Tracy joins Eric to talk more about how they moved their parents into care facilities, emptied the house, and sold it.
In our previous podcast about taking care of our parents, we talked about working with a medicare consultant or elder care laywer, this was very helpful for us.
Getting power of attorney is the basic tool of all this. Make sure you get financial and medical power of attorney, the legal document varies by state. You should be able to purchase it online and have it notarized by your local bank. You can hire a lawyer to help with this POA, which may be a good way to start working with an elder care lawyer.
A good real estate agent is key to emptying a house of its contents and selling the house for the best price. Using an estate sale company worked very well for us, they take possession of everything in the house and deliver you an empty house. No need for garage sales and travel. It was very nice to have the house emptied by a third party, it can eliminate a lot of the drama.
Having a bank account for your parents with your name on the account also is a great help. And if they are in managed care, having their bills mailed to your house is a plus. Let your postal carrier know you will be receiving their mail so it doesn't get sent back.
There are several forms for assigning ownership of the car, bank accounts, etc upon one's death, and it avoids probate. Ask a lawyer about it.
Lisa
A helpful and informative episode, thanks to you both. It was good to know about the insurance exclusion for an "empty" house.
I suggest that everyone set up a spreadsheet which lists the usual expenses, how and when they are paid, and any necessary logins, etc.
As an example, my elderly parents' bill paying was managed by my father. He took ill and passed away within a couple of weeks. So on top of dealing with that, my mother was panicked about how the bills would be paid. We told her we would take care of it, and we did. But still it took time to research how and when each account was being paid, and to find or reset any logins and passwords.
Eric
thx for the tips Lisa, that's a good way to keep track of it all. thx! eric.
David McClellan
Eric,
I just listened to the podcast about dealing with your parents, their home, etc. That is something I did not have to deal with when my parents passed, as my siblings who were in the same city took care of everything. I have shared your info with friends who are in the middle of these situations. Now, I am dealing with my in laws. Your information was very helpful and made us think about some things we had over looked. The father in law has passed, and the MIL is still in the home for now. We are in Texas and she is in Connecticut. So, we are learning about CT laws and regs.
Again, thanks... I know that was not the 'norm' for GF, but it was something we all needed to hear. And Rick is correct, this is info important when it is needed.