LTC Bullet: A
Home Can Protect Both Health and Wealth Wednesday,
November 28, 2007 Seattle-- LTC
Comment: Is it appropriate
and cost-effective to use a reverse mortgage to fund long-term care
insurance? Here's a short
article claiming it is and offering an analytical model to prove the
point, after the ***news.*** ***
LTC TOUR UPDATE. Interest
in and support for the Center for Long-Term Care Reform's National
Long-Term Care Consciousness Tour continue to grow.
In fact, available dates on our Southeast itinerary for
January-February 2008 are going fast.
Contact the Center ASAP to learn more and get on board:
206-283-7036 or smoses@centerltc.com. Steve
Moses says: "The
'Silver Bullet of Long-Term Care' has arrived at the Airstream
dealership in Tampa. I'll
pick it up in late December, airbrush the logos of LTC Tour sponsors
onto it, hook up with the silver FJ Cruiser that's already in port in
Jacksonville and begin the Tour. Maybe
this isn't 'Got Milk,' but I guarantee it will attract huge public
attention to the importance of responsible LTC planning."
Check out a picture of the Silver Bullet and all the details
about the LTC Tour at the top of www.centerltc.com. The
LTC Tour begins January 1, 2008 in Tampa.
We'll move down the West coast of Florida doing programs in Ft.
Myers and Naples. Then
we'll cross Alligator Alley to Miami, head up to Orlando, and meet with
some politicos in Tallahassee (the state capital) en route to events in
North Carolina including a speech to the state nursing home association.
Then comes Knoxville and Nashville, Tennessee, Columbia, South
Carolina and several events in and around Atlanta, Georgia, including
the 2008 LTCI Producers Summit. [Come
see us at the Producers Summit. See
http://www.aaltci.org/2008summit/
for details and registration.] That's
it for starters. We're
hoping the big intercompany long-term care insurance conference
scheduled for March 16-19 in Jacksonville, Florida will also have a
place for the LTC Tour and the "Silver Bullet" to attract
positive media attention. What
a contrast to the blistering attack on the industry in the New York
Times at the start of last year's conference!
[Details and registration for the 8th Annual
Intercompany Long-Term Care Insurance Conference are at www.iltciconf.org.]
*** LTC
BULLET: A HOME CAN PROTECT
BOTH HEALTH AND WEALTH LTC
Comment: We've always
thought reverse mortgages could help many Americans bear the cost of
long-term care insurance protection.
It's controversial to some.
In fact, when I see ads, as I did this morning, touting big
commissions instead of benefits to seniors, it bothers me for sure.
But
home equity is by far the biggest repository of private wealth available
to help aging Americans obtain quality long-term care and avoid the
Medicaid trap. So using
relatively small amounts of home equity to fund full LTC insurance
protection is worthy of consideration and analysis.
Following
is a brief article by a reverse mortgage specialist who says he's run
the numbers. Read his
overview and follow up regarding the computational model if you're of a
mind to do so. He'll send
you a Beta version for free and would appreciate receiving your analysis
and opinion in return. --------------------- "A
Home Can Protect Both Health and Wealth" More
seniors are recognizing the need for long-term care insurance to protect
their assets and relieve the financial burden of medical expenses on
their families. In many
cases, younger seniors are, or have recently been, care givers for their
elderly parents or relatives. One
obstacle they often voice is, "How can I afford this
insurance?" Many do
not have the retirement income necessary to pay the premiums for
long-term care coverage. Right
now the government may provide long-term care to the impoverished
through Medicaid, but this option is fading as legislation restricting
qualification for the program becomes more prohibitive. Everyone
is aware of the recent and rapid growth of reverse mortgages.
Part of this growth is due to the large "baby-boomer"
generation aging into senior citizenship.
One of the most prevalent needs for reverse mortgage money is to
pay the in-home care costs of elderly homeowners.
Although a reverse mortgage can pay for long-term care costs in
the future, a more practical approach is to anticipate this risk and
make plans to protect against it. A reverse mortgage can be used in proactive planning and
implementation as a funding tool for a long-term care insurance policy.
A
few thousand dollars of home equity expended annually now can pay for
long-term care insurance and save a senior homeowner and family
potentially hundreds of thousands of dollars in care costs later.
A small loan on a senior's home is almost inconsequential to the
overall estate compared to the potential cost of long-term care when and
if needed. Nor does it
disrupt the lifestyle of the senior homeowner.
Best of all, it will provide peace of mind in the knowledge that
the senior will retain control of their care and relieve their family
from many of the daunting, and sometimes overwhelming, obligations
associated with a long illness. There
may be no better use of a reverse mortgage than to purchase long-term
care insurance. If you have
clients/prospects who are 62 years old or older, own their home, would
qualify medically for LTCi and are interested in learning more about
their options, find out how easy it can be for them to afford the
long-term care insurance premiums. If
you would like to see an illustration about how a long-term illness can
affect the financial future of a younger senior homeowner, I have
created a model that will calculate three scenarios, based upon the
current financial status of a senior homeowner: 1.)
Using a reverse mortgage to fund LTCi Please
contact me, Stephen Lamoreaux, Reverse Mortgage Professional, at: Toll free (800) 562-6365x376 or Direct (203) 595-9610 or e-mail steve@dmlmortgage.com |