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Letters You Are Glad You Did Not Have To Write

We Get Letters… We Get Lots And Lots Of Letters

(Note: Not Edited For Spelling Or Punctuation. Not Legal Advice!)

LETTER #1

Deed with joint tenancy doesn’t mention right of survivorship

My father purchased land with seller to buyer financing. Because my dad was a single unmarried man and it was seller financing, the seller asked my dad to put someone as a joint owner on the deed (to keep making the payments in the event my dad passed). My dad put my oldest sister as a joint tenant/owner as he was advised at the title company. I don’t think he fully understood. My sister never made one single payment I have all checks to prove. She didn’t even know she was a joint owner. My dad mentioned to mother, friends and to siblings me many times my sister wasn’t the real owner it was just for security bc the seller required security of receiving continuing payments.

My father sadly passed, and now my sister doesn’t want to change title practically keep the land to herself. The document doesn’t specify right of survivorship just say joint tenant can that help? Everyone knows my dads true intent we were all children from the same mother he loved us all the same. I feel he didn’t know what joint tenancy was and just signed. I am really worried bc my sister is taking over the property and not allowing entrance.

What can I use as defenses, thanks.

The Answer Is: “You Are Screwed. And Your Little Dog, Too!”
A Deed Is A Deed Is A Deed

For a number of years, I tended bar. Occasionally, a bar fight would erupt. Very exciting. My fellow barkeep Matt loved when that happened. He would vault the bar grinning, not waiting for assistance, eager to sort things out. Not me. I figured that was a job for the football player-bouncers. A bar fight is an ambiguous, fluid situation. Resolution is required. Application of force will be necessary. And litigation is a bar fight. In for a dime, in for a dollar.

But what if there is no fight? What if the facts are clear? Bouncers do not go looking for trouble. And they do not get involved in every disagreement. How does that apply here?

Michigan courts are extremely unwilling to upset the applecart. Especially when that applecart consists of a valid deed. There are plenty of dubious situations that folks can fight about. Then the courts and the judicial system can roll up their sleeves, get into the fight, start cracking heads.

Our letter writer’s case is not a bar fight free-for-all that needs sorting out. This is a Mike Tyson, one shot to the head, KO, 30 seconds, hope-you-did-not-blink-because-the-main-event-is-over type of thing.

Your father signed the deed. He was competent. He did not have a gun to his head.

Q: Was it a good idea or a bad idea?
A: Nobody cares.

Q: Is sister a generous angel or jealous limb of Satan?
A: Irrelevant.

Q: Did dad wish he had never signed?
A: Why are we still talking about this? Train left the station. Elvis left the building. Fat lady sang. Somebody already stuck a fork in it. It is done.

Folks Do The Darnedest Things

When a good person acts with the best intentions but brings about the worst results – that is tragic. Terrible. In Heaven above, the angels weep. Ever watch a movie, yelling at the screen, “Don’t open the door!” “Stay out of the basement!” “Run away!”? Reading this letter is like that. For me. Danger, danger! But, of course, it is too late. For them.

Why in the world did dad sign the deed?

“Because my dad was a single unmarried man and it was seller financing , the seller asked my dad to put someone as a joint owner on the deed (to keep making the payments in the event my dad passed).”

Dad was motivated to do the right thing. Seller gave dad plausible reasons. But. The stated “reasons” make absolutely no sense at all. Not a single part is accurate or reasonable. Sure, it is true that folks do this sort of thing all the time. On the advice of friends, neighbors, and Internet Experts. You might think these advisers would know better. But they do not.

Spoken Words Worth The Paper They Are Written On

“My dad mentioned to mother , friends and to siblings me many times my sister wasnt the real owner it was just for security bc the seller required security of receiving continuing payments.”

Sometimes motivations matter. Once in a while, verbal statements are relevant. But not usually. And not when we have a written deed that clearly creates ownership rights. Circuit courts, title companies, buyers… none of them care what you thought you were doing. Or why you were doing it.

Dad made sister joint owner by legal, valid, written, notarized, recorded and unchallenged deed. His motivations and understandings were incorrect. But that does not matter.

The Road To Hell Is Paved With Good Intentions

“Everyone knows my dads true intent we were all children from the same mother he loved us all the same. I feel he didnt know what joint tenancy was and just signed. I am really worried bc my sister is taking over the property and not allowing entrance.”

Hatfields & McCoys. Montagues & Capulets. Celtics & Lakers. Laimbeer & Bird. U of M & Ohio State. Historic feuds. This is how they get started… What chance does this family have to enjoy the peace and prosperity dad intended? Experience suggests that sister will treat the property as her own. She will be correct, legally. Cousins hating each other. Poison of resentment and ill-will seeping down the generations. Do not let this happen to you. Or your family.

Dad could have provided for the family. Avoided strife. Lawyers do come in handy, sometimes!

LETTER #2

How can I withdraw funds from my husbands bank account if I am not on his account?

Husband is a stroke patient in a nursing home. Medicaid covers all expenses. He has money from social security in his bank account that I can use to send to him for personal needs. I have all account numbers, ss number, etc but no pin number.

Powers Of Attorney: Faster Than A Speeding Bullet… More Powerful Than A Locomotive…Able to Change The Course Of Mighty Rivers, Bend Steel In Your Bare Hands?

You don’t have to be Superman to get the power to make a major difference in your loved one’s life. If your husband is still mentally alert, even though he may not be physically capable, he can give you the authority you need to take care of his business.

Powers of attorney are not all the same. They can differ radically in the way they operate and in your ability to get the job done. Be sure that the lawyer drawing up the power of attorney knows your goals. Of course, that is nice to say, but how to get it done in the real world. The answer is that most powers of attorney are intended only to allow you to pay the person’s bills. And pay. And pay. And keep on paying until the money is all gone. Which results in nursing home poverty. Powers of attorney can be drafted to save the family resources. Make sure that your attorney knows that this is your intention.

Here Comes The Judge!

If your spouse or loved one is not mentally competent, you have a date with probate court. The judge will decide (by clear and convincing evidence) whether you should have authority over your loved one. Guardianship is all about the person’s health and day-to-day living. Guardianship includes the right to make basic, routine money decisions. Conservatorship is all about the money.

Both forms of living probate involve special rules, court supervision, annual reporting and a limit on just what you are able to do with your loved one’s resources. Avoiding probate while you are alive should be, but usually is not, a laser focus of your estate planning.

Social Security…

The Social Security Administration does not care about your power of attorney. And they do not care about your guardianship or conservatorship either. Social Security operates across the globe and cannot be bothered to figure out the ins-and-outs of every judicial and legal system. It would be impossible.

What Social Security has done is create its own “brand” of guardianship. Your disabled loved one gets Social Security. Your guardianship and power of attorney are useless. Now you have to jump through the Social Security hoops and become Representative Payee. Now you can manage the social security.

Easy, huh?

You Choose!

There is nothing inevitable about nursing home poverty. Peace of mind and security are waiting for you. Right now. It is a choice. Despite what “everybody else” says. Despite their attempts to disguise the elephants in the room. For over thirty years, people have told me, “I’ve never heard of this before!” “If this is real, why doesn’t everyone do it?” “My lawyer/financial advisor/brother-in-law/accountant/tax person/banker/best friend/fill-in-the-blank never said anything like this…”

Applying for benefits does not mean Nursing Home Poverty or silly Spend Down. Learn how to preserve your loved one’s lifesavings, business, cottage, life insurance. Thousands of middle-class families have learned and use these techniques. Why not yours?

Got Questions? Get Answers!

GET ANSWERS NOW… THE CALL THAT CHANGES YOUR LIFE…
COME TO A WORKSHOP OR ATTEND A LIVE WEBINAR FROM HOME…
(800) 317-2812

Secrets Every Bride Should Know… And Every Groom Appreciate!

Opposites Attract
Ya Gotta Do What Ya Gotta Do
Not Really Kidnapping
Do It For The Children

She Said We Were Going Out To Dinner…
What Happened Next Changed Our Lives Forever

A Friday night in July. Hot. Humid. Threat of thunderstorms. Sue, a retired teacher, wheels the red Jeep Cherokee to the front door. Bob, an engineer, hops in, a bit mystified. “Where are we going?” he asks. “Your favorite steak place… Rico’s Rocket Room. But first, a special pre-dinner appetizer…” she mysteriously replies. After 30 years of wedded bliss, Bob wisely refrains from further comment and settles down for the ride.

