I don’t worry about my financial future, but I do feel that there are certain troubling things that are my responsiblity to figure out. Some of those things include: what would happen if I got a catastrophic illness? How long should I plan to live in my own home? Can I afford an assisted living facility or a nursing home? Can I stretch my money out to last as long as I do? Will I reach a time when I have to ask for financial assistance? And, this is only a partial list!
My question to you is: when you think about your future, what is your biggest financial concern? Please explain, if you will.
Women & Aging 
I do not spend much time worrying about my financial future. I have teacher’s retirement, medicare, medicade, Tri-care for life, and a policy for longterm care insurance. So far since I continue to work three part-time jobs, I have had more than enough money to cover expenses. I realize that I will not have these jobs forever but I try to keep expenses to a minimum and have saved quite a bit of money for future years. I guess I worry more about my good health and that of my diabetic husband more at this stage of my life.
I am quite a bit late in getting to this. But, here goes. Yes, Henry and I were both very young during the Great Depression, but we always had enough to eat and clothes to wear. Clothes were sometimes handed down, but it didn’t seem to bother us much. Everyone else was in the same situation. We both have always been conservative in what we do and how we spend out money. We did financial planning with an attorney and have a planner handeling our assets.
At least six years ago Henry and I talked with a funeral home and made our arrangements and paid for our burial.
What money we had was always -ours- we didn’t have separate accounts.
Our children have done very well for themselves and have put their children through college. With careful spending I should have enough to get me through until I die. Since mother lived to be 98+ and her mother lived to be 86+ and her mother (my great-grandmother Martin) lived to be 101+: I fully expect to live to be at least 100. My prayer is that I am fully alert at that age. That is if there is not a great catastrophy
One comment was about being alone. That is not easy. The best remedy for that is being involved with people that gets you out of the house. I volunteer two days a week at the hospital. Also go to exercise 3 days a week and to church on Sunday. That just about fill my week.
(to continue, if possible.)
We have looked “back/forward” to our Grand Girl and Boy in that both have monies for college due to my husband’s careful planning for them. So far, it seems the Grandboy is appreciating this gift, while the Grandgirl has decided to not go to college, no matter what.
Thanks to my husband, we are with an attorney regarding our financial state (after death of either spouse) and with a financial planner person whom we now know and feel good about. Therefore I am not worried were I the last living. I do admit that I worry a lot about being left alone (my husband has heart problems as well as others even though he has always worked out and continues to do so) simply for the great sadness of losing my best friend.
Need an estate planner and/or attorney to put us on the right track for end of life expenses. There will be surprises, I’m sure, and my husband and I will feel better if we get some expert advice in advance of any “surprises”. Also want to be sure that our six grandkids will have some help, if they need it, for education. College loans take many years to repay and many in the current economic downturn are unable to keep up payments. That debt doesn’t go away.
This is an excellent point and I’m going to try to expand on it with other people’s examples. I know you said this in our meeting, but your writing is so much better than my notes!
Thank you,
Alice French Women & Aging Blog http://www.womenandaging.net
My biggest financial concern at the moment is how to get the rent I receive from my farm increased. If I can raise that up to the average rent for this county, I will have few problems. I also need to get that farm put into a life trust so that my children, who worked every bit as hard as I did to get it paid off, will definitely inherit it.