I need to have someone figure out how much money my mom has and how long it will last her and how to get the most of any financial assistance if she can get it.
If the answer to both is yes than you are able to do the leg work. My Moms finances were pretty simple. We live in a small town so banked at the same place. I gave them a copy of the POA for their files. I was already on her bank account. The first thing they did for me was run a report of all the accounts she had at the bank. This showed her savings, checking and CDs she had with the bank. Her bank statement was a big help. It showed her SS direct deposit and the bills she paid out of it. (My bank also supplies copies of checks so I was able to determine who the cks were written to)
If Mom has stocks, shares, bonds, annuities etc. You may have to go thru her paperwork for statements. Her yearly income taxes will show you any interest and dividends she claimed and there should be copies of the 1099's attached. This will give you names of companies she deals with. I would also check with her car/life insurance carriers to see if she has invested with them.
Not sure if there are people that can track investments, ect for you. And if there is, you may need a POA or a conservatorship to authorize it. If you don't have POA and person can't assign you, then guardianship may have to be obtained and that can be expensive. Medicaid does allow the use of the persons money when applying for guardianship over them.
I hope Mom has kept good records and everything is in one place. My Mom had two places. Where she sat to do her monthly bills and a draw she had all her other papers.
Figuring out how much she has and how long it should last should be pretty straightforward. I have just gone through this for someone and it is tedious, but if they will cooperate with you, it can be done in a couple of hours. Lots of the information can be accessed online .
First look for income sources. You can get a Social Security statement at Mysocialsecurity.com. Keep a copy.
Does she receive a pension? She can request a verification of income from the pension administrator.
She will have received a 1099 from most sources of income- dividends, interest that sort of thing.
Does she receive any other income? Examine her bank statements for regular inflows. You may as well get them organized. If she needs Medicaid they will want five years of statements to examine. May as well start organizing them.
Now look for the assets. Gather checking and savings account statements. Find any statements for 401k or IRA accounts. FInd any brokerage account statements. Does she own any life insurance? Whole life policies have cash values. You can request cash value statements be sent to the house. Does she own property? The home you live in is considered to be an exempt asset if you apply for Medicaid but you should still have an idea of the value. Get estimates of the value of any rental properties.
Now you look at the outflows. You can use an Excel spreadsheet. I enter all the sources of income and then fill out the categories for expenses- mortgage, utilities, food, health care ect. Don't forget annual bills like property taxes and magazine subscriptions. Divide the amounts by 12 and put them in as a monthly deduction. This will tell you how long the assets will last at the current spend rate. You can get category ideas from any budgeting software programs. (I use YNAB-you need a budget. YNAB.com)
So if your monthly income is larger than the monthly spending (don't forget the big, annual expenses though!). your mother's money is in no immediate danger of running out.
If it is not, you should consult a personal financial planner about how to sell assets. They have good advice on how to manage money. Jane Bryant Quinn recommends a fee only planner. To find someone local, try the Financial Planning Association (check the fee-only box), Garrett Planning Network (geared toward the average saver) and the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (generally, for the more affluent).
And if your mom will be applying for Medicaid in the future , a consultation with an elder care attorney who specializes in Medicaid is a good idea. In my opinion, once they have helped you organize the assets you don't need to pay them to actually file the Medicaid application for you. That wasn't a good value! Once you know the rules, there are free sources of help to get the application filed.
Is your mom cognitively impaired? If so and no one has PoA for her, then you will need to acquire guardianship of her through the courts. If you don't do it the county will and then they will control all her medical and financial info and won't be sharing it, and will make all her care decisions.
If the answer to both is yes than you are able to do the leg work. My Moms finances were pretty simple. We live in a small town so banked at the same place. I gave them a copy of the POA for their files. I was already on her bank account. The first thing they did for me was run a report of all the accounts she had at the bank. This showed her savings, checking and CDs she had with the bank. Her bank statement was a big help. It showed her SS direct deposit and the bills she paid out of it. (My bank also supplies copies of checks so I was able to determine who the cks were written to)
If Mom has stocks, shares, bonds, annuities etc. You may have to go thru her paperwork for statements. Her yearly income taxes will show you any interest and dividends she claimed and there should be copies of the 1099's attached. This will give you names of companies she deals with.
I would also check with her car/life insurance carriers to see if she has invested with them.
Not sure if there are people that can track investments, ect for you. And if there is, you may need a POA or a conservatorship to authorize it. If you don't have POA and person can't assign you, then guardianship may have to be obtained and that can be expensive. Medicaid does allow the use of the persons money when applying for guardianship over them.
I hope Mom has kept good records and everything is in one place. My Mom had two places. Where she sat to do her monthly bills and a draw she had all her other papers.
ElderCare
Financial social security rep
Comes to mind
First look for income sources. You can get a Social Security statement at Mysocialsecurity.com. Keep a copy.
Does she receive a pension? She can request a verification of income from the pension administrator.
She will have received a 1099 from most sources of income- dividends, interest that sort of thing.
Does she receive any other income? Examine her bank statements for regular inflows. You may as well get them organized. If she needs Medicaid they will want five years of statements to examine. May as well start organizing them.
Now look for the assets. Gather checking and savings account statements. Find any statements for 401k or IRA accounts. FInd any brokerage account statements. Does she own any life insurance? Whole life policies have cash values. You can request cash value statements be sent to the house. Does she own property? The home you live in is considered to be an exempt asset if you apply for Medicaid but you should still have an idea of the value. Get estimates of the value of any rental properties.
Now you look at the outflows. You can use an Excel spreadsheet. I enter all the sources of income and then fill out the categories for expenses- mortgage, utilities, food, health care ect. Don't forget annual bills like property taxes and magazine subscriptions. Divide the amounts by 12 and put them in as a monthly deduction. This will tell you how long the assets will last at the current spend rate. You can get category ideas from any budgeting software programs. (I use YNAB-you need a budget. YNAB.com)
So if your monthly income is larger than the monthly spending (don't forget the big, annual expenses though!). your mother's money is in no immediate danger of running out.
If it is not, you should consult a personal financial planner about how to sell assets. They have good advice on how to manage money. Jane Bryant Quinn recommends a fee only planner. To find someone local, try the Financial Planning Association (check the fee-only box), Garrett Planning Network (geared toward the average saver) and the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (generally, for the more affluent).
And if your mom will be applying for Medicaid in the future , a consultation with an elder care attorney who specializes in Medicaid is a good idea. In my opinion, once they have helped you organize the assets you don't need to pay them to actually file the Medicaid application for you. That wasn't a good value! Once you know the rules, there are free sources of help to get the application filed.
Best of luck!
Look for a fee for service one and expect to pay a fee similar to what you would pay a lawyer or accountant.
Secondly, what are her current care needs?
Third, what is her current level of care, i.e. living on her own, living with you, living with weekly or daily caregivers or 24/7 caregiver care?
Fourth, does it look like assisted living or a nursing home are in her near future?
Fifth, have you tried talking with your mother about all of this?