Most married couples are not a matched set. Opposites do attract. She likes paisley, chintz, and patterned wallpaper. He prefers solid primary colors, leather, and walnut paneling. You say, “Spare the rod and spoil the child!” Your loving spouse whacks you in the head (figuratively!) with Doctor Spock’s “Baby and Child Care” book (also known as “How to Coddle a Criminal”). You “Rutabaga”. You say “Potato.” Loving spouse says “My sister and her family are coming to visit for a week. With my mom.” You say, well you say nothing at all. Or maybe, “Gosh, that’ll be nice.”

Couples who endure find ways of coping. Some delight joyfully in daily surprises dished up by their spouse. Others do not.

Noted finance guru, author, radio show host, and all-around wonderful fellow Dave Ramsey has observed: human beings are either natural spenders or natural savers. Not that there is anything wrong with either. But as you well know, natural savers overwhelmingly marry natural spenders. And vice versa. Sometimes this does not work. Debt. Fights. Divorce. But sometimes it works well. Balance. Harmony. Peace.

As a teacher, Sue is a natural planner. Lesson plans, grades, dates, times, objectives. Order. Sequence. Schedule. Engineer Bob thrills to the daily challenges he must solve.

An overloaded dam. A rusting bridge. Floods. Washouts. Emergency. Danger. Solution.

Two great workers who work great together. But after 30 years, they still only have the Last Will and Testament drawn up when they first had kids. Sue hears the clock ticking. Sue has reserved seats at the LifePlan™ Workshop several times now. Bob has always had an “emergency.” Of some sort. Including a dinner special at Rico’s Rocket Room…

Whose Fault When Nursing Home Poverty Strikes Middle-Class Savers?

Sue and Bob are just like your friends. Just like the folks at church. Little or no debt. Lifesavings. Home. Taking one day at a time and making the most of it. Confidence based on accomplishment. Security founded on savings. Sue and Bob recognize that they’re not experts on everything. A financial advisor helps. Medicare and Medicare Supplement insurance secure their future medical needs.

So who is to blame when middle-class folks, just like Sue and Bob, have to exhaust their lifesavings on long-term care? And give up their security. Fall into nursing home poverty? Did the Financial Advisor screw up? Is the Medicare Supplement insurance agent at fault? Somebody must have done something wrong… right?

Are You Stepping Into The Long-Term Care Trap?

Bottom Line: 70% of Americans need long-term care services for an average of 3+ years. 20% need long-term care for 5+ years. According to the federal government. Look it up. https://acl.gov/ltc You may not be interested in long-term care. But long-term care is interested in you.

Read On… To Learn The Rest Of The Story

Financial Advisors try to keep your money safe. And grow it too! Safe Money Plans claim to ride the market elevator up, but not down. Mutual funds, stocks, bonds, portfolio theory, annuities, retirement-year funds. They have charts and spreadsheets and glossy brochures. Have you ever been to a boat show? Salesmen, proposals, financing charts… You come home with a shopping bag full… Some financial advisors are kind of like that. Information overload… and all to do with: #1 Not losing your money in the market. And #2 Growing your money safely. All about investments and the market. But nothing about long-term care..

What about the Medicare agents? Medicare and Medicare Supplement insurance are intended, designed, and operate to make sure that seniors get top-shelf medical care. Need an operation? Medicare! Sick in hospital? Medicare! Broke hip? Medicare! But if you need long-term care for a chronic condition… dementia, physical disability… You are on your own! Sure, Medicare will help with rehabilitation, for a whole 20 days! And 80 more days, with a $170/day co-pay. If you qualify for rehabilitation. Which you will not.

Traditional estate planning lawyers want no part of this. Estate planning is all about when you die. Who gets the leftover stuff? How can we stop the kids from fighting over it? That is their concern. Foolish! When long-term care gobbles up all your stuff, there are no leftovers. Nothing for your estate plan to do.

Here is a crazy idea: What if we first made sure that you did NOT go broke? What if you could avoid nursing home and long-term care poverty?

Traditional planning leads to nursing home and long-term care poverty.

LifePlanning™ is the “Rest of the Story.” LifePlanning™ delivers freedom and choice. Sue and Bob earned the freedom to choose. By working. Saving. Doing all the right things. And they still fail, depending on Financial Advisors and Medicare. They were close, but…

A baseball that soars over the fence is called a homerun. A baseball that nicks the top of the fence and falls into the centerfielder’s glove is called an out. The celebrating football player who drops the ball one foot short of the goal line has a fumble. The one who protects the ball over the line has a touchdown. An almost win is a fail. A real win is a triumph… for you, for your family.

Why Should You Get Stuck With The Bill?

As anyone can see, rich folks have it made. Were you surprised when leaked IRS records proved that billionaires pay little or no federal taxes? Me neither.

Folks who have no resources cannot pay. Simple as that. Last I heard, you still cannot get blood out of a turnip. So I say, poor folks get services for free.

The rich have fixed things so they do not pay. The poor have no ability to pay. Who does that leave? Who gets stuck with the bill? Who pays for it all?

You do. Sue and Bob do. Middle Class foots the bill. Which sucks. Of course, it is nothing new. Other people have always counted on you. For your entire life. To do the job. Follow through. Pay taxes. Volunteer. Pitch in. Donate to charity. Bring something home-made to the potluck. And I pray you never change. Keep on smiling. Be reasonable, cheerful, action oriented. Do not let them get you down.

But gee… why do you have to go broke when your spouse needs long-term care?

Why Do They Say YOU Are Greedy?

They get care for free or without sacrifice. Sue and Bob are charged the highest rates and are wrung out to dry in a few months. Broke. All we ask is to keep some, a little bit. They say “No!” Take those Required Minimum Distributions… Pay the in- come tax. Too bad if grandkids need help. Sorry if you want to provide for your spouse… or yourself. Want to pay a little bit forward? Nope. You did work for it, but too bad. What the hell makes that OK?

Are You Selfish Because You Help Family First?

Sue and Bob are not selfish. Yes, some people are unlucky. True, bad things happen to good people. But seriously, some people are shortsighted and self-centered. They must have the new boat/car/ snowmobile/TV/cruise/whatever right now. Some sacrifice security for pleasure. Greedy, selfish people do exist. Bad decisions are made. We will take care of them all. No problem. But Sue and Bob want to take care of their own family first… how can that possibly be a bad thing?

I Expected A Cocktail And Hot Hors D’Oeuvres,
I Got An Oatmeal Raisin Cookie and A Bottle of Water

Minutes passed, miles rolled away, and Bob grew curious. “C’mon Sue, where are we going?” “You’ll see!” was her only reply. On arrival, a friendly young man greeted them. He handed over name badges, information folder and fresh-baked oatmeal raisin cookies. They chose bottled water over coffee. Sue and Bob were directed to their reserved seats. Several other couples, just like Sue and Bob, were there as well. Sue had finally gotten Bob to a LifePlan™ Workshop.

After introducing himself, the attorney conducting the Workshop asked if there were any questions.

Bob raised his hand… “What is this all about? Sue said we were going to dinner and here I am!” “Well dear,” said Sue, “this is that estate planning seminar we keep scheduling and cancelling…” “That’s fine,” said Bob, directing his comments to the attorney, “but there’s really only one thing that bothers me, and it keeps me up at night… what if I get dementia and need a nursing home… we’ve got a little saved, but what happens to Sue?”

That Workshop was the best! Sue had no idea that these questions were eating at Bob every day. He was even more concerned than she had been. She was surprised at the number of his questions. I was impressed with his analysis.

I don’t know what happened at Rico’s Rocket Room, or after… but Sue and Bob have turned out to be one of my favorite couples of all time.

Is It Kidnapping If It’s Your Spouse?

Getting your spouse to a LifePlan™ Workshop under false pretenses may be a bit extreme. But it is not kidnapping. Usually. Besides, desperate times call for desperate measures… You may not be sure exactly what to do.

As I see it, once you have decided to plan, you have three choices:

First: Same Old, Same Old

GOOGLE estate planning attorneys. Or look in the Yellow Pages. Ask friends. Check out billboards on the highway. Set appointments with several. Spread your personal information all over town. Thoroughly interview each. Ask questions. Get fuzzy answers. Lots of legalese. This will be great!

Second: Do Absolutely Nothing

Who wants to plan anyway? Spend all that time and money for what? A will or trust? Peace of mind… who needs it? You do not need that security. You like exactly where you are. Get exactly what you have always gotten. Acid indigestion. Insomnia. Migraines. This is as good as it gets.

Third: LifePlan™ Workshop – Kidnapping Optional

Try it, you’ll like it! Don’t give up your current plan right now. LifePlanTM Workshops are happening all over the place. Check it out. Once again offering those famous fresh-baked oatmeal raisin cookies. Sixty eye-opening minutes. You will be glad you did.

