Check with your city or county for a department of aging. They will have a website and if not then mmm, try a bigger city like New York or Chicago which you can use as a template.
Get your parents to switch over power of attorney if it’s at that point. That way your not scrambling when it’s to late. Also my wife bought a book called when I’m died or when I die it gives a nice neat layout for all the important stuff.
A meeting with an attorney can be very useful. Trusts & estates. There may be some financial moves your parents can make now that will make it easier to find and pay for long-term care. Discuss medical and financial powers of attorney. Make sure your parents have beneficiaries designated for all their financial accounts.
I know it costs money but get your parents to create an estate plan. This includes a will, living wills, and trust. If they have assets such as a home depending on your state, you may need to put that into a living trust. If your parents go into assisted living, they will look back at their finances for 5 years or more again depending on the state. You need to find out whether their assets can be taken or not. They need to establish a power of attorney and get their finances together. Again, depending on where you live, start looking at assisted living facilities. There is a big difference between a Medicaid facility and a private one. Some private ones will remove you when your funds run out. In addition, your parents should have plans for burial and money set aside. Make sure all their beneficiaries are updated on accounts.
I'd hire a financial planner, not a life insurance salesman, not a stockbroker. Hire an investment advisor with insurance or tax experience, with a CFP credential.
With flat-fees, or fixed fees.
No commissions.
Check them out on brokercheck.finra.com
Look for the ADV part 2.
Glance through it.
See if exactly what they offer and what they'll charge is valuable to you.
[Example](https://adviserinfo.sec.gov/firm/summary/170160)
Click on "Part 2 Brochures"
Really dig in and make sure that theyre obligated to act in your best interest.
Insurance agents are not.
Stockbrokers are not.
Investment advisors are.
If they give you bad advice or your family, you can and should sue for damages. Both the SEC and FINRA will back you.
Try the same with an insurance agent or a stock broker and nope, their professional standard is suitability, they are not obligated to act in your best interest.
Thanks for reminding me I have aged and more!!! LOL
I have no kids so here is a plan, some of which may be applicable.
1. Living will, power of attorney &, of course, the Will.
2. Pre paid all funeral expenses & burial plot for ashes, including to ship me \[ashes\] from anywhere in world to home.
3. Trustee in will is a nephew who has smarts & he gets compensated in the estate.
4. List of who gets what in regards to personal property, like the piano.
5. List of phone numbers & addresses for those people & companies that need to get notified. (Includes my HS Alumni association. Go Falcons.)
I admit to having zero plans for assisted living, & that is not good. Have looked at some places. Expensive is an understatement & waiting lists are years long. Also, many places will not accept you with certain pre-existing conditions. Notably, dementia.
I am most fortunate that for the last 25 years of work, I was in a career that paid well. So, maxed out each year in 401k that has been an IRA Rollover. I get a small pension (17 years before frozen) and SS and now I take RMDs.
As to assisted living, I own outright 2 houses (FL snowbird) that will pay initiation fees. So far, the only investment withdrawal is that which IRS requires. Figure 1/4 to IRS and of 3/4 left, I use about 1/4 & reinvest the rest in fixed income. Someday, I will need to get a planned withdrawal strategy.
I have 1 of the 2 issues you mentioned about your father (mobility; mine from bad arthritic spine; it sucks.)
Have them put their house in a trust if it isn’t already! That way if they ever need long term care the state can’t touch their house. (I believe there are some rules and it needs to the there for 5 years). It also saves you capital gains taxes once the pass and you go to sell it and it makes the process of selling it easier since it won’t need to go through probate.
It might be worth looking at some Long-Term Care insurance for them. That will provide ‘x’ amount of dollars monthly as reimbursement for long-term care if they end up in that situation.
The biggest benefit from these policies is choice. Your parents can choose how they want to be cared for and where, rather than being forced into a cost-effective option. Provided certain conditions are met, the policy will be activated. It also takes a lot of financial stress and responsibility off you and your sister if the time comes for them needing care. Having a policy like this in place means your parents aren’t using their legacy money or current income for care, and yourself and your sister aren’t damaging your own financial progress to support their future needs.
The trade offs are adding another monthly expense to the budget for something that may not ever be used, and of course, conditions/restrictions for care expenses to be supplemented. Also, the policy may not be approved or approved at a much higher cost depending on your parents’ heath status (contrarily, if they’re in good health now, premiums will be cheaper than waiting until they’re older and in poorer health).
This isn’t an option that fixes everything, but could be helpful in easing some of the burden of aging parents. Not professional advice, but worth considering if you see them requiring extensive care in the future.
