Talk to your aging parents about publishing this newspaper

Thelma Brown is 65 years old and a retired teacher. Her son, Jerome Haynes, taught her how to prepare a monthly budget. To make it easier for her, he created a written spreadsheet where she could record her income and expenses. He taught her how to save and now she has her own savings account.

“She really didn’t know much about finances and ended up biting off more than she could chew,” Haynes says. “I moved her close to me and we sat down and wrote out a living budget. We talked about life insurance and where vital documents are in our home and when we want to locate them.

Herb White, CFP, MBA, a licensed planner, says talking to aging parents about money may be difficult for several reasons. Uncomfortable questions arise, equivalent to who gets what when a parent dies, who should control the parent’s funds, what assets the parents have, wills and trusts, and what they cover, and parents fear losing control of their very own funds and lives. To alleviate a few of the worries, adult children can have an agenda of issues to discuss and involve the aging parent’s trusted advisor or attorney.

“One solution is for the adult child to remind the parent that you love them and want to make sure their financial situation is in order, that their needs are met and their wishes are respected,” White said.

“Adult children should start talking to their aging parents about money sooner rather than later, so the conversations don’t end up in a time of family crisis.”

Some items on the agenda on the family meeting include required minimum distributions from retirement accounts, Medigap rules, Medicare Advantage and Part D plans, long-term care rules, taxation of Social Security advantages, avoiding investment scams, preparing a will, and reverse mortgages.

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