OT - piggy back on Candace post
As I read through Candace's post on making sure we have insurance to handle our funerals - and other business after death - It brought to mind something I encounter in my work as a legal services attorney
1) Take care of old business - more than once I've had clients who for failure to pay some court fines in another state or totally finish up some left over legal business from forever ago - come to me in distress because they lost their Social Security disability or SSI after the Social Security Administration gets wind of the situation some 5 or 10 or more years after the fact...trust me, you don't want to be sick and broke trying to take care of some old business while you are worried about how you are going to pay next month's rent.
2) Where necessary - obtain Power of Attorney for our parents before they are too sick to give it. Powers of Attorney can be written in such a way that they only come into effect when there is an incapacity. In one situation i know of, daughter cares for elderly mom in house mom owns. Elderly mom becomes incapacitated, there is no power of attorney in place. Tax issues come up - daughter is not owner of the house - she can't sell it and she really has no legal right to be in the house. A court can confer a guardianship but in most states that is a far more expensive and involved situation than just getting the power of attorney.
3) When things get tough, whatever you do, don't stop reading the mail. A lot of people in stressful situations just go into denial and figure they already know x & y is just asking for money they don't have and they miss deadlines and opportunities to easily resolve their issues. Its very sad when somebody could have fixed something months earlier and saved untold worry, etc.
Ok, enough with the sermon - I must have too much time on my hands during this recovery period. Happy Sunday BAF!
Rhonda
1) Take care of old business - more than once I've had clients who for failure to pay some court fines in another state or totally finish up some left over legal business from forever ago - come to me in distress because they lost their Social Security disability or SSI after the Social Security Administration gets wind of the situation some 5 or 10 or more years after the fact...trust me, you don't want to be sick and broke trying to take care of some old business while you are worried about how you are going to pay next month's rent.
2) Where necessary - obtain Power of Attorney for our parents before they are too sick to give it. Powers of Attorney can be written in such a way that they only come into effect when there is an incapacity. In one situation i know of, daughter cares for elderly mom in house mom owns. Elderly mom becomes incapacitated, there is no power of attorney in place. Tax issues come up - daughter is not owner of the house - she can't sell it and she really has no legal right to be in the house. A court can confer a guardianship but in most states that is a far more expensive and involved situation than just getting the power of attorney.
3) When things get tough, whatever you do, don't stop reading the mail. A lot of people in stressful situations just go into denial and figure they already know x & y is just asking for money they don't have and they miss deadlines and opportunities to easily resolve their issues. Its very sad when somebody could have fixed something months earlier and saved untold worry, etc.
Ok, enough with the sermon - I must have too much time on my hands during this recovery period. Happy Sunday BAF!
Rhonda
just waiving hi to ya...from right over the bridge in south jersey...
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OG, here! Man, I miss this group! It's been 21 years since I found BAF.
Mere · 1 replies · 162 views
Mere · 1 replies · 162 views
