November is National Caregivers Month

 November is a month of gratitude.  We celebrate Thanksgiving Day and express our appreciation for the good things in our life.  What better time to say an extra “thanks” to the caregivers in our lives?

According to the National Caregivers Association, over 65 million Americans – approximately 29% of the U.S. population – provide care for chronically ill, disabled or aged family members or friends during any given year.  Family caregivers provide an average of 20 hours of care per week.  Over 66% of these caregivers are women, and 37% also have children or grandchildren under the age of 18 living with them.  What, you might ask, does this have to do with financial planning?

The reality is that the value of the services provided by family caregivers in the U.S. is estimated to be upwards of $375 billion each year.  Most of these caregivers receive little to no compensation for the services they provide.  Providing caregiver services to friends and family can create a drain on family funds, as these caregivers must often leave their jobs or significantly reduce their hours.  This, in turn, drains savings and delays retirements.

Action steps can be taken to protect the financial well-being of these valuable caregivers:

• Have a family plan in place for providing care.  My recent blog on holding a family meeting is a good guide for starting this conversation. 
• Coordinate family resources.  This involves sharing responsibilities among family members (even those living at a distance) so that no one member is overburdened.
• Put financial resources in place to cover potential long term care expenses.  This includes purchasing long-term care insurance or alternative self-funding strategies so that care can be paid for (this includes providing possible compensation for family caregivers).

One of the best ways to say “thank you” to current or future caregivers in your life is to plan.  Contact your financial planner to provide assistance with family meetings, coordination of resources, or long-term care funding.

---

The information has been obtained from sources considered to be reliable, but we do not guarantee that the foregoing material is accurate or complete.  Any opinions are those of Center for Financial Planning, Inc., and not necessarily of RJFS or Raymond James.

The Perfect Recipe for a Balanced Life for the Sandwich Generation

 I think I’m like many Americans that struggle to find personal time amongst the chaos of working full time, raising two children, balancing family relationships, and other obligations (school, church, volunteer work, etc.).  And I am not even one of the many Americans between the ages of 40 and 60 who are raising children AND assisting aging parents.  If I have trouble finding time to balance my life with only one family to raise, how can these members of the “Sandwich Generation” do it?

I had a client of mine explain it this way, “You have to run your family like a business, that’s the bottom line.”  While there are certainly feelings and emotions that complicate the dynamics of these family situations, there has to be a way to get things done without sacrificing all of your time, your relationships, or your sanity. 

Here are 3 ways to managing your multi-tiered family like a business:

1. Plan Strategically – The key here is to have a plan; to be proactive rather than reactive.  Know what has to be done, when it needs to be done, and how it will be paid for.   This includes creating master calendars for who needs to be where and arranging transportation).
2. Manage Resources – Make sure you have the tools in place to make things happen (legal documents, financial resources, and human resources).  If you don’t have the pieces in place to make things happen when the time comes, you end up in crisis mode.  This involves making sure legal documents like durable powers of attorney are in place and arranging for help that is either paid or volunteer for things like care assistance, bill paying, etc.
3. Departmentalize – You are the manager of the family business, which means you oversee but do not need to perform every task.  Make sure that the right people are handling the right tasks, and that everyone is doing their part.  This means involving all family members to do their share (including adult siblings) and hiring the right professionals to handle the duties that are outside your area of expertise (Geriatric Care Managers, Elder Law Attorneys, Financial Planners, etc.).

Before trying to handle every duty that comes managing a multi-tiered family, consider viewing your family like a business.  Doing so will ensure that everyone is served best, and will provide you time to maintain a balanced and quality life.

Please feel free to contact me for additional tips on establishing and managing your family business.

---

The information contained in this report does not purport to be a complete description of the securities, markets, or developments referred to in this material.  The information has been obtained from sources considered to be reliable, but we do not guarantee that the foregoing material is accurate or complete.  Any opinions are those of Center for Financial Planning, Inc., and not necessarily those of RJFS or Raymond James.

The Holidays – A Great Time for a Family Board Meeting

If your family is like most, the holidays are one of the few times during the year that the entire family gets together in the same place at the same time.  If you happen to be an adult child serving as a caregiver for an elderly parent (or parents), now is the perfect time to take charge as CEO of your “family care corporation” and schedule your annual board meeting.

Typically, if children are caring for aging parents, one of the children shoulders the burden more than the others.  If you are in this position, do what any corporate CEO would do…schedule a board meeting and do some strategic planning.  Manage the business of family caregiving by working with other members of the board (your siblings and your parents, if they are able) to make sure all parts of the business are being managed efficiently and that all parties are contributing to its success. 

Make sure the following job duties are covered by members of the board:

• Managing the finances.  Making sure that someone is overseeing the finances and making sure that bills are being paid.  With online bill pay and access to bank accounts from remote locations, this may be the perfect job for the out-of-town sibling that is demographically unable to handle other duties. 
• Managing the care.  If you are working with a Geriatric Care Manager or in-home care company, someone needs to be the primary contact for these services and communicate any developments to the rest of the family.
• Managing the day-to-day operations.  This is likely the job for the sibling that lives nearest. It includes running errands and accompanying elderly parents to medical appointments and getting groceries, amongst other things.

Once duties have been delegated, be sure that each sibling has the tools he or she needs to do their job.  Make sure necessary authorizations are in place, which may include legal documents including Durable Powers of Attorney for General/Financial and Durable Powers of Attorney for Health Care.  Schedule frequent reporting sessions so everyone can stay on the same page.  And make it a point to schedule family meetings with your parents’ professional advisors – financial planner, CPA, estate planning attorney, etc.  This group of professionals can serve as a crucial advisory board for you and your family.

A business cannot be successful if one person is trying to fill every position.  As the sibling who has chosen to take charge, make sure you empower your siblings to contribute to the success of your family care corporation.