There’s no need to fear, the LifePlanTM Workshop is here!

Which Is Easiest For You?

Let’s see…
#1: Track down lawyers. Set appointments. Go to offices. Get third degree. Research. Try to pick… One Potato, Two Potato, Three Potato, Four…
#2: Sit Still and Go Broke.
#3: Sixty lively minutes. Getting the “Rest of the Story!”

Which one is easiest? Which most likely to help you to security and peace of mind?

Why Not Get It Done In Twenty-One?

I fear 2020 was a year of wasted opportunity for regular families. Devastating. The good news is that 2021 is rebounding! More families planning than ever!

Got Questions? Get Answers!

GET ANSWERS NOW… THE CALL THAT CHANGES YOUR LIFE…
COME TO AN IN-PERSON WORKSHOP…

LIVESTREAM ON-LINE AND GET ANSWERS TO YOUR PARTICULAR QUESTIONS
WHATEVER IT TAKES TO SERVE! (800) 317-2812

The Secret of Making Your Grandchildren Honor Your Memory

INDEPENDENCE DAY 2021

“I Have Not Yet Begun to Fight!”
 
—John Paul Jones

Who Else Wants Respect & Security?

“Those who would give up Essential Liberty to purchase a little Temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety and will Lose Both.”
 
—Benjamin Franklin

Two hundred and forty-five years ago, July 4. John Hancock put his improbable, swooping signature on a single sheet of paper. Over the next few days, 55 more guys signed off. Aged 27 to 70 years old. From all walks of life. That sheet of paper was a death warrant for each man who put his name to it. Fifty-six men, with full awareness, voluntarily agreeing to be pursued by the mightiest military on Earth. And killed if the British could catch them. That single sheet of paper was the Declaration of Independence. Treason against King George. Punishment: hanging by the neck until dead. Serious business.

As each man signed, he was offering up all he had. The Founders pledged “to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.” If captured, they could join Nathan Hale in pro- claiming, “I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country.” Why did these men take the risk?

We do not have to guess. The whole point of the Declaration was to set forth their reasons. The Founders explained how “[t]he history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States.” No room for doubt. About the stakes. Or the remedy. Quite clear.

When John Hancock signed the Declaration, the America Revolution was already more than a year old. For six more years, Americans would fight to secure for themselves and for us, “certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” Like the troops who stormed Normandy on D-Day, they knew what they were getting into. And went anyway.

You know, as I do, that respect and security, the blessings of liberty, do not come cheap. We do not suffer from the blindness and arrogance of great or inherited wealth. We have only the work of our hands. Our time. Our effort. Striving to create a world for ourselves, our families, our fellow Americans. We may not always succeed in our “pursuit of Happiness.” Still, as you know, it is not the destination that matters, but the journey. Effort and hard work come first, Respect and Security follow. You know that. So do I. It is not easy… who said it would be?

Many Americans (too many?) view Memorial Day as a long weekend, start of summer. An opportunity for cookouts, hotdogs, and s’mores. Unfortunately, Independence Day, to many people, is just Memorial Day plus fireworks. Why not make it different this year? The past year has been a truly bizarre, strange, and unsettling time. Perhaps, in 2021, 245 years after the first Independence Day, we can make it a little more…

Little Mistakes That Cost Middle Class America Trillions

Brief review. Three consequences of COVID. Using Harvard-approved information. Funded by Bill and Melinda Gates.1 Could the “smart people” have wrecked things worse if they were trying? What would Washington have done if King George had pulled this on the colonists… Three (3) Main Points: Jobs, Small Business, Education.

#1 – Jobs: Rich – Great, Middle Class – Hurt, Poor – Hammered

#2 Small Business: More Government Control, The Worse It Gets

#3 – Education: Rich – Great, Middle Class – Hurt, Poor – Hammered

Americans: Willing to Cross a Frozen River. At Night. To Kill You.

In Your Sleep. On Christmas. We’ve Done It.

THESE are the times that try men’s souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands by it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman.
 
—Thomas Paine

How much more can middle-class Americans take? Are you fed up with smiling faces telling you all is well yet? Lying to your face. Riots that are not riots? Sick and tired of murder rates jumping by huge percentages in city after city? Have you had enough of the “smart people” solemnly assuring you your desire for safe neighborhoods and secure borders means you are a bad person? Not to mention record-set- ting inflation, gas prices, housing costs. Now is not the time for wishing things were better. It is time to get to work.

Nothing about this will be easy. Not 245 years ago, not today. Back then the enemy was a tyrannical King. Today it is not so obvious.

But you can do it. You, the American middle-class, saved the world before, you can do it again. From Kaiser Bill to Hitler, Tojo, and Mussolini. You did it. Time to do it again. Not with B-17 Flying Fortresses, M4 Sherman tanks, or M-1 rifles. By reinforcing good, old-fashioned American values. Trustworthy. Loyal. Helpful. Friendly. Courteous. Kind. Cheerful. Thrifty. Brave. Clean. Reverent. The work starts at home, with each of us. Time to get to it!

The Only Answer: Middle Class Values
Life-Plan™ Salvation for the Middle-Class

Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph. What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly: it is dearness only that gives every thing its value. Heaven knows how to put a proper price upon its goods; and it would be strange indeed if so celestial an article as FREEDOM should not be highly rated.
 
—Thomas Paine

The rich do not need me. The poor I cannot directly help. That leave the middle-class. It is the middle-class savers, workers, builders that I can help. You get that bill: your guts turn to water, you are about to puke and you are desperately searching for a place to sit down. Relax! Your LifePlan™ will take care of it. You saw the signs: 70% need long-term care services. One in Five need long-term care services for more than five years. You rejected nursing home poverty. You choose the path of reasonable optimism, while guarding against the potential downsides. Hope for the Best, Plan for the Worst.

The LifePlan™ approach is the least expensive, most effective solution to the harsh reality of long-term care. You opened your eyes when faced with long-term care costs. Accepted reality. Refused to allow your lifesavings evaporate like a snowflake on a hot griddle. Recognized the reality of the caregiver spouse dying first, almost half the time and fixed it. Rejected nursing home poverty.

Never Too Late

Sitting there with the nursing home bill in your hand, you say, “Coulda, shoulda, woulda… And now it is too late! Maybe that LifePlan™ Workshop or Webinar would have been a good idea.”

It is never too late. There is nothing inevitable about losing your home, cottage, business, lifesavings, independence. Planning is the best route, but not the only one. Even if the dementia diagnosis was your wake-up call. Even if your attention was finally focused by the slip and fall broken hip. Do not give up the ship! It is never too late for you to be the hero… to fight and win!

Not Chance, Your Choice
Uncover The Elephant!

There is nothing inevitable about nursing home poverty. Peace of mind and security are waiting for you. Right now. It is a choice. Despite what “everybody else” says. Despite their attempts to disguise the elephants in the room. For over thirty years, people have told me, “I’ve never heard of this before!” “If this is real, why doesn’t everyone do it?” “My lawyer/financial advisor/brother-in-law/accountant/tax person/banker/best friend/fill-in-the-blank never said anything like this…”

Well, here you are. Now you know. No excuses. Get the information, insight, inspiration. It is your turn. Ignore the message? Invite poverty? Or get the freely offered information. To make wise decisions. For you. For your loved ones.

No Poverty. No Charity. No Waste.
It is not chance. It is choice. Your choice.

Get Information Now. (800) 317-2812

We Are So Screwed… Or Is This The “Best of Times”?

Oh No! Charts and Graphs…AUGH!

But I Was Promised There Would Be No Math

Truth, Facts, Reality

Most people like the truth. Don’t you find it helpful to know what is really going on? Truth, facts, reality. These are the cornerstones of middle-class life. If you fail to hammer your kids to do their homework, you get dumb kids. Sluff off on the job, get fired. Skip the mortgage payments, lose the house. Eat too much, get fat. Act like a jerk, live alone.

Truth and consequences. Most of us do not ping-pong between extremes of hope and fear. Steady on course. One brick at a time, we build security for ourselves and our families. Truth, facts, reality. We swim in a sea of action/reaction. Do immoral stuff, get corrupt fallout. Take virtuous actions, get wholesome goodness.

Fight the good fight, finish the race, keep the faith. Pour your life into meaningful deeds. Your kids will be OK. Loved ones will surround you. You will not be alone. Or broke. Christian folks are also assured that: “[T]here is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.” 2 Timothy 4:8 KJB So you’ve got that going for you, which is nice.

