Elder Law
Medicaid Asset Protection Trust in Georgia
A legal trust that removes your home and savings from Medicaid's countable assets before the spend-down begins.
Find Out Where You Stand
How Georgia Families Use a Medicaid Trust to Protect Their Home From Nursing Home Costs
Georgia nursing home costs average over $8,000 per month — without a plan, Medicaid requires you to spend most of your assets before the state pays a dollar. A Medicaid Asset Protection Trust transfers your home and savings out of your estate at least five years before you need care, so they are shielded when you apply for Medicaid. The longer you wait to act, the fewer options you have.
Here Is What Medicaid Does to Assets in Your Name
Georgia Medicaid will not pay for a nursing home until your countable assets are at $2,000 or less. Your savings, investments, and some property all count. If you have $300,000 saved, Medicaid expects you to spend $298,000 of it before coverage begins. That is not a penalty. That is the rule. Most Georgia families who enter a nursing home without a plan spend through everything they have within two to three years.
What a MAPT Is
A Medicaid Asset Protection Trust is an irrevocable trust. You transfer ownership of your assets into it typically your home, sometimes savings and investments. The trust becomes the legal owner. Medicaid counts what you own. It cannot count what you do not own. That is the entire mechanism: move assets out of your name before Medicaid starts counting, and Medicaid cannot touch them.
The Trade-Off You Have to Make
A MAPT is permanent. You cannot change your mind. You cannot pull the principal back out. Your adult child serves as trustee and controls those assets. You give up that control on purpose, because control is exactly what makes assets countable to Medicaid. The choice is straightforward: give up control of your assets now and protect them for your family, or keep control and lose them to the spend-down. There is no version where you keep both full control and full protection.
Georgia’s Estate Recovery Program
Many families assume the home is safe after a loved one passes. In Georgia, that assumption is often wrong. Georgia runs an expanded Medicaid Estate Recovery Program (MERP). When a Medicaid recipient dies, the state can recover what it paid for their care from the estate. In Georgia, MERP reaches not just probate assets but also revocable living trusts Georgia treats a revocable trust as still belonging to you. A MAPT defeats MERP because at your death, the trust owns the assets. You do not. The state cannot recover assets you did not own.
The Five-Year Look-Back Rule
Medicaid reviews five years of financial history before approving long-term care coverage. Any transfer made within that 60-month period triggers a penalty. Georgia calculates the penalty by dividing the transferred amount by $10,965 per month. A $109,650 transfer made three years before applying creates a 10-month penalty period during which Medicaid pays nothing and you pay out of pocket. The penalty does not start at the time of the transfer. It starts when you apply and are otherwise eligible. Families who fund a MAPT five or more years before needing care avoid this entirely. Families who wait do not have the same options.
What a MAPT Does Not Cover
- Assisted living is not covered by Georgia Medicaid. Georgia Medicaid pays for nursing home care only. If you end up in an assisted living facility, your MAPT principal is locked and Medicaid covers nothing. This is the most overlooked limitation of a MAPT.
- Retirement accounts do not belong in a MAPT. IRAs and 401(k)s have their own Medicaid rules and require separate planning. Transferring them into a trust creates a taxable event with no Medicaid benefit.
- A MAPT does not protect assets transferred within five years of a Medicaid application. The look-back applies regardless of intent.
- A MAPT is not a complete estate plan. It addresses one specific exposure and works alongside wills, powers of attorney, and healthcare directives not instead of them.
Who This Is Right For
A MAPT makes sense if you are currently healthy, own a home or have savings above $2,000, do not expect to need nursing home care in the next five years, and have an adult child or other trusted person available to serve as trustee. The earlier you act, the more the trust can protect. If you are in your late 50s or 60s and in reasonable health, you likely have the five-year runway this strategy requires.
