The last thing you want to do is sit your parents or elderly loved ones down and tell them how to spend their money. After all, they are probably the ones who taught you how it was done in the first place.
As people get older they may begin to have trouble balancing their budgets. Working on a fixed income is different than working out a budget when there is a working income. Many seniors don’t know how to adjust properly and can find themselves in need of assistance.

Here are some ways to approach the subject with your parents or elderly loved ones.

 


Start by Talking About Yourself

Instead of talking about their situation, you may want to begin with a story about what is going on in your life. Talk to them about how you recently sat down with an elder law attorney to begin drafting up an estate plan and work on retirement income.

Let them know why it is important to have all of the documents in place that will protect them should something happen to them.

You may also want to point out to them that you were using the internet and an article about how important it is to have an estate plan in place came up.

 

Ask for Outside Help

Sometimes the suggestion that your parents or elderly loved ones talk with you is easier if it comes from another source.

Contact someone that they trust – such as a doctor, lawyer, pastor, other family or even family friends to have them help make the suggestion that it may be helpful for them to speak to you about their finances.

Having the advice that they come to you given to them by a trusted professional or advisor can make the situation much more acceptable and sensible on their end.

 

Don’t Use the Word Budget

The direct approach of sitting down to discuss a budget may be very off-putting to someone who has been an authority figure to you in the past. That is why using other words or terms instead of budget may help to soften the topic.

Talk about setting a spending plan to help stretch their retirement funds as far as they can. That way you can sit down with their finances and go over them in terms of inputs and outputs.

It can help to show them just how important it is to curtail spending and be wise about the money that they do have.

 

Offer to Take some Stress off of Them

Finances are stressful. Helping to prepare taxes or do the accounting can lighten the load on them.

This is a great way to approach the subject and also can help to keep them in a more relaxed frame of mind about the topic.

 

Need an Elder Law Attorney to Help?

Would you like the help of a professional with an estate or retirement planning? Contact Stano Law group today.