Category: Elder
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The Future of Retirement: Mortgage Debt and Smaller Social Security Payments?
Social Security has been working for 91 years. Over these nine decades, the retirement experience has changed a lot. Today’s over-60 crowd is working longer and harder, for one thing. Largely gone are the days when housing expenses tapered off with age. Paid off your mortgage? Congrats! But insurance premiums along with taxes on a…
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If I Can’t Age in Place, What Are the Options?
Most older adults want to live in their own homes as long as possible. Sometimes it’s possible. Sometimes, workarounds are needed. When charting the path ahead, consider these alternatives.
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Medicaid Estate Recovery: Is Your Deed Safe?
If you qualify for Medicaid, you don’t have much money in your accounts. But you’ve held onto your deed. Maybe your adult children are helping with household expenses, expecting the home to stay in the family. But will it? Or will Medicaid claim your home after your death—as repayment for benefits extended to you while…
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Check Is on the Way: How to Get Your New Jersey Senior Tax Rebate
New Jersey is in the process of sending out checks for its “Senior Freeze” on property taxes. Older adults in New Jersey are receiving checks now. This is one way to help offset New Jersey’s rising homeownership costs, so don’t let it pass you by. It’s not too late to file if you haven’t done…
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Older Adults Are Holding Record Amounts of Home Equity. Can Their Heirs Afford to Keep It?
Older adults are poised to pass along roughly $19 trillion in home equity over the next two decades. But the wealth is unevenly held. Many seniors struggle to preserve the equity they have. And even if they can, will their heirs be able to do the same? More than a fourth of homeowners aged 65+…
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Avoid the $20K “Age Penalty”: Maximize Your Home Equity and Sell for Full Price
Statistics show that, all other things being equal, older homeowners tend to receive lower sale prices. Why? And, more to the point, how can you—or a senior in your life—buck that trend?
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New York Seniors: Have You Enrolled in STAR Credit Direct Deposit?
Too many New York residents are struggling with housing expenses and the costs of utilities, medicines, groceries, transportation, and other necessities. Recently, Governor Kathy Hochul announced that nearly three million homeowners across the state will receive over $2 billion in property tax relief this summer and fall. This year’s School Tax Relief (STAR) benefits…
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Your Child Will Be Your Successor in Interest. What Does This Mean?
A successor in interest may be the person who inherits your home or otherwise receives an ownership interest from you. It’s a person who takes on the rights and responsibilities connected with the deed. In short: A “successor in interest” is someone who acquires an ownership interest from another party. Your child would also be…
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Can a Transfer on Death Deed Save Your Family Money?
Seniors hold deeds to a third of all owner-occupied homes. In the coming years, they’ll spend a lot of money in estate planning. Those who want a simple, cheap way to transfer the home at death have a new option in many states: the transfer on death deed (also known as a TOD deed, or…
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Head Off Family Fights in Advance: 8 Smart Estate Planning Moves for Deed Holders
No doubt you’ve experienced it, or more than a few of your friends have. Parents pass on, and then the adult children aren’t speaking. It can happen in any family. Well, you might think, I won’t have to deal with such matters once I’m gone. True. But your heirs (called “beneficiaries” if you use a…
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Power of Attorney Between Joint Owners
If you hold a deed jointly, you might wonder what would happen if one joint owner becomes incapacitated. Can just one of you carry out refinancing or a sale on behalf of both of you? With a power of attorney (POA), one co-owner—called an agent—can sign legal agreements for the co-owner—called the principal—who loses the…
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Three Estate Planning Moves Smart Seniors Avoid
You already know that naming your children on your deed is probably not good tax planning for the next generation. But what other, less obvious deed mistakes do smart seniors avoid? Here are three to consider.
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Estate Planning? Elder Law? Which Do You Need?
Estate planning focuses on what happens with everything you own after death. Elder law addresses legal and planning needs late in life: decision-making authority, asset preservation, and support during physical changes that occur with age. Read on for a more detailed overview and comparison.
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Joint Owner With Survivorship Rights, Not on the Mortgage
Perhaps your home’s deed is vested as JTWROS, but the joint owner is not on the mortgage. Will this be an issue if you pass away before your final payoff? This is a common situation for joint deed holders. The good news? This is not complicated. When a property is held by joint tenants with…
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Five Key Steps To Protect Senior Deed Holders From Scams
Older homeowners, especially those whose mortgages are paid off, can be targeted for deed theft. The crime involves someone else pressuring a vulnerable senior or forging documents to gain control over the property’s value. But good, timely planning can protect the senior—and, ultimately, protect the senior’s heirs in turn.
