It can be disheartening comparing your aging parents to the parents of your friends. Lack of money has taken a toll on the way your parents dress and how they eat. They’ve tried to keep their lack of finances a secret but now you want to step in and help where you can.
Mobility aids
If your parents haven’t been able to save and budget well, and you’re doing financially well, why not help your dad regain some of the independence he has lost?
With his lack of balance and impaired strength, Scooters ‘N Chairs is the perfect place to look for mobility aids. Different models of battery-charged mobility scooters for your dad are going to be an efficient way to get around.
They can be good for his health, too, as the scooter requires upright posture and it builds shoulder, hand, and upper-body strength. A scooter like this is guaranteed to provide advantages for anyone with mobility problems.
Time to down-scale
You can begin to make changes to your parent’s lives once you understand their current financial situation. It’s time to sell their home if they are battling to pay for its maintenance and cleanliness.
It will make sense to downsize. You can help them get excited about their relocation by showing them areas that are lovely to live in but where the cost of living is far cheaper. Maybe your parents are having difficulty with deciding to move because they’ve got so much clutter.
The most important thing is to get the ball rolling with the idea of a move and to suggest ideas for what they can do with all their furniture before moving into a smaller place.
Talk to Your parents about their finances
When most of us were children, talking about money and earnings was taboo, but these days there is more openness. If you can see that your parents are battling financially, it’s time to be open and upfront with their money, or lack of it.
You want to explain to them that your purpose is to help them, and if you have siblings, it may be a good time to get together to find out how each one can help. Certainly, with mobility issues, it might be time to discuss no longer using a traditional bank for depositing and withdrawing but to help set up Internet banking.
Medical care
It is quite possible that your parents gave up their health insurance if they were battling with expenses. Maybe they do have health insurance but aren’t clued up on financial or tax incentives that they could be taking advantage of.
By looking at their plans, you could help them save some money on their current insurance plan. If they aren’t on any kind of plan, if you’re earning well, wouldn’t it be possible to put them onto your health insurance plan? You could check out if they’re eligible for Medicare soon.
It could be a good time to speak about their health and with them, review the insurance options that will suit them and then also help them with completing the paperwork.
Benefits available to seniors
The years have flown by and your parents are now seniors. It’s time to look at the possible benefits and resources available to seniors in their particular area. You can go online and check out resources for seniors that will give you access to programs and help for senior citizens.
If your parents are battling financially, they can’t afford to be too proud to check out things such as free meals, free health screenings as well as free transport for certain appointments.
Many seniors living on little or no income rely on assistance from Social Security benefits or government assistance. Your local area agency on aging is a good place to start looking for assistance.