What is your plan to take care of elderly parents?

[Anonymous]

I keep envisioning us selling our current house, moving to a lower cost area and buying a home on acreage w/guest house to be used by family in need, maybe even a trailer as opposed to a guest house (there are nice ones). And then hiring home health aides as/if needed ...that way everyone has their own space but they are still close to monitor/help/visit.

I don't know if that is a practical plan or not. Anyone else think like this?

[Anonymous]

^We would live in the main home.

[Anonymous]

We plan to do it the Murkin way: Put them in a facility until their money runs out and the switch to a Medicaid place.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We plan to do it the Murkin way: Put them in a facility until their money runs out and the switch to a Medicaid place.

I don't know what a Medicaid place is like. Are they o.k. or scary?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We plan to do it the Murkin way: Put them in a facility until their money runs out and the switch to a Medicaid place.

I don't know what a Medicaid place is like. Are they o.k. or scary?

Let's just say you won't get the very best level of care. But with regular assisted living/nursing care costing as much as $7,000 a month, it's out of reach for many people.

[Anonymous]

The only one left is my step mother who is 60. Her mother is still driving and living alone at age 91. Her grandmother lived to 103. If it goes that way, I won't have much to worry about other than to keep managing her financial situation. If I move back to my hometown I imagine she will want to live with me when things go down hill. If I don't, I'm sure she'll move in with one of her nieces or nephews. She's very active with her great nieces and nephews.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We plan to do it the Murkin way: Put them in a facility until their money runs out and the switch to a Medicaid place.

I don't know what a Medicaid place is like. Are they o.k. or scary?

Let's just say you won't get the very best level of care. But with regular assisted living/nursing care costing as much as $7,000 a month, it's out of reach for many people.

Your best bet is while they have the money, get them into a good non-profit nursing home that will let them stay there with Medicaid paying once their money runs out.

[Anonymous]

My parents have been very good with their money. They mostly live off my mother's pension and haven't touched their fairly substantial savings yet. Their savings would pay for facility care if needed, though if a situation arose where they both needed care it might make more sense to hire a home healthcare aid to stretch the funds given the cost of 2 in a facility. They also recently renovated their home to make a downstairs master suite so they can age in place if needed. They are 67 and 71.

My ILs are rich as sin and can sell their $5 million + house to pay for what they need if they somehow burn through the rest of their money. They are 68 and 62.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I keep envisioning us selling our current house, moving to a lower cost area and buying a home on acreage w/guest house to be used by family in need, maybe even a trailer as opposed to a guest house (there are nice ones). And then hiring home health aides as/if needed ...that way everyone has their own space but they are still close to monitor/help/visit.

I don't know if that is a practical plan or not. Anyone else think like this?

My parents were in great health so we just purchased a new home without a first floor bedroom. I regret that decision because now they are having significant health issues. Quite suddenly so you never know. Parents have some savings, not enough for long term care due to low income jobs. makes it harder to knwo they worked so hard and saved everything they could and it isn't close to enough to age gracefully.

I like the idea of a trailer and we have the land for it. I know some of them are very nice. Would stil need to pay $$$$ for in home care, but it wouldn't have to be round the clock.

[Anonymous]

My parents have long-term care insurance so that should take care of a lot of the day to day stuff. All of my siblings are located near my parents so I'd probably make myself available as the on-call sub - fly out once or twice a year for a few weeks to take care of my parents full time and coordinate those weeks with my sibs to give them a break when they need or want it most. Whereas, my siblings would probably have more on-going but part-time duties.

They've arranged their finances responsibly though so I don't anticipate a lot of costs related to late-age care that we'd be responsible for. My ILs though will need financial support and we're planning for that.

[Anonymous]

To those whose parents had a long term care policy, or who have one for their parents, was it worth it? I have the opportunity to get a policy for myself and my husband without a physical and at relatively low cost, but I'm wondering if it's worth it, since we have quite a bit saved for retirement and guaranteed pensions.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My parents have long-term care insurance so that should take care of a lot of the day to day stuff. All of my siblings are located near my parents so I'd probably make myself available as the on-call sub - fly out once or twice a year for a few weeks to take care of my parents full time and coordinate those weeks with my sibs to give them a break when they need or want it most. Whereas, my siblings would probably have more on-going but part-time duties.

They've arranged their finances responsibly though so I don't anticipate a lot of costs related to late-age care that we'd be responsible for. My ILs though will need financial support and we're planning for that.

I respect and admire those of you who provide for your parents financially in their old age.

How do you do it?

In our current situation, DH and I could not do this without compromising our own retirement, or our kids' college funds, or both. Moreover, DH is partially disabled and we are doing what we can to plan for his long-term needs.

How do people do this without compromising their own needs (and thus passing this problem along to their children)?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I keep envisioning us selling our current house, moving to a lower cost area and buying a home on acreage w/guest house to be used by family in need, maybe even a trailer as opposed to a guest house (there are nice ones). And then hiring home health aides as/if needed ...that way everyone has their own space but they are still close to monitor/help/visit.

I don't know if that is a practical plan or not. Anyone else think like this?

My parents were in great health so we just purchased a new home without a first floor bedroom. I regret that decision because now they are having significant health issues. Quite suddenly so you never know. Parents have some savings, not enough for long term care due to low income jobs. makes it harder to knwo they worked so hard and saved everything they could and it isn't close to enough to age gracefully.

I like the idea of a trailer and we have the land for it. I know some of them are very nice. Would stil need to pay $$$$ for in home care, but it wouldn't have to be round the clock.

I wonder if a live in Home Health Aide would be cheaper - free room/board in exchange for care + stipend. Not sure how that would work..

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We plan to do it the Murkin way: Put them in a facility until their money runs out and the switch to a Medicaid place.

I don't know what a Medicaid place is like. Are they o.k. or scary?

We are trying to find one now and no one will accept it. Most are private pay for many years then they will transfer patients over.

[Anonymous]

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