Few things are uglier than the spectacle of children or other relatives arguing about an inheritance. The law respects the right of individuals to decide who should inherit their property. Parents may decide to leave property to some children but not to others. They may decide to give more property to one child than to […]
Updated July 2025 Ideally, as workers gain experience in a job, their wages increase and their savings grow. When employers don’t offer pension or retirement benefits, workers can still take advantage of individual retirement accounts (IRAs). Unfortunately, the yearly limit on contributions to an IRA is much smaller than the limit on 401(k) plan contributions. […]
Updated: March 2025 Errors in medical records, including electronic, are relatively common. Helping older relatives review their medical records may uncover mistakes that could cause future harm. It is worth investing the time to make sure that errors in medical records are corrected. Medical Records Errors In a 2022 NIH report, between 8 to 21% […]
Estimates of the number of family members working as unpaid caregivers range from 48 million to 65.7 million, with 53 million being a common approximation. Of those, about 37.1 million family members provide care to someone who is 65 or older. About 30% of Americans in their 50s and early 60s act as family caregivers, while […]
Scammers have a long history of preying on seniors. The social isolation that seniors are experiencing to avoid contracting COVID-19 has elevated the risk that they will be victimized by fraudulent schemes that target the elderly. Seniors are more likely than others to experience serious symptoms of COVID-19. Concerned seniors are therefore searching the internet […]
You have heard the old adage “Rags to Riches to Rags”, or “Shirtsleeves to Shirtsleeves in three generations”. It is not just a dynamic of western culture; it is actually an old Chinese proverb “Rice paddies to Rice paddies in three generations.” Breaking down the saying (1) The first generation strives to better themselves, so […]
Updated July 2025 Change provokes fear and vulnerability for both parents and caregivers alike. The year 2025 is marked by change from many directions. Some of the changes we are experiencing this year are: High interest rates. High interest rates hurt bond portfolio values immediately, equity portfolios eventually and real estate values in the long […]
These are the categories of investments appropriate for funding your retirement in the order of funding priority. 1) Two month’s worth of living expenses in a checking account. 2) Short-term savings that you can liquidate within 12 months, such as: Money Market account CDs S. treasury securities Municipal bonds 3) Mid-term maturity accounts that mature […]
Many loving parents and grandparents make the mistake of giving priority to paying for their children’s or grandchildren’s educations over the funding of their own retirement. At first blush that may sound like the generous priority, but it subjects the entire family to financial risk. Hopefully you have funded your retirement through savings, investing and […]