If you are like me, you understand: “different strokes for different folks”. We are everyday people. We don’t all see things the same. “Sometimes I’m right and I can be wrong.” Opinion, belief, attitude, outlook. “We got to live together.” Respect, conversation, acceptance. “And so on and so on and scooby dooby dooby.” (1)

Dedication to Truth. Respect for Each Other. That is how we got here. The most prosperous nation in the history of the world. The most accepting. The most generous. The most loving.

If you are like me, doesn’t it drive you nuts when somebody starts insisting on “their” truth? This truth, that truth? As if truth were blob of jello. Why can’t they just admit they have opinions? Perceptions? Points of view? Same as me. Same as you. Is their arrogance driven by insecurity? Some deep-seated emotional disturbance? Who knows? Who can know? I sure don’t.

What I do know is that facts are stubborn things. Get all the fancy degrees you want. Make impassioned arguments. Smoke a whole lot of weed, er, I mean “recreational cannabis.” Desperately convince yourself of “your truth.” But take away cops and bad guys come out to play. And steal. And murder.

New York (40%+). Chicago (55%+). Los Angeles (30%+). Tucson (38%+). Austin (55%+). Milwaukee (95%+). Minneapolis (72%+). Portland (52%+). Seattle (74%+).2 And so on and so on and scooby dooby dooby. (2)

Just The Facts, Ma’am, Just The Facts

We all have our opinions. Sometimes our opinions blind us to truth. So whenever possible, I like to use research from people whose politics and perspectives are different than mine. Use the other guy’s version of the facts. Approved by Harvard University and Brown University. Funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Liberal enough for you? And what did those folks find? (3)

Rich Folks Did Great, Middle Class Folks Got Hurt, Poor Folks Got Hammered

covid wages recovery

Everybody got whacked at the beginning of the pandemic. But low- and middle-income workers got it worst. And now, a year and a half later, turns out that high income people actually got more jobs. Up 2.4%. Middle-income folks are on the path to recovery. Down 4.5%. And the poor folks got screwed. Still down 24%.

How did that happen? Was it the inevitable, unchangeable Laws of the Universe? Bad luck? Random chance? Or do you suppose the magical creation of money by government wizards, coupled with unemployment payments exceeding normal take-home pay might have had an effect? If you do, you are most definitely a terrible person. Even worse if you wonder why there are three unfilled jobs for every unemployed person. What does it mean that a Boyne City sandwich shop pays $18 per hour and still cannot find “sandwich artists”? Makes you wonder, eh?

The More They Help, The Worse It Gets

small businesses open

Some governors like to protect us. Protect us from our own poor choices. (Except when it comes to weed, er, I still mean “recreational cannabis”.) What happens when government controls us? Uses a natural (or perhaps unnatural) disease pandemic to impose unprecedented, unconstitutional (according to the Michigan Supreme Court) executive orders? When government tells you to shut up, do this, do that. and don’t worry your pretty little head, is that a superhighway to success?

You could take a look at this Harvard-approved, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation-funded chart. Government controls lead to deeper small business depression. And when the controls come off, squashed small businesses do not recover as quickly or as well. Did not see that coming!

Who runs small businesses? Middle-class folks making middle range money. Who works for small businesses? Lower-wage workers.

Why it is almost as if all these consequences were connected!

And They Sacrificed The Future

Education is the path to freedom. You know this. That is why you spent more to buy a home in a “good” school district. That is why you put up with the rolling eyes, the protests, the whining and everything else to get your kids to do their homework.

But now it is the teachers who do not want to go back to school. With disastrous consequences. Once again we see the same pattern. Rich folks kids… drop off and recovery. Middle-class kids… much steeper drop off and much less recovery. Lower-wage family kids… bottomless pit!

Who can see this without compassion? Who can claim that it has to be this way? Who lacks the guts to stare reality in the face?

The Only Answer: Middle Class Values

Do you feel, as I do, that this could be the “best of times” for the middle class? For the truth that nothing good comes without hard work, dedication, and perseverance?

Do you see the consequences of today’s path? The dizzy disaster of multiple “truths”. The moral bankruptcy of cancel culture and pitting Americans against each other. The bloody, murderous, drugged-out despair in our cities, large and small.

Life-Plan™ Salvation for the Middle-Class

How do we convince the kids that our values are the best? Going broke in old age for long-term care may not be the best strategy. Middle-class savers, workers, builders can live well and leave a legacy of values. You get the nursing home bill: your guts turn to water, you are about to puke and you are desperately searching for a place to sit down. Relax! You took care of it… you have a LifePlan™. Be the hero… fight and win!

Not Chance, Your Choice

You know there is nothing inevitable about nursing home poverty. You worked for and deserve peace of mind and security. It is a choice. People tell me, “I never heard of this before! Why doesn’t everyone do it?”

Well, here you are. Now you know. No excuses. Get the information, insight, inspiration. It is your turn. Ignore the message? Invite poverty? Or get the freely offered information. To make wise decisions. For you. For your loved ones.

No Poverty. No Charity. No Waste.
It is not chance. It is choice. Your choice.

Get Information Now. (800) 317-2812

(1) Sly & The Family Stone, Everyday People
(2) https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1Z9b5mIwztAwmEHJW7Q5DHMjS14-Rs7XIXOt33Al_rDw/edit#gid=1757262194
(3) https://opportunityinsights.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/tracker_paper.pdf

Amazing Secrets Of Functional Families

Lawyer Reveals Shocking Insider Information

Revealed: Ancient Wisdom From Centuries Past

If you are like me, it is hard to turn on the television. Not because you cannot find the clicker. Not because you must go through a 12-step sequence just to watch a show. If you are like me, TV means a never-ending parade of Doofus Dads. Guys who are unlike anyone I know. Bumbling, fumbling. Embarrassingly rescued by the superior wisdom of their 10-year-old kid. Or other family member. It gets old. Tiresome. You take it in stride, but you do not like it. And it is everywhere. In commercials, dramas, comedies… even the “news.” Who is the idiot? Dad. Makes me sick… you too?

Most guys I know work hard. Provide for their families. Do good things. Become fathers. Accept their responsibility and do their best. And it has pretty much always been this way. Some folks say that we all become our fathers. There is truth in that saying. Most guys have had the experience of talking to their kids and realizing… I am saying the same things my dad said to me… in the same way! Ancient wisdom, handed down through the centuries. “Make your bed.” “Clean up your toys.” “Play nice with your sister.” “Don’t let money burn a hole in your pocket.” “Don’t complain, don’t explain.” “Measure twice, cut once.”

Guys like you have honored me over the last 31 years with your confidence. When I first got started, about a third of you were World War II vets. A sailor, captured on Wake Island a couple of weeks after Pearl Harbor. A machinist mate on the Yorktown at Midway, who “went swimming” when the torpedoes sank her. A P-51 Mustang pilot wounded by a bone-breaking bullet through his leg, who still made it home. My own uncle, a PT boat captain in the Pacific. Some at Normandy. Some serving with Patton. All guys. All competent. All dads. Most all of them have passed. But the wisdom remains.

The More Things Change, The More They Stay The Same
Your Turn Now

The men I meet today are not so different. Challenges have changed, but the calm competence remains. The eager willingness to take on tough jobs, to accomplish worthy goals. So different than the stereotypes of popular culture. Let us remember the importance of passing along this “ancient wisdom.” We owe it to our sons and daughters.

News has always been supported by selling advertising. Today that means clicks. Attention-grabbing headlines, so-called “click-bait”, are everywhere. Resistance to facts. Ignorance of history. Rejection of logic. Suspicion of reason. Why not make your life an antidote to the crazy?

But how?

When you avoid nursing home poverty, you demonstrate that your lifetime of constructive work was well worth the effort. You and your spouse remain secure and in control. At the end, the leftovers, your remaining assets, become a thoughtful legacy for those you leave behind. Actions speak louder than words.
That is a powerful message. Hard work does pay. Enduring faithfulness has rewards that extend through time. Results justify the struggle.

Not Chance, Your Choice

You can continue your legacy… there is nothing inevitable about losing your independence and security. All of that is a choice. Despite what “everybody else” says. For thirty years, people have told me, “I’ve never heard of this before!” “If this is real, why doesn’t everyone do it?”

You know the answer… it is the same answer for most questions about why people do not do what is best.

The Answer Is: It is hard. Difficult. Not easy. Like being a good, faithful father, a devoted dad. There are no shortcuts. Only by doing it right do you get the results.

Well, here you are. Now you know. No excuses. You have the information, insight, inspiration. Now it is your turn. Ignore the message? Invite poverty? Or get the freely offered information. To make wise decisions. For you. For your loved ones.

