“How to Use IRA Savings to Buy Long-Term Care Insurance,” by Rick Pendykoski, ElderLawAnswers “Typically, withdrawals or non-qualified investments (including insurance purchases) made with IRA funds before the age of 59½ are subject to taxes and penalties. Certain allowances are made if you use IRA savings to pay for medical expenses that exceed 10 percent of your adjusted gross income, or if you’re unemployed and using these funds to buy medical insurance. Although these exemptions don’t apply if you’re buying LTCi directly with your IRA savings, there are some indirect options available that allow you to avoid taxes and penalties.
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“MarketWatch: Pick a Reverse Mortgage Instead of Care Insurance,” by Alex Spanko, Reverse Mortgage Daily “Reverse mortgage professionals know that partnerships with financial planners could hold the key to endorsement growth, and a national business publication found an advisor who recommends Home Equity Conversion Mortgages over long-term care insurance. MarketWatch this week featured George Gagliardi, a financial planner from Lexington, Mass., who’s “growing increasingly fond” of the reverse mortgage option for clients who come to him asking about long-term care insurance.” LTC Comment (from Stephen A. Moses, President, Center for Long-Term Care Reform): More bad advice from a financial planner.
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“5 Top States for Long-Term Care Insurance Use,” by Allison Bell, ThinkAdvisor “In spite of all of the gloom and doom surrounding private long-term care insurance, more than 10% of the older residents of five states have it. Long-term care insurance penetration among residents ages 40 and older ranges from 2.5% in Nevada to 12% in the top state, with a median of 4.7%. AARP has published state-by-state data on long-term care insurance ownership, and dozens of others related to long-term care needs, delivery systems and finance systems, in a database linked to its latest long-term services and supports state
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“A new affordable housing option?,” by Lois A. Bowers, McKnight’s Senior Living “Dr. Bill Thomas has a new project for affordable seniors housing: tiny houses that could be used as accessory dwelling units (‘granny pods’) or clustered into so-called pocket neighborhoods. Thomas, founder of the Eden Alternative and the Green House Project, announced his project, called Minka at the recently concluded Senior Living Innovation Forum, according to a blog post related to the meeting.” LTC Comment (from Stephen A. Moses, President, Center for Long-Term Care Reform): Granny flats are nothing new, but it will be very interesting to see what
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“How To Turn A Glass Of Wine Into A $173,000 Bump In Your IRA,” by Paul Katzeff, Investor’s Business Daily “Playing the odds. Carrozza says a client couple both had long-term care insurance policies. The wife, who was 62 years old, was paying $2,500 a year. Her 68-year-old husband was paying $3,200. ‘We reasoned that statistically speaking, the wife would likely be able to help care for her husband, should the need arise,’ Carrozza said. ‘She, however, wanted to retain her insurance, so as not to be a burden on their children in years to come.’ The husband dropped his
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