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Aging parents, ageless money issues

September 19, 2009

How are your parents doing? Not just physically and emotionally, but financially?

That's a question more Baby Boomers are asking every year.

It's a difficult topic, for both parents and adult children. And in most families, there are no easy answers for anyone.

Today's New York Times looks at the situation in Taking Care of Parents Also Means Taking Care of Finances.

Aging_bench_warmers_jonrawlinson

Photo of aging bench warmers by jonrawlinson

Recommendations in the NYT article include taking advantage of government and nonprofit programs and services available to help the aging, as well as hiring a private caregiver. I mentioned several such options (with links) in Taking care of father.

Of course, the first, and often hardest, step is having the discussion with Mom and Dad (and your siblings) about whether help is needed and if so, how much. The key here is involving the whole family and making sure your parents know you respect their needs and wishes.

Finally, remember that if you do help care for your parents, you might be able to get some tax help. Again, these are discussed in my earlier post, but the basic breaks you might be able to claim include counting your parent as a dependent, writing off some parental medical costs and claiming the dependent care credit if your parent lives with you and you must hire someone to care for Mom or Dad while you're at work.

Here's hoping your folks are doing fine in every respect. But when the time comes that they need your help, be sure to look into getting some help yourself from Uncle Sam.

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It’s over! With October’s extended filing deadline behind us, it is now time to focus on year-end moves to reduce your 2026 tax bill. 

You’ll find ways to do just that on the Tax Tips page (see the More Tax Posts drop-down menu at the top of the blog), as well as the separate tax tip pages for each month, notably October through December. If you’re on the Tax Tips page, you’ll find a monthly list at the end of this column. If you’re on another blog page, you can head straight to the October tips; at the bottom of that tips page you’ll find links to all the other 11 months’ collections of tax advice.

Not to spoil what you’ll find in that tax advice, but it does cover such things as tax deductions for charitable donations, investment moves that could reduce tax due, and ways to max out your tax-favored retirement savings. 

Finally, as the year winds down, things get hectic. There are lots of other things to occupy our time, like the much more fun upcoming holidays. But don’t lose sight of taxes, since timing is key. To be of use, most tax moves must be made by the end of the tax year. That’s Thursday, Dec. 31, which also is the last business day of the year. 

So that you don’t miss that final tax year deadline, also keep an eye on the countdown clock below. It will keep you on top of just how much time is left to make important, tax-saving moves. (Note: I’m in the Central Time Zone, so adjust accordingly for where you live.)

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