Special Needs Trust Calculator

A special needs trust exists to support a beneficiary with disabilities without disqualifying them from means-tested government benefits, and the central planning question is how long the money will hold out. These projections model the trust's staying power against ongoing expenses and expected growth. The goal is a clear sense of the timeline so funding decisions can be made with eyes open.

Behind the estimate is a simple year-by-year loop. Each year the balance earns the return you enter, then pays a fixed annual draw: the monthly expenses × 12 plus a trustee fee of 1.5% of the starting balance, a flat dollar amount that does not shrink as the balance falls. The loop counts the years until the money runs out and compares that with the number of years you want the trust to cover. Expenses are not inflated, so to allow for rising costs enter a return that is already net of inflation (a 5% return with 3% inflation is roughly a 2% real return).

Build your expense picture broadly, covering medical care, daily support, and the quality-of-life items that make a real difference. Trusts tend to run dry early when future care costs are understated or investment returns are assumed too rosy, so conservative inputs serve the beneficiary better. Revisit and update the projections whenever circumstances or markets shift.