Finances: Getting Involved

10 Things You Should Know About Your Parents' Finances

Know the answers to these 10 elderly parent finance questions. Where do they keep their financial records? Do they have a durable power of attorney?

Warning Signs That Your Parents' Finances Are Off Track

Financial problems can easily spiral out of control if your parents don't tackle them quickly. And if your parents are tight-lipped about their finances or fearful of losing control over their money, they may be less likely to confide in you about any money difficulties they may be experiencing -- giving problems time to snowball...

What documentation do I need to enable the companies to discuss her accounts with me?

My parents put everything into a trust several years ago with both of them as co-trustees, and all three children as executors upon their death. My dad died in December of '07 and my mother has moved into an assisted living center. I am handling her finances (writing her checks and maintaining her banking accounts) and need to be able to discuss her accounts...

1 Expert Answer

How do I handle finances when I share POA with my sister and both parents have dementia?

Both my parents suffer from dementia?and have assets worth well over 350.000 pounds.??I don't want them to go into a home.? I'm their full time caregiver.??What do i do about there finances?? Both my sister and I?have power of attorney.

1 Expert Answer

5 Most Important Financial Questions to Ask Your Parent

You won't know what kind of shape your parent's finances are in until you ask. Money is always a sticky topic, so come to the discussion prepared to cover the most important issues:

What documents, besides a will, do my aging parents need?

What is the list of documents that I need, other than the will, to help my aging parents?

1 Expert Answer

7 Things to Look for When Choosing a Financial Planner for Your Parents

A smart and responsible financial planner is a critical team member who can help your parents plan and pay for their retirement. Helping them find that person is one of the most important ways to make sure their financial situation is under control.

Power of Attorney for Finances: A Step-By-Step Guide

Through a power of attorney, your parent appoints a person, usually a close relative, either to help him manage his affairs, or to handle all his affairs if he's unable to do it himself. When setting up a power of attorney for finances, here's what you and your parent should consider:

As a husband, what financial steps should I take to both protect my wife as she progresses through the steps of Alzheimer's and myself?

As a husband, what financial steps should I take to both protect my wife as she progresses through the steps of Alzheimer's and myself?? I need to take to protect my finances as the treatment gets more expensive.

1 Expert Answer

8 Things to Know About Power of Attorney for Finances

A power of attorney for finances can be a valuable tool for your parent. He can use it to help him manage specific transactions, to assist him for just a short time, or to regularly manage his everyday affairs. And what's called a durable power of attorney for finances sets up a simple, relatively inexpensive...

How to Protect Your Parents from Fraud

When it comes to scoping potential victims, experts say con artists tend to look for individuals who are home during the day to answer fraudulent telemarketing calls, retired people who are hoping for one more shot to increase their nest eggs, and those who will be too proud to admit they were "had" and report that they were victimized to the authorities...

Power of Attorney for Finances: A Beginner's Guide

A power of attorney for finances is a document that appoints a person -- or sometimes an institution such as a bank or trust company -- to handle your parent's financial affairs. A power of attorney for finances can be used to make life easier for your parent even though he still makes decisions and handles some financial matters himself...

Can I be held responsible for my mother's medical bills?

My mother is 93. I am her power of attorney and power of health attorney and manage her finances since her stroke in 2002. On September 29, 2007, I moved her into my house from an assisted living facility as she has spent down most of her income. In January, 2008, she went to Good Samaritan Hospital in Los Gatos, CA for breathing problems...

1 Expert Answer

5 Legal Documents You Need for Your Parents

These documents will ensure that you can assist your parents in a medical or financial emergency and, at their deaths, ease the distribution of their estate.

What authority is needed to gather a parent's documents for Medicaid?

I'm beginning the process of applying for Medicaid for my father. How do I proceed to gather the many documents needed?

1 Expert Answer

If I'm the partner on a friend's checking account, is it legal for me to distribute the funds after death?

My neighbor asked me to be a partner on his checking account. I typed up a document stating what he wanted and had him sign it; I signed and had a witness sign, too. We went to the bank and he told the bank officer what he wanted done. The bank officer assured both of us that no one else could contest this arrangement...

1 Expert Answer

How to Deal With Theft by a Caregiver

Today, people over age 50 control 70 percent of our nation's wealth. This sets the elderly up for a variety of theft schemes and scams, not because they're older and weaker, but simply because they have the money, and thieves know it.