What a MAPT Does, How It Works, and What You Keep
Once your assets are transferred into a MAPT, the trust is the legal owner. Medicaid cannot count them. When you die, those assets pass directly to your named beneficiaries without probate and without MERP reaching them. The trust protects the assets during your life and delivers them to your family after you are gone.
What You Can Still Do
You can still live in your home after transferring it to the MAPT. The trust document gives you a contractual right of occupancy for your lifetime. You can receive income generated by trust assets interest, dividends, and rental income. What you cannot do is access the principal. The income stays yours. The principal stays in the trust, out of Medicaid’s reach, and goes to your family when you pass.
Who Controls the Trust
You cannot serve as your own trustee. Your spouse cannot serve as trustee either. Georgia Medicaid rules require the trustee to be someone other than the grantor or their spouse. An adult child is the most common choice. The trustee has legal responsibility for managing the assets, keeping records, and making distributions according to the trust terms. They cannot give you the principal, and they cannot take it for themselves. If they do either, the trust fails and Medicaid counts the assets. Choosing a trustee who understands the responsibility is not a formality it is part of the plan working.
What Happens to the Assets When You Die
Trust assets do not go through probate. The trustee distributes them directly to your named beneficiaries according to the trust terms. Because you held no legal interest in the trust principal at death, Georgia’s MERP cannot claim them. Your family inherits what you put in, minus any income you drew during your lifetime. That is the outcome a MAPT is built for: Medicaid gets paid for your care, and your family still inherits something.
How to Get Started
The first step is a free 15-minute call with Shawn to review your situation. If it is a fit, your next step is a Design Meeting, a 60-minute meeting with Melissa to review your assets, your timeline, and whether a MAPT is the right fit for your situation. That cost is credited in full toward your plan if you move forward. If a MAPT is the right structure, most engagements at The Hive Law start at:
The Documents
- Medicaid Asset Protection Trust (MAPT)
- Pour-Over Will
- Quitclaim Deed
- Financial Power of Attorney
- Advance Healthcare Directive
- HIPAA Authorization
The Implementation
- Document Walk-Through Call
- Trust Funding Session
- Funding Checkup
The Included Services
- Successor Trustee Orientation
- Professional Coordination Call
- Surviving Spouse Transition Call
- Post-Signing Checklist
You leave your Design Meeting knowing exactly what Medicaid can reach, what it cannot, and what needs to happen before the five-year period runs.
The fact that you read this far tells us something about you. You take this seriously. So do we.
See exactly what The Hive Law includes and charges for the Medicaid Asset Protection Trust: Georgia MAPT — Flat-Fee Pricing →
Assets in Your Name
- Countable assets must be spent down to $2,000 before Medicaid pays for care
- Most families exhaust everything they have within two to three years
- Georgia's Estate Recovery Program can reach a revocable trust or your probate estate
- You keep control of the assets, which is exactly why Medicaid counts them
- A transfer inside the 5-year look-back window triggers a penalty period
Assets in a MAPT
- Once transferred, the trust owns the assets — Medicaid cannot count them
- You keep the right to live in your home and receive the trust's income for life
- Assets pass directly to your beneficiaries, with no probate and no MERP claim
- An adult child serves as trustee, satisfying Medicaid's independent-trustee rule
- Assets funded before the look-back period are fully protected at your death
How It Works
A 15-Minute Call With Shawn
Tell us what is going on with your family. Shawn walks you through your options and what each one costs. Free.
The Design Meeting With Shawn and Melissa
In a 60-minute meeting, Shawn and Melissa review your assets, your family, and your goals together and confirm your price. This meeting is credited toward your plan if you move forward.
Review Every Document With Melissa
Before you sign, Melissa walks through every document with you in plain language. No legal jargon. No confusion about what you are signing.
Your Plan Is Complete
Melissa delivers your completed documents and explains exactly what your family needs to do. You leave knowing your plan is in place and your family is protected.
