Many people think of Powers of Attorney the same way they think about their Will – something they will get done “eventually” because it will not be needed until “later.”

A Power of Attorney lets you pick the person (your “attorney-in-fact”) who will make decisions on your behalf if you cannot make or communicate them for yourself. While we often think this will happen toward the end of life, anyone, at any age, can have an accident or contract an illness that prevents him or her from making or communicating their decisions for a period of time. Without Powers of Attorney, a Court may choose someone – a Guardian for personal matters, or a Conservator for financial matters – to make those decisions for you. Not only might that be someone you would not have chosen, but your affairs might be in quite a bit of disarray before this legal process is completed.

Read the full article on Powers of Attorney

Marsha Goodman
Marsha Goodman, Attorney, PLLC
13236 N. 7th Street, Suite 4-238
Phoenix, AZ  85022
602.513.0300

Marsha Goodman Elder Law Firm

Home Care Central Phoenix and Home Care Greater Phoenix provides elder care and senior care in Phoenix. Call us today at 623-583-5868, 602-265-8228 or 480-991-3959.

Boomer women have the tendency to be independent by nature, but in many relationships between people in that generation, the men still found themselves responsible for the financial management. This can result in a number of mistakes by boomer women when it comes to managing their finances that need to be overcome to secure their future in retirement:

1. Some boomer women expect they’ll receive an inheritance – women who are fortunate enough to still have parents alive, might expect that at the time of their passing, they will receive a large enough inheritance to carry them through retirement. There are no guarantees if boomers will receive an inheritance at all, and if they do, they may not know if it will be enough to finance their senior years

2. Reliance on a spouse – many women allow their spouse to control all aspects of finances and also assume that their loved one is effectively planning for their retirement. Both partners should be involved in financial management, or at least have an awareness

3. No planning for women on their own – boomer women might assume that their spouse will be with them forever. But death or divorce can change this, and women need to make sure they have their financial ducks in a row so they can survive on their own

4. Expecting a man to save the day – some women on their own have the “prince charming” attitude and are waiting for a man to sweep them off their feet and fill up their bank account

Via: Let Life In

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Home Care Central Phoenix and Home Care Greater Phoenix provides elder care and senior care in Phoenix. Call us today at 623-583-5868, 602-265-8228 or 480-991-3959.

“Will I have enough retirement income?”  We can’t get away from it in the media. With the market downturn, all of us are concerned about having enough money to retire on.  I would like to present the idea that Long-Term Care insurance can have a major positive impact on our post retirement asset retention and cash flow.  As stated in my last post, “An estimated 70% of people who reach age 65 will need some form of long term care before they die.” (Council of Economic Advisors, Economic Report of the President, Washington, DC, U.S. Government Printing Office, 02/17/07).

When faced with the reality of needing care in some form during our retirement years, if we do not have an LTC policy in force to protect us, the effects on our retirement nest egg can be devastating.  If we use the average cost of care per day of $160.00, in Arizona, this translates into the following out of pocket expense:

One Month  $4,800.00
One Year   $57,600.00
Ten Years  $576,000.00

Please keep in mind that this does not take into consideration the rising cost of care, which is growing at about 6% per year.  I do not show you all of this to scare you. There are enough scare tactics in the media today.  I share this with you because good, coordinated planning, potential LTC needs in conjunction with retirement planning is critical.

You may think that you cannot afford to purchase an LTC policy.  I wonder if any of us can afford not too?  Please contact me if you have any questions!

Joe W. Scheid, CLTC
Investment Advisor Representative
Special Care Planner
Strategic Financial Concepts
PH:  480.538.2956
www.strategicfc.com

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Home Care Central Phoenix and Home Care Greater Phoenix provides elder care and senior care in Phoenix. Call us today at 623-583-5868, 602-265-8228 or 480-991-3959.

Get your financial house in order

I took an application a few months ago with a 66-year-old couple from Tempe. They were both full of energy and had a good plan. A month later, the husband was diagnosed with cancer but with an 84% chance of beating it. On Friday, he passed away of unknown (as yet) causes. Her remaining income has now been reduced significantly because she loses the smaller of their two social security incomes.

How does she replace that? If that puts her income in the red will she be able to stay in her home? He didn’t have a pension but 70% of the men (mostly) who get pensions choose the retirement option that pays higher while they are alive but ends when the pass away. Do her remaining expenses get reduced much?

A good financial plan takes into account contingencies, even the case where one partner is no longer in the picture. I highly recommend people get it worked out in advance rather than waiting. Who wants to deal with financial problems while you are in the grieving process? While you are at it, get medical directives and funeral options handled. Who wants to have to make decisions on the fly about organ donation? Do it before something happens. And take a look at a reverse mortgage and see if you want to fit it into your plan as well. It could be the tool that makes it all work.

