Have you ever wondered what elder law actually covers and whether it might benefit your family one day? Many people hear the term elder law and assume it only applies to nursing homes or long-term care facilities. In reality, elder law encompasses a wide range of legal issues that can affect Florida seniors and their families as they navigate aging, health concerns, financial matters, and future planning. Understanding these issues before a crisis occurs can make a meaningful difference. For many families, elder law planning is about more than preparing legal documents. It is about creating a plan that helps protect loved ones, preserves independence, and provides guidance when important decisions need to be made. Taking proactive steps today can help reduce uncertainty and stress in the future. Health Care Planning Is an Important Part of Elder Law One of the primary areas of elder law involves health care planning. Through health care planning documents, individuals can express their wishes regarding future medical care and designate trusted individuals to make decisions on their behalf if they become unable to do so themselves. When these documents are prepared in advance, families are often better equipped to navigate difficult situations. Instead of guessing what a…Read More
Have you ever started a new year focused on financial goals but overlooked the legal planning that supports them? Many Florida families begin January thinking about budgets, savings, and retirement plans, yet legal planning is often the missing piece of true financial wellness. Without the right legal tools in place, even the best financial intentions can be disrupted by unexpected events. The new year is a natural time to pause and assess whether your current plan still fits your life. Changes in health, family dynamics, income, or long term goals can all affect how well your legal planning supports your financial stability. Taking time now to review these tools can help families feel more prepared and confident as the year unfolds. Legal planning plays a key role in protecting financial wellness. Estate planning tools such as a last will and testament, a trust agreement, durable powers of attorney, and health care planning tools help ensure that your wishes are followed and your assets are protected if circumstances change. Without these tools, Florida families may face unnecessary court involvement, delays, or financial strain during already stressful situations. Financial wellness also includes planning for long term care. Rising…Read More
When it comes to COVID-19, there is so much that feels beyond our control. With estate planning (wills or trusts and more), there are things that you CAN control. Here is a list of things you can do (from an estate planning perspective) that may help you feel a little more in control: #1 During this COVID-19 crisis, who are your emergency health care decision makers? Talk to your loved ones about your wishes regarding your medical care. First, who would you want to step up to advocate for you during a health care crisis? The two parts of Health Care Directives are the Designation of Health Care Surrogate and Living Will. With the Designation of Health Care Surrogate, you nominate someone you trust to make health care decisions for you in the event that you are unable to communicate those decisions yourself. With a Living Will, you can include directions regarding end of life decisions, as well as other decisions about your care and treatment. #2 Look for your HIPAA Authorization. Your Health Care Directives should also include a HIPAA Authorization. HIPAA Authorization language follows the requirements Health Insurance…Read More
Do You Need A Will (Last Will And Testament) Or Revocable Living Trust? How Do You Choose? Are you interested in a will or revocable living trust? Wills and trusts are useful estate planning tools. They serve different purposes and can even work really well together. First, let’s go over key differences between wills and trusts. Will Characteristics: A will goes into effect only after you die. It only covers property that is in your name at your death. A will passes through a court process called Probate. The Probate court oversees the will’s administration and ensures the will is valid and that the property gets distributed the way the deceased wanted. Because a will passes through Probate, it’s a public record. A will lets you name a guardian for your minor children. There Is A Good Chance That If You Care About How Beneficiaries Use What You’re Leaving Them Or Want Someone Else To Manage It, You’re Going To Need Some Type Of Trust The two main types of trusts are testamentary trusts and revocable living trusts. One type of trust is inside your will and the other type…Read More
How can we help seniors manage their finances? With these tips, seniors can manage their finances better. And if they ever need help, they can shift their financial management to someone they can trust. 1. Use direct deposit. First, use direct deposit for income form pensions, annuities, and Social Security benefits. Not only will this save a trip to the bank, it also avoids the risk of a paper check being stolen, lost, or forgotten. 2. Consolidate retirement accounts. Consolidating retirement accounts into fewer accounts may make it easier to evaluate and manage savings, as well as to take any minimum distributions that are required. Also, when moving money between retirement accounts, it’s a good idea to use a trustee-to-trustee transfer rather than moving the money yourself. 3. Consolidate financial accounts. It can be a lot easier to manage your money when you have your money in fewer accounts at one bank. But make sure to consider the FDIC insurance limits on money held at one institution before consolidating. 4. Pay bills automatically. For recurring bills, have the biller automatically deduct payments from a credit card or bank account each…Read More