Melissa Breyer
Georgia Estate Planning Attorney
Melissa Breyer is a Georgia estate planning attorney who works exclusively on trust-based estate planning and LLC formation. She personally designs and drafts every plan at The Hive Law after the initial call. Every plan is built from scratch for your specific family, your specific assets, and your specific wishes.
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What Our Clients Say
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 The Hive Law 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 The Hive Law!
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 The Hive Law and they put my mind at ease immediately. Their process is easy to follow and they took care of everything. The Hive Law is the best decision I've made for my family's future.
Working with Melissa Breyer to set up our Living Trust was a wonderful experience. She and her entire team were knowledgeable, professional, and made the whole process easy to understand. I highly recommend The Hive Law for all your estate planning needs!
We highly recommend Hive Law. They were extremely patient and responsive, answering our many rounds of questions regarding trusts and estate planning. Shawn consistently responded the same day we sent our questions, even while his family was on vacation, which we greatly appreciated. Shawn was also always available to discuss matters by phone whenever we needed additional clarification on the options we were considering. Both are very knowledgeable in estate planning, and we would confidently recommend Hive Law to friends and family.
The Hive Law made the entire estate planning and trust process easy to understand and stress-free. Melissa and Shawn walked us through every step and answered all of our questions. We feel confident that our family is protected. Highly recommend!
My mom chose The Hive firm to help with estate planning and developing a trust to protect her assets. I sat in on her meeting with Melissa, and Melissa did a great job of simplifying complex legalese into easily understood concepts. Shawn was very quick to get us our documents and all steps in the process were clear and easy. They make a great team and we are thankful for their help!
I used The Hive Law to help me create a trust for my family. The process was straightforward and Melissa and Shawn made sure I understood each step. They were responsive to all of my questions. I feel much more confident about my family's future now. Highly recommend!
Working with Shawn and Melissa at The Hive Law has been an excellent experience. They were one of three firms we contacted, but she made the strongest impression during our initial call. They asked great questions to understand our situation and clearly explained what we needed to put in place. We initially had some reservations about their fully virtual approach, but those concerns were quickly put to rest. After the first two calls, it was clear how easy they are to work with and how well connected we felt. Communication has been clear, organized, and reassuring throughout the process. Shawn and Melissa are professional, approachable, and thorough. We feel confident we're in good hands and highly recommend The Hive Law for estate planning.
The Hive Law Firm, and specifically Melissa, has been wonderful to work with during our estate planning process. She is knowledgeable, patient, and thorough. She answered all of our questions and made the process easy to understand. I highly recommend The Hive Law!
Shawn and Melissa were amazing to work with! My partner and I recently bought a house and wanted to get important things like wills, healthcare directives, etc. set up. They were incredible at answering all our questions and working with us to make sure we felt confident in all of the legal aspects. Having tried to do this online before with one of the DIY tools, it was just an amazing experience to get to talk through what we wanted with a knowledgeable human and have them take care of the details.
Hive Law was awesome to work with! Melissa and Shawn explained everything, kept things stress-free, and were always quick to respond to my questions. They made the whole process simple and smooth from start to finish. Highly recommend if you want a team that's knowledgeable but also easy to work with.
I lost my father in February of this year without any estate planning in place. The process of dealing with the probate court has been overwhelming and expensive. After this experience, I contacted The Hive Law to set up a trust so my children never have to go through what I've been through. Melissa and Shawn were compassionate, knowledgeable, and made the entire process simple. I highly recommend The Hive Law!
I used to know the bare minimum about probate and trust. I first encountered Shawn Breyer on Facebook. He was offering a webinar that I watched. That gave me a better understanding of probate versus trust. I was impressed enough to have him and his wife represent me. I had my initial one on one interview with Melissa Breyer, it went smoothly and she made everything clear. We are now proceeding with getting a revocable trust in place.
The Hive Law has been amazing throughout the process of setting up our trust. Every detail is considered and no stone is left unturned. They have been easy and enjoyable to work with. I would absolutely recommend them! Don't let your estate be turned over to Probate!!
