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Long Term Care planning is one of the largest challenges that most face in retirement. Unfortunately, it is typically addressed too late to  utilize traditional plans. This is not always a bad thing. With new products in the marketplace, some of your resources can assist in providing Long Term Care funding. Are they ideal? No, but they are much better than nothing. Depending on the resources available, I may reallocate some of the assets to be set aside to provide care and leverage the amount so it can pass tax free to beneficiaries of your estate if it is not used. If income is the primary objective, we may utilize products that provide additional benefits should Long Term Care be needed. Finally, we may choose to utilize features in Life Insurance policies to provide benefits for care instead of death benefits. The reality is that everyone is different, and I work very hard to find solutions that met your situation. All of these are much better than trying to self-fund a Long Term Care event.

You cannot have a retirement plan without considering and creating a plan for how to deal with Long-Term Care. The reality is that 75% or 3 out of 4 people will have a long-term care event in their lifetime. The cost for this can exceed $100,000 a year and statistically it is about 3 years on average for most people. It is estimated that 90% of Long-Term Care is provided by family and friends. While this is admirable, it does take a toll on family members and friends. In addition to the toll, it takes on the family the cost is also a big concern. Long-Term Care has changed as the need for care has increased. With the recent pandemic I think we can all agree that staying in a Skilled Care center (Nursing Home) is not ideal. I help people plan for and implement Long Term Care plans. Knowing the different options and how to structure them is critical to your retirement plan. For most clients I help them see the value in having a strategy for dealing with the cost in the most efficient way. This can be by properly allocating resources for care or creating a strategy for covering the cost in conjunction with other cashflows. In any case, not having a plan will cost you more than you had to pay. I provide free initial consultations on Long-Term Care planning, so schedule your time via the contact page.

For some the word Annuity causes a chill to run up their spine. The reality is that Annuities are often oversold. I believe that creating income that you cannot outlive is an important part of your retirement plan. Years ago, the previous generation had pensions that they could not outlive. In the 1990’s companies began to shift from these Defined Benefit Plans to Defined Contribution plans. This shift was from the company providing the actual benefit to just allocating the money upfront and thus transferring the responsibility of income to the employee.  The challenge today is how to recreate the income that employers used to provide. I philosophy is that you cover fixed expenses with guaranteed income and primarily this comes from Social Security and a fixed immediate annuity. There are some strategies to get more out of these products, but it gives my clients what they need and that is a baseline for their plan. There are many other products that can be used for future income and I help with understanding these products as well. What I do not believe is that an Annuity is an investment. The costs often exceed the benefit. Annuities are a commodity. What I mean is that they change on a regular basis. For this reason, I remain independent and for my clients I research which carrier provides the greatest benefit for the money. I believe that income is the name of the game in retirement and because of this you need to understand how annuities work and how to best use them. This is where I can help. Click the link below to learn more about Annuities! Below is the “Quotables” by 25 Notables article with information on Annuities from 25 financial experts!