My goal is to stay in my home for as long as possible. Can an elder law attorney help me age in place?

Many seniors would prefer to remain in their own homes rather than uproot and move to a nursing home to receive around-the-clock care. Besides the issue of expenses, staying home means remaining independent and keeping your familiar surroundings. While this option isn’t always possible for everyone, an experienced elder law attorney may be able to help you achieve your goal of aging in place by crafting a plan suited to your specific situation.

Preparing to Age in Place

If you want to age in place instead of receiving care at a facility, you need to plan ahead by setting financial and property goals geared towards staying at home as long as possible. That may mean taking different steps based on your current assets and any recent medical diagnoses.  An elder law attorney can assist in reviewing your financial situation and help with: 

• Changes to living arrangements such as paying for assistive technology to ensure your home meets your healthcare needs.
• Ensuring family members or a trustee know your wishes and can help with your day to day needs.
• Finding means to cover home healthcare costs, such as Medicaid or veterans assistance programs.
• Managing retirement plans.
• Setting up trusts to protect your assets and ensure you and your heirs have what they need.

Depending on your health situation, you may need to consider potential guardianship to have someone make medical decisions on your behalf if you are incapacitated. If you aren’t prepared for that eventuality, you may end up in a situation where a court appoints a guardian who may not honor your wishes. 

Planning for Other Options

While the goal is to remain at home permanently, it’s important to have a contingency plan in place if you end up needing nursing home care unexpectedly. An elder law attorney can explain how to qualify for Medicaid to cover the cost of a nursing home stay without losing out on coverage due to the program’s five-year lookback period. 

Even if you are healthy and able to remain independent at home today, that may not be the case several years from now. If you fail to plan for this possibility, you may be left paying for an unavoidable nursing home stay out of your own pocket, which can be financially devastating.

Let Our Experienced Wilmington Elder Law Attorney Help You Get Ready for the Future

Worried about how you will stay at home in your later years? Our dedicated elder law attorney can offer peace of mind and ensure you know exactly how to cover home care costs while preparing for sudden life changes. Contact us today.