The Hive Law helped us set up a revocable trust. Their webinar is great for answering any questions you may have, to clarify and avoid probate. Get in touch with them right away, you won't be disappointed.
Melissa was great! She gave me an honest review of my future plans that I already have in place. Turns out, I already had my ducks in a row!!! She was a pleasure to talk with!!
For several years now I have been thinking about having a will drawn up, but continued to procrastinate until an older sibling had a medical situation occur which none of the family was prepared for. This was the determining factor for me to get it done. We never know when an emergency medical situation could arise and I didn't want my other siblings to be scrambling around trying to figure things out in the event I couldn't make any decisions for myself, or God forbid I pass away. My attorney (Melissa), was very funny and made the whole experience quite entertaining. She listened to what I wanted and explained the type of plan I needed. Thanks Melissa & Shawn for making the process an enjoyable experience.
The Hive Law Firm did an excellent job helping my mother-in-law with her estate plan. The process felt overwhelming at first, but their team walked us through every step with compassion and professionalism. They listened to our concerns, explained things in simple terms, and made sure our mother's wishes were honored. We're very grateful for their guidance.
The Hive Law firm did an outstanding job helping my family members with their estate planning. They made the process clear, smooth and stress free. Truly professional and caring team, highly recommend!
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.
Frequently Asked Questions
You can keep living in the home. The trust document includes a lifetime right of occupancy. You stay in the house, pay the property taxes, and keep it maintained. If the home is ever sold, the money stays inside the trust and is reinvested under the trust terms. What you cannot do is take those sale proceeds out as a personal distribution.
The principal is not available to you once it is in the trust. A MAPT is irrevocable on purpose, and that is exactly what takes the assets out of the countable resources Medicaid looks at. Any back door that let you reach the principal would cause Medicaid to count the whole trust and deny coverage. Before funding one, keep enough outside the trust to cover living expenses and anything you can see coming.
An adult child is the most common trustee choice for a MAPT. You cannot be your own trustee here, and your spouse is not a workable choice either, because keeping that control is what would make the assets countable again. The trustee manages the assets, keeps the records, and follows the trust terms. Pick someone who will keep good documentation and can produce records to Georgia DFCS if a Medicaid application is ever filed.
A MAPT does not protect a transfer made in the last five years. Medicaid looks back 60 months at your financial history before approving long term care coverage. A transfer into the trust inside that window creates a penalty period where Medicaid pays nothing. The MAPT is built for planning done well before care is needed. If care may be needed sooner, other strategies may still apply.
A revocable trust can be changed or cancelled by you at any time. Because you keep that control, Georgia Medicaid counts revocable trust assets as still yours, and they have to be spent down before Medicaid pays anything. A MAPT is irrevocable. You give up ownership permanently, and once the 60 month look-back has run, those assets no longer count against your eligibility. That look-back and the permanent give-up of ownership are the real difference between the two, not anything to do with probate.
Retirement accounts should not be moved into a MAPT. Transferring one is treated as a taxable distribution, which can create a large tax bill and buys you no Medicaid benefit in return. A retirement account already in payout status is generally exempt from the countable assets Medicaid reviews in Georgia. Your accounts need their own analysis as part of a wider Medicaid conversation.
Find Out Where You Stand
You’ve been meaning to do this for a while now. That’s normal. Most families wait until something happens, then wish they hadn’t.
A 15-minute call tells you exactly what you have, what’s missing, and what your family needs next. No paperwork, no obligation, just a straight answer.
- No sales pitch. Just a straight answer about where you stand.
- No confusing terms. We explain everything in plain English.
- A real next step. You’ll know exactly what to do when we hang up.
Where We Serve
Georgia Counties We Serve
We help families across Georgia protect their assets and avoid probate. Select your county to learn more about estate planning where you live.