Dave Parker
602-750-8166
ParkerInReverse.com
Your Reverse Mortgage Resource

At The Lending Company

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Home Care Central Phoenix and Home Care Greater Phoenix provides elder care and senior care in Phoenix. Call us today at 623-583-5868, 602-265-8228 or 480-991-3959.

How much can I get from a reverse mortgage?

A reverse mortgage is a means by which you can access a percentage of the equity in your home. How big of a percentage depends on two factors:

·       Your age (62 minimum)
·       The current interest rates

Lenders use FHA actuarial tables based on you living to 100 and the expected loan rate to determine exactly what percentage they will loan. If the expected rate for the loan (how the lender expects it to average over the next 10 years) is 5.50% (the rate floor) or lower, I have a rule of thumb you can use. Please note that this is not a promise by any means – it just gets you in the general ballpark.

Loan Percentage = Age (as a percentage) – 5%

If the expected rate of the loan is over 5.50%, the loan percentage starts dropping quickly. A 1% increase to 6.50% can decrease the loan percentage 9% or more.

So at 5.50% loan rate, an 85-year-old might net 80% of their home value while a 62-year-old might net 57%. If the loan rate increases to 6.50%, those loan percentages drop to about 71% and 48% respectively.

Lower-value homes net less because the fixed closing costs are a bigger factor to the overall transaction cost. Manufactured home costs can be slightly higher because they often need stem wall upgrades to meet FHA standards.

Dave Parker
602-750-8166
Your Reverse Mortgage Resource
www.ParkerInReverse.com

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Home Care Central Phoenix and Home Care Greater Phoenix provides elder care and senior care in Phoenix. Call us today at 623-583-5868, 602-265-8228 or 480-991-3959.

Reverse mortgages are not a panacea – they may not be appropriate in many situations:

* You don’t need money or a credit buffer. If you don’t need money or a credit buffer then why get a reverse mortgage? For that matter, why get any mortgage? Make sure to take a long view of your possible future income and expenses though.
* You don’t plan to stay in your house at least another four years. Closing costs on reverse mortgages are higher than on forward mortgages. The closing costs become smaller compared to the interest the longer you hold the loan. After four years or so, the loan starts getting very cheap but up to then it can be expensive.
* You are unlikely medically to be able to stay in your home another four years. You must look realistically at your physical health and weigh the advantages of using the reverse mortgage proceeds versus the possibility of experiencing a condition that would require you to move out of your home early (ending the loan).

Reverse mortgages may be appropriate if any of the following are true:

* You have a negative cash flow (expenses more than income)
* There is a significant chance your expenses will rise in the future causing a negative cash flow
* There is a significant chance your income will decrease in the future causing a negative cash flow
* You have some other use for the money. Some people want money to take vacations while they still can get around decently.

Dave Parker - ParkerInReverse.com

602-750-8166
At The Lending Company

Home Care Central Phoenix and Home Care Greater Phoenix provides elder care and senior care in Phoenix. Call us today at 623-583-5868, 602-265-8228 or 480-991-3959.

Our blog post features David Parker from Your Reverse Mortgage Resource

I talk with a lot of retirees in my capacity as a loan officer specializing in reverse mortgages. While you would think you could make a simple calculation and figure out a “magic” number it is not that easy.

Lets say your cash flow (income minus expenses) would be positive if you were to retire today. What is the most likely scenario as you age? In almost all cases, your income over time will decrease while your expenses increase.

If you have a pension, will it end for your spouse if you die? 70% of retiring workers pick the higher option that ends when they die. If you die, your spouse also loses the lower of your two social security incomes.

While health care insurance can be obtained cheaply for most retirees this doesn’t cover long-term care done in your home or in an assisted living facility. 20-hour per week non-nursing in-home care can cost at least $1000 per month while assisted living can cost from $3000 to $6000 a month. What is the likelihood you will need that? Can you get family or friends to support you instead? How do you plan for such a large expense? Do you buy long-term care insurance? Can you even get it now?

If you have a new medical condition, it can add up to $800 per month in prescription drug costs. Generic versions of most drugs can be obtained very cheaply but some drugs have no generic versions. How do you plan for that? What about hospital stays? What are the limits to your coverage? When does your family have to start paying?

A reverse mortgage cannot fix all financial woes. It is just a tool to access your equity and help pay for these and other things without messing up your cash flow.

Dave Parker
602-750-8166
ParkerInReverse.com
At The Lending Company

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