Real Estate Matters

Silver Edition. News & Issues for the Mature Market

Quarterly Newsletter – October 2003

www.seniorsrealestate.com

When It’s Time to Move On

No matter how old you are, moving is one of those good news/bad news events. The optimist looks forward to a “fresh start,” while the pessimist views the experience as “having to start over.” Both are right.

There are many positive reasons to scale down to the easier lifestyle of a formal retirement community: safe, comfortable designs; liberation from difficult household chores; the convenience of lock-it-and-leave-it; recreation, educational and social activities; meal preparation, cleaning, and laundry services; transportation; on-site emergency response and medical care.

One way to handle the downside of a move is to cast the new home in a favorable light. As people age, it is natural for them to feel more vulnerable, so housing designed for safety and access can provide a psychological lift. Proximity to medical, social and support services can be a welcome change. For those who live alone, moving to a community of peers may offer the promise of a new circle of friends.

Making the decision to move is the first, but not necessarily the hardest step. After making the initial decision, seniors need to tackle a number of essential tasks: taking inventory of accumulated possessions, deciding what to keep and what to dispose (and doing it), selling existing residence, planning arrangement of new space, packing up, and moving – out and in. For many seniors who will be downsizing to smaller homes or apartments, a major obstacle is how to deal with a lifetime accumulation of ‘things’.

To help overcome procrastination, seniors may want friends and family to join the planning process and help with transitions. Or they may prefer to enlist the professional services of an objective third party. Many seniors find this arrangement less tense than working with their own children. In most areas, services are available to help seniors plan and carry out all phases of the decision to scale back and actually move. (Source: Guide to Retirement Living and RisMedia.com)

Locating Housing Options for Seniors

(ARA) More than 40,000 Americans search for information on senior living facilities each day. Given that by 2015 45% of the entire U.S. population will be seniors, it is no surprise that more and more adults have growing concerns about the future of their loved ones and themselves.

Finding long-term care for seniors can be an overwhelming and complex task for everyone involved. Family members often feel frustrated and wrought with guilt. Seniors often resist change for fear they are losing their independence.

Fortunately, online support tools have been created to make these decisions easier. As a result of his own personal experience, Ted Tanase founded www.tlchoices.com, a free Internet-based service that helps seniors and their family’s research and identify the appropriate senior living facility no matter where they live or what types of services or amenities the senior requires. To provide additional insight to facilities that match a user’s personal criteria, the service offers an objective five-star rating system measuring the overall quality, breadth of services and amenities.

In addition to personalized matching services, the website provides information for seniors who want to continue living in their own homes, but may need to make some lifestyle adjustments.

(Source: aracontent.com, tlchoices.com)

Page 2 Real Estate News & Issues

What is Elder Law?

Combine the American legal system with issues of aging and you have one complicated mess of rules and regulations that takes, you guessed it, a lawyer to figure out. But not just any lawyer - an elder law attorney.

Over the last decade, a new legal specialty has evolved to deal with the growing elderly population and their unique and often complicated financial, medical, and legal needs.

“You might think of elder law as an expanded version of estate planning,” states Charles Sabatino, Assistant Director of the American Bar Association Commission on Legal Problems of the Elderly. “Elder law goes beyond the usual after-death planning for disposition of property to more important lifetime issues such as dealing with quality of life during your last decades.”

Sabatino explained that “planning is the focus” of elder law, including taking steps to preserve independence for as long as possible and appointing an advocate in the event of incapacity.

This new breed of attorneys prides themselves on their interdisciplinary strategy to helping seniors figure out the best approach to their unique needs. Elder law attorneys often work with geriatric care managers or other eldercare specialists to identify services available in the community and to suggest financial alternatives such as long term care insurance for their clients’ medical needs while safeguarding their assets.

The nation’s growing elderly population is a key factor behind this emerging elder law specialty. There are now more than 33 million Americans 65 or older, representing nearly 13% of the population. The fastest growing segment of that group are those people over 85 who, coincidently, are the same people most likely to require nursing home services. (Source: Guide to Retirement Living)

As a Seniors Real Estate Specialist®, I have the training and resources to work with you on all of your real estate needs. I will work with you to provide you with information to benefit you as a homeowner. For more information on important Senior Issues, call me at: (352-302-1713).

Real Estate Matters: News & Issues for the Mature Market

Emil P. Lupu Realtor® SRES®

352-302-1713

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Inside This Issue:

· When It’s Time to Move On

· Locating Housing Options for Seniors

· What is Elder Law?

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