Allen Dembski
So when I set up this, I’m still living, and I want to set up this pre burial trust for my loved ones to take care of everything when I’m gone. Is there like on our end being financial advisors? We have beneficiary designations. So if I set up an account through you to fund my funeral, is there like, do they use like a trustee? Is it like a trust or is it a beneficiary that would have be in charge if I pass away?
Timothy Grant
So really the purchaser is the beneficiary because the account is for that person. And due to Medicaid regulations, these accounts have to be set up in a way where if that person were to go on to Medicaid, that money is for them by theme. And so no, there’s no trustee to speak of, but any power of attorney could. If someone has power of attorney over the beneficiary or the purchaser, they can certainly access those funds should they need.
Christy Sharkey
Maybe touch on legal forms.
Timothy Grant
And, you know, like I said earlier, there are some legal back, some legal items that we sit, when we sit down with folks, we don’t get into too much legal because, you know, kind of send that out to the elder care attorneys. But I. There’s one document in New York state that is very, very powerful, and at least on the pre planning side, we give it to every family, and it’s called the New York state agent to control disposition of remains. It is a New York state document that basically allows the individual to appoint an agent and two successors to handle their funeral arrangements. It has nothing to do with financials or anything. It’s just really the point person that the funeral home or the funeral director can speak, and that is the person that can really arrange the funeral, sign off on all the necessary documents. It’s really our go to person. And we use this in a lot of times where there may be an individual is still married, but separated, or there’s a long lost child somewhere, and we need to make sure that the right person is in charge. There’s a lot of different scenarios, but at least every family that we meet with, we talk about it to see if they really need it, and we still give them that document.
Timothy Grant
But it’s a very important piece to everything that we do, and it really keeps everything, it streamlines everything and it keeps it simple for really, for us and the family.
Allen Dembski
So do most people just name, like a child to do that? Is that usually like the standard that most people go by if they have kids?
Timothy Grant
Yeah. Yeah. Most people have most, most families, if they have kids, they’ll, they know who their power of attorney is and their executor is. And usually it’s that, that person. But also you can name successory too. So if that person has passed or is unable to fill fulfill their duties, you know, mom and dad can name, you know, a plan b and a plan C. So. And it doesn’t have to be a family, family member, it can really be anyone. But yeah, it’s a, it’s a great document and everyone should do it.
Allen Dembski
Does the trust need to be the full value of the funeral that that person plans? So say if the total cost was $10,000 and they’re going to put $5,000 in, can they do that?
Timothy Grant
Yeah. So any money, they can put any money they wish into those accounts. So if the funeral is $10,000 and they only put $5,000 in, they can certainly do that. But we only guarantee the cost if the full amount is in there in the account when the day comes and they need to use it, of course they can overfund it. But, you know, and there’s also some other scenarios too where some folks have insurance and things like that and that’s kind of when we get into these little if and when type situations. But for the most part, I gotta say in all the years I’ve been doing this, most folks do take some time to fill up the accounts, but most of the accounts are filled by the time folks pass away.
Christy Sharkey
It’s usually in like a five year window. And again, unfortunately something happens to them before they pay it off. The family does have to pay at time. So that is the benefit of the family doing it ahead of time. That this family is not responsible for $10,000 all at once. Mom and dad paid over the years for it.
Allen Dembski
Now you mentioned, so people can pay on a monthly basis or annual basis into this, into a trust?
Christy Sharkey
Correct.
Christy Sharkey
So we advise them to pay within five years and we’ll set up a select pay with them so they’ll tell us how they want to pay if it’s going to be every single month, every three months, if it’s once a year or they’re going to pay just in two lump sums, one lump sum, kind of how they see fit. But we do advise within the five years just so we know it is taken care of and we can guarantee that pricing for them.