No Poverty. No Charity. No Waste.
It is not chance. It is choice. Your choice.

Get Information Now. (800) 317-2812

Happy Father’s Day To Lou Carrier | 96 Years And Going Strong

Dad: Extraordinary Influencer

If you are like me, you have had many influences in your life. Some good, some bad. But we each have a few folks whose example and experience outweigh all the rest. Within the framework of Father’s Day, I hope you will bear with me as I reflect on my own Dad.

Dad was a younger one of six children. Raised in a strict household where French was still the first language. The children began boarding school in the first grade. Girls with the nuns at the convent, boys with the brothers at the monastery. Working in the family business, a laundry, early on.

Still in high school when World War II broke out, Dad enlisted in the Navy, following his older brother, a PT boat officer. Dad rose to become a “Photographer’s Mate, Second Class.” I have his photos of FDR and ordinary sailors. Aircraft carriers and plane crashes. Aerial reconnaissance and portraiture.

Dad’s boss, commander of the Naval Air Station, Philadelphia, was pleased with his portrait. So pleased that no disciplinary action was taken after an incident that involved Dad parachuting from a perfectly good aircraft. Early on Sunday morning. To see what it was like.

Work And Family; Family And Work

After the war, he worked his way through college as a wedding photographer. Raising a family (eight of us kids), he taught at an inner-city school by day. Got home for a nap at 3:30. Dinner at 5:30. Off to the local Narragansett brewery to punch in at 6 pm, punch out at 2 am. Another nap. Up and at ‘em at 6:30. Sixteen hours a day for sixteen years. Quite an example.

Dad did not loaf around on weekends, either. Between his woodwork shop and photography darkroom, he kept making and creating. Busy. And he kept his oldest son, his apprentice assistant, busy too… running for tools, holding stuff in place, “helping.” Quite an experience.

Secure In The Universe… And Beyond

My father is a faithful Catholic Christian. Putting all those kids through parochial school was expensive, but there was no question.

Dad and Mom made it clear that each of us would have to figure out college on our own. At age 10, I had a paper route with my younger brother Mark. Six days a week, it was an evening paper. On Sundays, Mark and I got up extra early to deliver the morning edition. That paper route was not for “spending money,” it was a college fund. Papers delivered, we would rush home, wash up, and in our Sunday best for 9 o’clock Mass. No excuses. And you had better be in the car waiting for Dad.

Dad has never stopped learning or teaching. Summers, he continued to work full time at the brewery. But with school out, he took college classes for his master’s degree. I was ten years old, but he took me along and parked me in the library. After class he’d try to explain what he’d learned and why it mattered. Even today, you cannot talk with Dad for 5 minutes without him bringing up something new.

All The Dad-Isms Fit To Print

Most of the “Dad-isms” I heard growing up are too pungent to share, but here are a few:

1. Why can’t you be like Wally?! (A reference to the infinitely patient older brother on the Leave It to Beaver TV show).
2. Is this the best of your garden?! (Biblical reference, I think… has to do with Cain and Abel, first fruits of labor and that sort of thing).
3. Are you waiting for a personal invitation?! (In a family of 11, mom, dad, 8 kids, plus our Irish grandmother, Nana, nobody got a “personal invitation” to anything).

Today, others would judge his methods too strict and without concern for self-esteem. All I know is that he’s got 8 kids and 19 grandchildren, all of whom are doing just fine, thank you!

Like your own father, my Dad fundamentally influenced who I have become. Any drive, determination, or faith I have are echoes of his. My Dad celebrates his 96th birthday this Father’s Day from the family home on Cape Cod. Look him up on Facebook! He’d love to hear from you (if he’s not too busy!).

Small Businesses Breaking and Broke

Covid Over? 331 Million Americans Suffering, 33 Million Americans Infected, 600 Thousand Americans Killed, Government Gone Wild, Rust Belt Revival Risk

They Can Always Make It Worse

Have you noticed that our government is shoveling money out the door as fast as they can “print” it? Trillions (that is trillions, with a “TR”) of dollars have been conjured up out of thin air in the last couple years. How much is trillions? Lots. And lots. And lots. And then some…

Washington, D.C. Government computers humming along. Busily churning out all these brand-new dollars. Who needs a printing press? Besides, there isn’t that much paper on the planet.

Meantime, in the real world… I am sure you recall that place… the place with lockdowns, new normal, rules for thee but not for me… In that place, the economy tanked. Factories froze. Companies closed. Businesses busted. Hotels hurt. Restaurants retreated. Get the picture? If not, look out the window.

Let’s recap.

An Unbelievable, Incredible, Super Tidal Wave of Dollars.

Fewer Goods and Services. (Check out your local new car dealer).

Can you say, “Inflation?” I knew you could!

What is coming next? How can we deal with it?

These Truths We Hold To Be Self-Evident

If you are like me, you see the government as a monster that gobbles up tax dollars and spits out pot-holed roads. You and I do not expect good things from government bureaucrats, promises or programs. We wish they would just take the money from our paychecks and leave us alone. We cheered when Ronald Reagan said, “The nine most terrifying words in the English language are: I’m from the Government, and I’m here to help.”

Most of us middle-class folks who work for a living have enormous compassion for our truly disadvantaged brothers and sisters. Middle-class Americans, by far, are the most generous, charitable, open-handed people in the world. You can look it up. Helping strangers. Donating to charities. Volunteering time and effort. We do it. And we do more of it than anyone in the world. Authentic charity to solve genuine problems of our undeniably needy American family makes us feel great. Our hearts glow.

On the other hand, we are exasperated by government “social programs”. Huge sums dedicated to noble causes. Tiny dribbles of cash to those in need. Hard-earned dollars stupidly squandered on politically correct and tragically senseless schemes. Most of the money going to professional parasites, the Beltway Bandits. It is no coincidence that Washington, D.C. is surrounded by the richest communities in America. Tough job doling out your cash, but hey, somebody’s gotta do it!

Brave New World True Confessions

People like us cannot imagine that we would ever again see any of the money forked from our paychecks by government. Let others put their snouts in the trough. Just leave us enough to get by. We will figure it out. Frugality: beans and rice, rice and beans… Besides, it seems wrong that anything would come back to us… That is not how it works.

But pandemic panic politics has changed things. Can we deny the evidence of our own eyes? Radical reactions fundamentally overhauled our public policy. And economy. And our ability to plan.

None of us want the hand-out. Other folks got the gimmees, but not us. We play by the rules. Fairly. But what can we do when, in the middle of the game, they change the rules? Are we supposed to roll over and die? Go broke? Submit? No, thank you very much!

The World Turned Upside Down. Adapt Or Die… Or At Least Go Broke.

Many of us remember when expensive long-term care was unusual. Nursing Home Poverty was not a concern. Your grandmother did not have to sell the farm because your grandfather had dementia. Nor did your great-grandmother. Nor your great-great-grandmother. Regular people could save up, help the next generation. Not so much anymore. Failing to plan for long-term care in the 21st Century means, nursing home poverty, no choice, no legacy. Planning means security for you and your loved ones.

Just a short time ago, mere months, small businesspeople were riding high. Record numbers of women, Blacks, Asians, all sorts of ambitious entrepreneurs, were rolling up their sleeves and getting down to business. Sure, taxes, regulations, and competition were still big worries. But success was in the air. What do you smell today? Desperation. Confusion. Fear.

Government is pumping floods of cash to your competitors. Belly up to the bar! You cannot ignore the new reality or wish it away.

Truth And Consequences

Skilled care at $12,000 per month means you will need Medicaid. Broke or not broke, that is up to you. If you are like me, you will not like it. But it is not up to us. Our likes and dislikes are irrelevant.

Payroll Protection Plan, Economic Injury Disaster Loan, Employee Retention Tax Credit, Stimulus Payments. Just a few of the government programs dumping tons of money on small business.
The competition is getting this money. Other businesspeople have received and are receiving tens to hundreds of thousands. Direct from the money factory. If you are like me, you do not like it. Neither do I. But we cannot wish it away.

How can you say NO! to money that keeps your team members’ children clothed and fed, mortgages paid, and bills up to date? They made the rules. We must play by them or lose all we have worked for.

Paul Revere Rides Again
Inflation Is Coming,
Inflation Is Coming!

Gas prices at a 7-year high. Low interest rates. Sky high housing. Families priced out – cannot afford it! Factories shut down. Pipelines closed. Workers paid more to stay home than they could earn by working. Some prices have not changed, but there are fewer Cheerios, garbage bags, less laundry detergent in that box. More Money. Less Stuff. This is what inflation looks like.

