim only assets you still had a legal title or interest in when you died. Georgia’s rules do mention trusts, any income or right to live in the home that you keep may still count, and no Georgia court has settled the question, so no trust is a guarantee. This is one of the key benefits of the MAPT structure beyond spend-down protection during your lifetime.
A MAPT is a type of irrevocable trust, but it is drafted specifically for Medicaid planning and includes provisions a general irrevocable trust may not have. A general irrevocable trust might be used for estate tax planning or creditor protection — each with different structural requirements. A MAPT is specifically designed to satisfy Medicaid’s lookback rules, preserve your ability to receive income from trust assets, and protect the home through a retained life estate. If Medicaid planning is your goal, the trust document needs to be drafted with that purpose in mind — a general irrevocable trust may not satisfy Medicaid’s specific eligibility rules.
Find Out Where You Stand
Whatever brought you here today, the real question underneath it is simple: is your family protected if something happens to you? Without a plan, the people you love could face months in probate court, a fight over what you meant, or bills nobody has the authority to pay.
A clear plan closes every one of those gaps in writing, while you are still here to make the decisions. In one free 15-minute call, you will find out exactly what you have, what is missing, and what it takes to fix it.
- No pressure. This is a conversation, not a sales pitch.
- No jargon. We explain everything in plain language.
- A clear next step. You will know exactly what to do when the call ends.