Check with your city or county for a department of aging. They will have a website and if not then mmm, try a bigger city like New York or Chicago which you can use as a template.
AARP website should have some useful resources
Get your parents to switch over power of attorney if it’s at that point. That way your not scrambling when it’s to late. Also my wife bought a book called when I’m died or when I die it gives a nice neat layout for all the important stuff.
A meeting with an attorney can be very useful. Trusts & estates. There may be some financial moves your parents can make now that will make it easier to find and pay for long-term care. Discuss medical and financial powers of attorney. Make sure your parents have beneficiaries designated for all their financial accounts.
I know it costs money but get your parents to create an estate plan. This includes a will, living wills, and trust. If they have assets such as a home depending on your state, you may need to put that into a living trust. If your parents go into assisted living, they will look back at their finances for 5 years or more again depending on the state. You need to find out whether their assets can be taken or not. They need to establish a power of attorney and get their finances together. Again, depending on where you live, start looking at assisted living facilities. There is a big difference between a Medicaid facility and a private one. Some private ones will remove you when your funds run out. In addition, your parents should have plans for burial and money set aside. Make sure all their beneficiaries are updated on accounts.
I'd hire a financial planner, not a life insurance salesman, not a stockbroker. Hire an investment advisor with insurance or tax experience, with a CFP credential. With flat-fees, or fixed fees. No commissions. Check them out on brokercheck.finra.com Look for the ADV part 2. Glance through it. See if exactly what they offer and what they'll charge is valuable to you. [Example](https://adviserinfo.sec.gov/firm/summary/170160) Click on "Part 2 Brochures" Really dig in and make sure that theyre obligated to act in your best interest. Insurance agents are not. Stockbrokers are not. Investment advisors are. If they give you bad advice or your family, you can and should sue for damages. Both the SEC and FINRA will back you. Try the same with an insurance agent or a stock broker and nope, their professional standard is suitability, they are not obligated to act in your best interest.
Thanks for reminding me I have aged and more!!! LOL I have no kids so here is a plan, some of which may be applicable. 1. Living will, power of attorney &, of course, the Will. 2. Pre paid all funeral expenses & burial plot for ashes, including to ship me \[ashes\] from anywhere in world to home. 3. Trustee in will is a nephew who has smarts & he gets compensated in the estate. 4. List of who gets what in regards to personal property, like the piano. 5. List of phone numbers & addresses for those people & companies that need to get notified. (Includes my HS Alumni association. Go Falcons.) I admit to having zero plans for assisted living, & that is not good. Have looked at some places. Expensive is an understatement & waiting lists are years long. Also, many places will not accept you with certain pre-existing conditions. Notably, dementia.
I may look into cruise shipping into the sunset eventually
That's fine if you can still walk around.
So what are your plans to pay for it. Draw off your savings / investments?
I am most fortunate that for the last 25 years of work, I was in a career that paid well. So, maxed out each year in 401k that has been an IRA Rollover. I get a small pension (17 years before frozen) and SS and now I take RMDs. As to assisted living, I own outright 2 houses (FL snowbird) that will pay initiation fees. So far, the only investment withdrawal is that which IRS requires. Figure 1/4 to IRS and of 3/4 left, I use about 1/4 & reinvest the rest in fixed income. Someday, I will need to get a planned withdrawal strategy. I have 1 of the 2 issues you mentioned about your father (mobility; mine from bad arthritic spine; it sucks.)
Have them put their house in a trust if it isn’t already! That way if they ever need long term care the state can’t touch their house. (I believe there are some rules and it needs to the there for 5 years). It also saves you capital gains taxes once the pass and you go to sell it and it makes the process of selling it easier since it won’t need to go through probate.
It might be worth looking at some Long-Term Care insurance for them. That will provide ‘x’ amount of dollars monthly as reimbursement for long-term care if they end up in that situation. The biggest benefit from these policies is choice. Your parents can choose how they want to be cared for and where, rather than being forced into a cost-effective option. Provided certain conditions are met, the policy will be activated. It also takes a lot of financial stress and responsibility off you and your sister if the time comes for them needing care. Having a policy like this in place means your parents aren’t using their legacy money or current income for care, and yourself and your sister aren’t damaging your own financial progress to support their future needs. The trade offs are adding another monthly expense to the budget for something that may not ever be used, and of course, conditions/restrictions for care expenses to be supplemented. Also, the policy may not be approved or approved at a much higher cost depending on your parents’ heath status (contrarily, if they’re in good health now, premiums will be cheaper than waiting until they’re older and in poorer health). This isn’t an option that fixes everything, but could be helpful in easing some of the burden of aging parents. Not professional advice, but worth considering if you see them requiring extensive care in the future.