How can local business survive? To get through this human-made storm, shouldn’t you take advantage of every opportunity? Including the uncomfortable, unavoidable opportunities provided by government programs? You did not ask for the money. You did not want the money. But the programs are here, your competition is taking advantage. You cannot afford to ignore them any longer. It is a matter of survival.

Most people, faced with disaster, will close their eyes. Hope for the best. And watch their business, life savings, and achievements of a lifetime evaporate like a snowflake on a hot griddle. Why do hard-working, prudent, frugal, middle-class entrepreneurs accept poverty? Most of the time?

Small Business Salvation – Employee Retention Tax Credit
Ten Things Everyone Always Gets Wrong (Mostly)

1. I got Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) money, I’m out!
False. PPP is irrelevant. Does not matter! Chin up… you can qualify whether your PPP loan was for Draw 1 or Draw 2, forgiven or not.

2. I did not qualify for PPP money, I’m a loser!
False. See #1, above. No relation between the programs. Irrelevant!

3. My business revenue did not decline, poor, poor pitiful me!
False. Is it a slam dunk if you had a revenue decline? Pretty much. But if putting in those 16-hour days means you kept the money coming in, we argue that COVID still fell on your business like a ton of bricks. Hundreds of pages of lawyer-talk interpret the law. It is complex. Do NOT jump to conclusions, bad or good.

4. I did not completely shut down, I’m sunk!
False. By soldiering on, you are a hero to me! Sure, complete shutdown is another (pretty much) slam dunk. But there’s more than one way to skin that cat!

5. My enterprise is an “Essential Business”, woe is me!
False. ERTC is supposed to keep people on the payroll. Being essential does not automatically disqualify you. For example, hospitals (pretty “essential” right?) clearly qualify. You might too!

6. I did not pay enough income tax to use a tax credit, I’m up a creek.
False. This is a refundable tax credit. If you can’t use the whole amount to offset tax, the government will shoot you a refund check. Also, as a payroll tax credit, your income doesn’t matter for eligibility.

7. Our FTE employment numbers are down, and our turnover is so high, I installed a revolving door! I’m down and dizzy.
False. Good News! The ERTC amount is based on the wages you paid to employees. It does not matter that they later left.

8. I managed to hire even more folks. I am doomed by my success.
False. Hey there hero! Not only can you qualify, you might even get a larger tax credit.

9. I was dazed and confused by the PPP process and this ERTC looks even worse. I do not want another migraine!
BINGO! The exception that proves the rule. ERTC is guaranteed to give you a splitting headache, halitosis, and the heartbreak of psoriasis. Or not. But payroll companies are asking their clients to sign liability waivers for messing this up. Our research and expertise will lighten your load.

10. My brother-in-law the accountant can do this. I am as confident in his abilities as I was in my electrician brother-in-law who burned down our house. Could have happened to anyone!
Well, maybe. We have heard too many accounts of accountants mistakenly claiming businesses would not qualify. Sometimes they are correct. Sometimes they just do not do the hard work of digging through the law. Go ahead, roll the dice on your future.

Not Chance, Your Choice

There is nothing inevitable about losing your independence and security. All of that is a choice. Despite what “everybody else” says. For thirty years, people have told me, “I’ve never heard of this before!” “If this is real, why doesn’t everyone do it?” “My lawyer / financial advisor / brother-in-law / accountant / tax person / banker / best friend / fill-in-the-blank never said anything like this…”

Well, here you are. Now you know. No excuses. You have the information, insight, inspiration. Now it is your turn. Ignore the message? Invite poverty? Or get the freely offered information. To make wise decisions. For you. For your loved ones.

No Poverty. No Charity. No Waste.

It is not chance. It is choice. Your choice. Get Information Now.

(800) 317-2812

Middle Class Families Go Broke Because “Experts” Broke Estate Planning

Elephants In The Room

Ever go to the zoo? Remember the Elephant House? Couple of big ole elephants in there… Elephants doing what comes naturally. Smelled strong, right? Tough to deny there is an elephant (or two) nearby. You can hear them breathing… moving around.

Now, if an elephant is sharing a room with you, wouldn’t that be significant? I tend to think it would be an important fact, don’t you? It is possible, perhaps, you would want to deal with your companion somehow. Well, I suppose you could pretend that there is no elephant. But wouldn’t that be foolish? Dangerous, even. Not good. You might step in something. Something might step on you. Either way… Squish!

Let us say you figured this one out. Using your five senses, plus common sense. Do you really need Sherlock Holmes, Columbo, or MacGyver for this one? And yet, various people, who claim to be experts, are trying to tell you there are no elephants. These people covered up the elephants with bedsheets. They talk about everything else. Minor stuff. Distractions. Everything except what is most important. But you cannot hide an elephant with a bedsheet! Yet they try. Why? What is going on here?

Long Term Care – The Biggest Elephant In The Room

What is the problem? Middle-class families go broke. All the time. Routinely. It is accepted and acceptable to the so-called experts. I think it is horrible. To work for a lifetime, saving, scrimping, economizing. And watch it all vanish in a matter of months. A nightmare.

“Do not worry!” say the experts, as they try to cover up that elephant. Trying to convince you that probate or interest rates or inflation or taxes are the “real” problem. Long-term care, they say, is something that happens to someone else.

I am no great fan of government information. But even a blind squirrel gets lucky sometimes. Here are a few chestnuts from the federal Department of Health and Human Services. At www.LongTermCare.gov, quoting:

  • Someone turning age 65 today has almost a 70% chance of needing some type of long-term care services and supports in their remaining years
  • Women need care longer (3.7 years) than men (2.2 years)
  • One-third of today’s 65-year-olds may never need long-term care support, but 20 percent will need it for longer than 5 years

You worked. You saved. You planned for your retirement. Time to relax. Travel. Spoil the grandkids. Not so fast. Not if you are like 70% of folks. You will probably need long-term care services for years. And leave your spouse destitute. And your legacy is…?

By ignoring the biggest, noisiest, smelliest elephant in the room, the burden of your care falls (like a ton of bricks) on your loved ones. If the caregiver is your spouse, they are as likely to die first as you are. Stressed out. Exhausted.

And the experts ignore all this. They want you to think that the real problem is how your kids get your stuff. As if there will be any stuff to get.

Yank the bedsheet off the elephant. Face the facts. Do not let fast-talkers distract you from the reality. Long-term care is the future for most of us. How are you going to deal with it?

Does It Matter To You? The Rich, The Poor, The Middle Class

Not everyone needs to worry about long-term care. Of the three large groups of Americans, only one really must be concerned. The Big Three are: The Rich, The Poor, The Middle Class.

Devastating Gut Punch. The Middle Class

Husband with some dementia. You can manage. Not much sleep. Stressful. But you can manage. Unfortunate fall. Broken hip. Hospitalization. Rehabilitation. Thank goodness for Medicare! And that Medicare Supplement insurance. Minimal out of pocket expense. Three weeks in rehab. Coming home? No.

You could barely handle him before. Now it is out of the question. He needs skilled care. At least for now… maybe he will get better… But Medicare is done. Insurance will not pay anymore. Now it is on you.

Letter in the mailbox. Looks like a bill. Return address: Nursing Home. First six weeks. $18,327. plus, tax. Your head hurts. You almost vomit. You have never seen a bill for this much. You have not spent $18,000 since you bought the house… What are you supposed to do? Better sit down. Quick.

It Don’t Matter To Me… The Rich, The Poor

The Rich. Your spouse transferred from rehabilitation to long-term care at the nursing home. The first bill came in today’s mail. Eighteen thousand dollars. Well. You did not think it would be cheap… actually pretty reasonable when you think about it. So, which account should you pay it from? The money market? Regular checking? Should probably ask the financial advisor… looks like this long-term care will be almost as expensive as maintaining the summer cottage and the ski condo, combined! Not counting the sailboat, jet skis or the golf cart, of course, let alone the horse boarding…

The Poor. Could not pay for the groceries without the Section 8 subsidized housing. Husband now in skilled nursing. How will you ever get transportation to visit? Hope there’s a bus line around there somewhere. Looks like a nursing home bill in the mail. Wow. That place is expensive! Eighteen thousand… and that’s just for the first six weeks. Sigh. Just put it on the stack with the other bills you cannot afford to pay. Have to prioritize… heat and groceries first. Good to know that with skilled nursing, his care is guaranteed. Even without Medicare or Medicaid or Medi-whatever, he will get the care he needs.

Long-Term Care Reality. Rich Man, Poor Man

It can be uncomfortable to look under the bedsheet and take a good hard look at the elephant everyone else is trying to hide. I do not apologize for that. Sometimes truth is not pretty. Facts can be inconvenient.

