Helping the Elderly with Personal Finance

The last time you were at your parents’ home, you discovered unpaid bills. They had forgotten to pay their gas bill for the past two months. You called the gas company and explained the situation, and then wrote out a check for the amount due, so everything turned out all right. But what if you hadn’t noticed the unpaid bills, and it was the middle of winter? Your parents’ heating could have been shut off.

The truth is, as we age, keeping things such as our personal finances organized can become a challenge. AARP, the nonprofit organization for people age 50 and over, has said that as many as 7 percent of adults receiving Social Security benefits have difficulty managing their household finances. In a worst-case scenario, this could lead to bank foreclosure and/or eviction.

What can you do to ensure your parents don’t fall victim to financial disorganization? Communication is the key. Talk to your parents. Are the bills overwhelming them? Are they having trouble remembering whether or not they paid a bill(s)? Do they have an overall financial plan? Here are some steps to consider:

• Play detective. Check out your parents’ finances. If their records are not in an easily assessable file, a good place to check is Schedule B of their most recent tax return. Dividends, interest and financial institutions can be found there. Their accountant or attorney (if they have one) can help.
   
• Are your parents able to pay their bills? Do they need help financially? Programs such as Accel here at Vantage can help with budgeting free of charge. If money isn’t the problem, consider asking financial institutions, mortgage companies, etc. to send you copies of your parents’ monthly statements for you to check.
   
• In order to deal with financial institutions in your parents’ place, you’ll need to be named by them as an agent in their power of attorney. Consider a ‘durable power of attorney,’ a legal document giving one or more people the authority to handle the finances/personal matters of an individual should he/she become mentally or physically incapacitated.
   
• If you do wind up helping with your parents’ bills, be sure to keep detailed records. Keep statements and receipts. Take good notes at any meetings with financial planners/attorneys.
   
• Consider such convenient services as direct deposit and automatic payment. This will eliminate at least some of the financial worry.

A new trend in helping the elderly with finances is enlisting the aid of a person known as a daily money manager. These assistants work with clients to organize and handle all the daily concerns of money management. This help includes setting up a bill-paying schedule, balancing checkbooks, organizing financial paperwork, negotiating with creditors and other concerns.

Unfortunately, there are documented cases of people taking financial advantage of the elderly, even cases where children took advantage of their own parents. If you suspect someone is taking advantage of your parents, there are things you can look for in a checkbook and/or credit card statements. Here are a few:

• Lost/missing checks—someone could be helping themselves to checks.
   
• Large check amounts—if a check exceeds the usual amount of the month’s highest check, it could mean someone is swindling an elderly person or tapping into his/her account.
   
• Numerous checks in sequential order to the same payee—someone could be slipping in extra bills for services not performed, trying to take advantage of short-term memory issues.
   
• NSF fees—are checks being written with insufficient funds in the account? There could be confusion with the math on the check writing or whether or not deposits have been made.
   
• Repeat monthly payments—has a senior inadvertently signed up for an unneeded service or subscription?
   
• Unusual purchases—some things just don’t look right, such as a senior buying a video game console. This could be the result of an innocent mistake or a stolen credit card.

Finances can be confusing even when you’re on top of matters. As people age, memory can be affected, leaving an elderly person an easy target for financial abuse. If you suspect en elderly person is being taken advantage of, take these steps:

• List your concerns, being specific.
   
• Keeping good notes and contact numbers adds credibility.
   
• Call Adult Protective Services (part of the Department of Health and Human Services or Social Services), local law enforcement and the person’s financial institution as soon as possible.