Are you a senior worried about identity theft? Or are you worried about a loved one with dementia becoming a victim of identity theft? Here are some tips on freezing someone’s credit. This is important if you’re trying to protect someone from elder abuse. What Does It Mean To Freeze Credit? A credit freeze restricts access to your credit report, making it harder for identity thieves to open new accounts in your name. To Place Or Lift A Credit Freeze, You Must Contact Each Credit Bureau Separately. Equifax: equifax.com or 800-695-1111 Experian: experian.com or 888-397-3742 TransUnion: transunion.com or 888-909-8872 Once a credit freeze is in place, it secures your credit file until you lift the freeze. You can do that online, by phone, or by mail using the special PIN the companies give you when you do the credit freeze. Once you place the credit freeze, it secures your credit file until you lift the freeze. You can unfreeze credit temporarily when you want to apply for new credit. Does It Cost Anything To Freeze Credit? No. Placing or lifting a credit freeze is free. Once a credit freeze is…Read More
In Part 1 of this series, we discussed how some professional adult guardians have used their powers to abuse the seniors placed under their care. Here, we’ll discuss how seniors can use estate planning to avoid the potential abuse and other negative consequences of court-ordered guardianship. As our senior population continues to expand, an increasing number of elder abuse cases involving professional guardians have made headlines. The New Yorker exposed one of the most shocking accounts of elder abuse by professional guardians, which took place in Nevada and saw more than 150 seniors swindled out of their life savings by a corrupt Las Vegas guardianship agency. The Las Vegas case and others like it have shed light on a disturbing new phenomenon—individuals who seek guardianship to take control of the lives of vulnerable seniors and use their money and other assets for personal gain. Perhaps the scariest aspect of such abuse is that many seniors who fall prey to these unscrupulous guardians have loving and caring family members who are unable to protect them. Keep Your Family Out Of Court And Out Of Conflict Outside of the potential for abuse…Read More
Medicaid is the government’s long-term care insurance for seniors and the disabled. There are income and asset eligibility requirements that must be met in order to qualify. One big issue is the transfer of assets. In order to be eligible for Medicaid, you cannot have recently transferred assets. Congress does not want you to move into a nursing home on Monday, give all your money to your children (or whomever) on Tuesday, and qualify for Medicaid on Wednesday. So it has imposed a penalty on people who transfer assets without receiving fair value in return. This penalty is a period of time during which the person transferring the assets will be ineligible for Medicaid. The penalty period is determined by dividing the amount transferred by what Medicaid determines to be the average private pay cost of a nursing home in your state. Example: If you live in a state where the average monthly cost of care costs $5,000, and you give away property worth $100,000, you will be ineligible for benefits for 20 months ($100,000 / $5,000 = 20). Another way to look at the above example is that for…Read More
Whether it’s called “The Great Wealth Transfer,” “The Silver Tsunami,” or some other catchy-sounding name, it’s a fact that a tremendous amount of wealth will pass from aging Baby Boomers to younger generations in the next few decades. In fact, it’s said to be the largest transfer of inter-generational wealth in history. Because no one knows exactly how long Boomers will live or how much money they’ll spend before they pass on, it’s impossible to accurately predict just how much wealth will be transferred. But studies suggest it’s somewhere between $30 and $50 trillion. Yes, that’s “trillion” with a “T.” A Blessing Or A Curse? And while most are talking about the benefits this asset transfer might have for younger generations and the economy, few are talking about its potential negative ramifications. Yet there’s plenty of evidence suggesting that many people, especially younger generations, are woefully unprepared to handle such an inheritance. An Ohio State University study found that one third of people who received an inheritance had a negative savings within two years of getting the money. Another study by The Williams Group found that inter-generational wealth transfers often…Read More
The number of older Americans with student loan debt – either theirs or someone else’s — is growing. Sadly, learning how to deal with this debt is now a fact of life for many seniors heading into retirement. According to by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the number of older borrowers increased by at least 20 percent between 2012 and 2017. Some of these borrowers were borrowing for themselves, but the majority was borrowing for others. The study found that 73 percent of student loan borrowers age 60 and older borrowed for a child’s or grandchild’s education. Before You Co-sign A Student Loan For A Child Or Grandchild, You Need To Understand Your Obligations The co-signer not only vouches for the loan recipient’s ability to pay back the loan, but is also personally responsible for repaying the loan if the recipient cannot pay. Because of this, you need to carefully consider the risk before taking on this responsibility. In some circumstances, it is possible to obtain a co-signer release from a loan after the loan recipient has made a few on-time payments. If you are a co-signer on a loan…Read More