It is simply true that if you are wealthy, long-term care costs are manageable. You do not need me. Plenty of folks downtown in glass towers with expensive suits and ties are just dying to meet you. Original, incomprehensible art on the wall. Park in the ramp, bring your ticket for validation. Plan for long-term care or do not plan for long-term care, you are not going broke. Let those guys worry about your excess profit’s taxes, capital gains and all that…

It is also true that many families simply cannot begin to pay the costs of long-term care. A bill for $1200 is as much out of their reach as a bill for $12,000. And at that point, what does it matter? You cannot pay anyway. Social security cannot be taken from you. You will not be denied your housing assistance. Bills piling up are awful. Stressful. But at the end of the day, care will be given. Your personal property will not be taken. I cannot help you to preserve assets you do not have.

NOTE: The Medicaid system is extremely complex, with many variables, hurdles and hoops. It is not unusual for Medicaid to be denied to people who should qualify for benefits, often for technical reasons. Over the years, we have helped many such families resolve these issues and get the benefits. From time to time, we work with skilled nursing facilities to get the compensation they have earned by helping these families meet the legal requirements.

LifePlan™ Salvation For The Middle-Class

The rich do not need me. The poor I cannot directly help. That leave the middle-class. It is the middle-class savers, workers, builders that I can help. You get that bill: your guts turn to water, you are about to puke, and you are desperately searching for a place to sit down. Relax! Your LifePlan™ will take care of it. You saw the signs: 70% need long-term care services. One in Five need long-term care services for more than five years. You rejected nursing home poverty. You choose the path of reasonable optimism, while guarding against the potential downsides. Hope for the Best, Plan for the Worst.

The LifePlan™ approach is the least expensive, most effective solution to the harsh reality of long-term care. You opened your eyes when faced with long-term care costs. Accepted reality. Refused to allow your lifesavings evaporate like a snowflake on a hot griddle. Recognized the reality of the caregiver spouse dying first, almost half the time and fixed it. Rejected nursing home poverty.

Never Too Late

Sitting there with the nursing home bill in your hand, you say, “Coulda, shoulda, woulda… And now it is too late! Maybe that LifePlan™ Workshop or Webinar would have been a good idea.”

It is never too late. There is nothing inevitable about losing your home, cottage, business, lifesavings, independence. Planning is the best route, but not the only one. Even if the dementia diagnosis was your wake-up call. Even if your attention was finally focused by the slip and fall broken hip. Do not give up the ship! It is never too late for you to be the hero… to fight and win!

Not Chance, Your Choice. Uncover The Elephant!

There is nothing inevitable about nursing home poverty. Peace of mind and security are waiting for you. Right now. It is a choice. Despite what “everybody else” says. Despite their attempts to disguise the elephants in the room. For over thirty years, people have told me, “I’ve never heard of this before!” “If this is real, why doesn’t everyone do it?” “My lawyer/financial advisor/brother-in-law/accountant/tax person/banker/best friend/fill-in-the-blank never said anything like this…”

Well, here you are. Now you know. No excuses. Get the information, insight, inspiration. It is your turn. Ignore the message? Invite poverty? Or get the freely offered information. To make wise decisions. For you. For your loved ones.

No Poverty. No Charity. No Waste.

It is not chance. It is choice. Your choice.

Get Information Now. (800) 317-2812

Traditional Trusts Fail Families. Save The Cottage!

Summertime Stories

Remember Grandma’s Cottage? You learned to swim there. Caught your first fish (what do I do NOW?!). Stealing bacon for bait when you ran out of worms. The leaky rowboat. Crammed with your cousins in sleeping bags on the “living room” floor. Trading stories in the dark. Grownups yelling “Shut up and go to sleep!” from the patio. Waiting for the charcoal to get just right. Hotdogs on the grill. Toasting marshmallows. Fireflies. That particular musty damp smell. Whatever happened to that place?

Well, they put all us kids on the deed, but it was sold when… Grandpa went into the nursing home… Uncle Chuck went bankrupt… Aunt Susan’s kids kept trashing the place… Aunt Beth got divorced… Cousin Ed needed college money… We just didn’t go anymore… Many reasons, no more memories, no more stories.

But the Cottage can be saved. You can do it. Your kids and grandkids can live those stories, create those memories. Share experiences. Bond as a family. Build the stories they’ll tell the next generation. Crammed with their cousins, in sleeping bags, in the same “living room.”

Do Not Trade The Cottage For The Nursing Home

Most folks simply do not plan for long-term care. You have heard bits and pieces. Old lake friends forced sale to pay the bills. Horror stories. Bad luck. Tough. Sorry it happened to them. Could not happen to your family.

Clarity is the first step. Estate planning is not about the next generation. It’s about you. Right now. Preserving what you own. Protecting what you value. Traditional estate planning fails families. Most folks eventually need long-term care. Most folks eventually sell the Cottage to pay for it. Simple as that.

You can avoid nursing home poverty. Why isn’t it your top priority? How? LifePlanning™. This system acknowledges that middle class prosperity and independence are destroyed by long-term care costs. LifePlanning™ first protects the Cottage and other family assets. Once life savings are protected, the family can intelligently and purposefully plan for life choices respected.

Now the Cottage is protected and purposefully planned. Life choices respected. No threat from health care, lawsuits, or long-term care expenses. Now we are able to look to the future. Some fundamentals are key.

Estate planning is not about the next generation. It’s about you.

Cottage Life Cycle

Cottages have a life cycle that is remarkably consistent. Ignoring the Cottage Life Cycle practically insures failure. Most planning ignores the Cottage Life Cycle.

Little Kid: Grandma’s Cottage is a magical place: sunny days, puffy clouds, fish a-biting, campfires, friends, swimming. Let’s go! Glorious!

Teenage Years: Grandma’s Cottage is a stinky dump. Why do I have to go? Not cool. Get me outta here!

Young Adult: Bills, bills, bills. Cottage? Sorry: no time, no interest. Cash me in my share of Grandma’s Cottage. So, what if you have to sell it? I ain’t got time for that now.

Married with Children: Gee, whatever happened to Grandma’s Cottage? Too bad our kids won’t have that experience. We can’t afford a Cottage at today’s prices. Even the rentals are outrageous. Too bad.

Grandma’s Cottage begins and ends as the most desirable place in the world. But in the meantime, urgency overrules importance, and the Cottage is sacrificed. Bad luck. And it doesn’t have to be that way. You can have both nostalgic memories and today’s adventure.

Two Traditional Techniques, Two Ways To Fail

Families have failed for generations to protect the family Cottage. I blame the lawyers who advise poorly. You think they would have learned by now. You would be wrong. For generations, the most popular techniques are “last man standing” and the “corporate model.” Both facilitate failure.

Last Man Standing

By far the easiest, cheapest, most popular, and least likely to succeed: “Putting the kids on the deed.” Usually as joint tenants with rights of survivorship. Sometimes (usually by mistake) as tenants in common. Disaster! Joint tenancy equals no rules. Everyone can do anything. No one must pay. And you cannot get out of it. Except by death. Example: Grandma and Grandpa put Aunt Sue and Uncle Chuck “on the deed.” They pass on. Aunt Sue pays all the taxes, utilities, upkeep. Uncle Chuck brings his 30 closest outlaw biker chums for the weekend. Every weekend. Aunt Sue cannot prevent it. Cannot stop him. Cannot make him pay his “fair share.” And if Uncle Chuck lives longer than Aunt Sue, he owns it all. It happens. Failure. But it does avoid probate… whoopee!

Sometimes, when one kid has great financial need (real or imagined), the others will agree to sell the Cottage. Failure again.

Corporate Calamity

So how about some rules? Great idea! And that is the basis for the “corporate model.” Create a limited liability company (“LLC”). Now there are rules. But a new problem. The corporate model gives each beneficiary the right to leave. And to be paid off. Compensated for their share of the Cottage. That is when the corporate model fails. Sooner or later, someone wants out. And they have a right to money. Which the family does not have. Forced sale of the Cottage. Failure.

Remember the Cottage Life Cycle. At some point, each beneficiary will “need” the money more than the Cottage. My experience is that it only takes one. One kid to say “Cash me in.” And then the Cottage is sold. Memories last forever, but that’s the end of the Cottage experience.

A New Hope: The National Park Model

Weaknesses of the Two Traditional Techniques are painfully obvious. And have caused great pain in thousands of families. New hope comes in the National Park Model. It is simple.

