The New York Times Quotes Steve Starnes on a Growing Challenge: Retirees Caring for Their Aging Parents

Financial planning is challenging enough during your working years. The choices can be heartbreaking when you’re in or near retirement, and an aging parent needs your help. The New York Times interviewed our Senior Financial Advisor, Steve Starnes, MBA, CFP® for this June 2019 report on the physical, emotional and financial tolls taken by 70-year-old “children” who find themselves caring for their 90-year-old parents.

How do you strike an acceptable balance between your own and an aging parent’s well-being? There are no easy or universal answers. When it comes to choosing (and paying for) nursing home care, professional in-home care, or going it alone, different families feel differently about how to proceed.

The article points out that professional financial advice can go a long way toward understanding your available options. The author quotes Steve, who suggests, “A geriatric care manager can estimate the costs of different kinds of support a parent may need over time … A financial review [may] help people get more comfortable with spending money on some level of support.”