Grandma and Grampa want future generations to have magical, irreplaceable experiences. Grandma and Grampa know Cottage Life Cycle. They have seen it in operation. They want to guarantee their legacy.

Here’s the idea: National Parks were established to preserve the irreplaceable. Fill in the Grand Canyon? There isn’t another one. Pave over Yellowstone? Gone for all time. But. Set these treasures aside. Prohibit selfish or short-sighted decisions. Focus on the far future. Now things look different.

You can’t “cash in” your share of Yellowstone or Yosemite, just because you don’t plan to go. Why should you be able to “cash in” the Cottage? And wreck it forever?

You can’t just throw down a tent and sleeping bag in a national park. You have to pay the expenses you create. Why should anyone freeload on the Cottage? Why not establish a budget and other mechanisms that will ensure long term viability?

That’s how dozens of families are now protecting the Cottage today. Rules for harmony. Preserving the past for the future. Pay as you go, while building reserves. No desperation. No leaky roofs. No unpaid taxes.

The National Park Cottage Trust works well in many contexts. The hunting property. The family farm. The townhouse. Clarity eliminates family strife. Reliable rules cement family relationships. In a world of conflict and chaos, wouldn’t it be nice to establish a safe haven? Traditions that will endure. Memories down through the ages. Without regret.

In a world of conflict and chaos, wouldn’t it be nice to establish a safe haven?

Taking Care Of Yourself Is Taking Care Of Your Family

Too many families have the story of the Cottage, the Farm, the Hunting Cabin that “got away.” Your family does not have to suffer a similar fate. You can be the author. Rewrite the future story of your life and your family’s. The National Park Model approach preserves resources, strengthens relationships, achieves your highest goals. And when your great-great-great grandchildren laugh with delight, learning to swim, fish and camp on the Cottage you provided for them… Well, I expect you’ll hear it, all the way over on the other side of the Great Divide.

Call (800) 317-2812

Mail Call: Answers To Your Estate Planning Questions

(Not Edited For Spelling Or Punctuation) (Note: Not Legal Advice!)

Long answers are boring, short punchy answers are fun! Time for some fun…

LETTER #1

How should I word a letter to say I withdraw specific grants of authority on a POA?

I am primary agent on my father’s POA, but need to produce a letter that says I will not act as agent with respect to obtaining financial assistance from or communicating with Medicaid. Is that wording correct? Do I have to title it as an affidavit?

The Answer Is: “With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility”

Do Not Do This Bad, Awful, Evil Thing

Point #1 This is total BULL. You have been given the great power to make your father’s remaining life a life worth living. You are being asked to throw away that power, to sacrifice your father’s well-being.
Your father granted you authority to make decisions on his behalf. You accepted that responsibility. You have a duty to your father to exercise the authority you have been given in your father’s best interest. Your father’s best interest. Not the interest of somebody who wants to take advantage of your father.

Point #2 Who is asking for this? Who says you “need to produce a letter”? No reputable care facility would ask for this. No one who cares about your father would ask for this. There is no GOOD reason for anyone would ask for you to give up your father’s entitlement to federal health care benefits. There are lots of BAD reasons, though.

Point #3 Middle-class America already won this fight. Back in the day (as the kids say)(or used to say)(or never said but I thought they did)… When I first started doing this stuff, 31 years ago, it was not uncommon to see demands like this in long-term care contracts. The State of Ohio even prohibited Medicaid recipients from speaking with attorneys about their benefits. All blatantly wrong. All clearly illegal. Federal law is clear: no one can require you to give up your federal health care benefits. And that means you cannot give up your father’s federal health care benefits. You do not “need” to produce any such letter. Whoever asked for the letter was probably breaking federal law.

Point #4 Medicaid simply is the way America pays for long-term care.

  • Folks spend themselves into nursing home poverty.
  • Savings exhausted, farm sold, cottage gone, destitute.
  • Apply for Medicaid.
  • Get base level of care, paid by Medicaid.

Point #5 Middle-class savers can obtain Medicaid benefits in full compliance with state and federal law without going broke. Your savings can supplement Medicaid so that you receive the highest level of care, tailored to your unique needs.

Point #6. Private Pay Rates are about 50% higher than Medicaid rates for the same services. Reality Check: Look at your last medical or hospital bill. Do you think the hospital is paying $12 per aspirin?

Conclusion: Do not betray your father. Dear old Dad trusted you to act in his best interest. Accept the great responsibility that comes with great power. Make his remaining time on this planet the best time of his life.

LETTER #2

My husband’s step grandmother died in August. Her son (not our blood relative obviously) contacted us as the executor.?

He told us that he is distributing the proceeds of her estate and that he is sending us a check, even though we are not named as beneficiaries. My mother-in-law is livid (she has a number of mental and health issues) she cares for her disabled brother (both are beneficiaries) he is concerned she is not adequately caring for her brother. She is demanding that we not accept the check. What should we do here??

The Answer Is: Only Santa Claus Can Give Things Away for Free

You know you are not a beneficiary. If the money you are receiving was supposed to go to other people, that is a problem.

Point #1 Most folks do not leave money to grandchildren. And it is even more unusual to include step-grandchildren. As you observe, your husband is not a relative or named beneficiary. It is hard to see that he has any entitlement to a distribution.

Point #2 Your mother-in-law and her disabled brother appear to be children of the deceased step-grandmother. They are legitimate beneficiaries.

Point #3 If somebody is giving away your inheritance, you are justified in getting hot under the collar. BONUS POINTS: Extra aggravation if your disabled brother’s inheritance is being given away. Especially when you are caring for said disabled brother.

Point #4 Proper estate distribution is up to the personal representative (aka executor). Unless you acted improperly, distribution problems are on the executor-brother.

Head-scratcher: What the hell is going on here? See Point #1. This is strange.

Possibility #1: The executor-step-uncle is giving a portion of the executor-step-uncle’s own share to your husband. If so, no problem.

Possibility #2 The executor-step-uncle is making an unauthorized distribution of the estate. If so, the Probate Court could order your husband to disgorge the money. Also, executor-step-uncle is in deep doo-doo.

Conclusion: “Livid” mothers-in-law with “a number of mental and health issues” are not always wrong. Find out whether executor-step-uncle has any legal basis to make the distribution. If no legal basis can be determined by your own lawyer, do not take the money. Better safe than sorry.

LETTER #3

Can an executrix of a will evict a sibling who is also a beneficiary and has lived in the house for 40 years?

My ex-husband has been unable to work for the past 10 years in order to take care of his 99-year-old dad. He passed late last year. His sister took her dad to a lawyer when he was about 90 to create a will. 70% her/30% him. Ex-husband has lived in the very modest home for 40 years. He has no means to start over.

She is the owner of 2 homes and made enough money to retire at 59 (probably not relevant).

The Answer Is: Yes.

Point #1 Father opened his home to son for 30 years before father needed son’s help. Perhaps that helps explain the 70/30 split. Maybe sister isn’t such a “rhymes with witch” after all…

Point #2 Nowadays it is not so unusual to have the holdover tenant child. The kid moves home for a week. Or two. Or THIRTY YEARS! How is it that the kid could not save an apartment rental deposit in thirty years of working plus ten more years of not working and living off dad’s social security and pension. Jeepers!!

Point #3 Eviction is the remedy. In my experience, the “Irish Bachelor” son or daughter has no intention of going soft into that good night of leases, mortgages, rent and maintenance. EEEK! Responsibility! Oh no! Oysters have less attachment to their shells. Frequently the other siblings let “Timmy” stay in the house after the funeral. “For a little while.” Five years later somebody wakes up to the fact that Timmy ain’t goin’ nowhere! Far from being grateful, Timmy is angry that anyone has figured it out…

Point #4 The COVID moratorium on evictions is still in effect. That means you cannot legally evict Timmy. Serve him with the eviction papers anyway. You could try reasoning with Timmy. It will not do any good. At least you can get your ducks in a row for the moment evictions are once more possible.

Point #5 If dad had put Timmy on the deed, you could never get him out. So do not put your kids on deeds.

Point #6 A parent can give a caregiver child the house without screwing up their own Medicaid. The key is that the child has to reside with the parent and provide two (2) years of care services that keep the parent out of the nursing home.

Conclusion: There are dangers and opportunities when a child moves home. Mostly dangers. Consult with your friendly, neighborhood elder law attorney to avoid the mistakes and maximize the advantages.

YOU CHOOSE!

Applying for benefits does not mean Nursing Home Poverty or silly Spend Down. Learn how to preserve your loved one’s lifesavings, business, cottage, life insurance. Thousands of middle-class families have learned and use these techniques. Why not yours?

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