If you have older parents, or are yourself getting older, you may have thought about senior care and the related expenses. This post from a reader aims to give more ideas about how to save money when it comes to senior care.
Living with an older adult that needs constant care can be expensive. If you are the primary caregiver, this means that you have to shoulder most of the costs. Home caregiving can significantly affect your budget. As such, you need to look for ways to cut down the costs. Here are some of them:
Hire an In-Home Caregiver Through a Care Home
If you need to hire a caregiver, it is best to do it with the help of a partner care home. Some would think that it is cheaper to hire a caregiver privately. But, in reality, it often ends up more costly since you have to shoulder additional costs. If you hire through a partner care home like Husky Senior Care, you get the assurance that they already did the usual background checks, insurance, training, taxes, and worker’s compensation. You also benefit from getting a backup caregiver should the one that you hired be unavailable. If you hire privately, you will have to take care of everything, and this can lead to more costs on your end.
Use Tech-Aided Monitoring
If you want to cut the costs of assisted living, you can set hours on when they should be present. For instance, they can only be there during the day when your elderly family member needs the most care. Then, at night you can use tech-aided monitoring systems to help ensure that your loved one remains safe even without the presence of the caregiver. You can also use this monitoring to see whether the caregiver is performing their job well.
Make Necessary Repairs
Our elderly loved ones are prone to slips and falls. It would be wiser on your end if you would make the necessary repairs in your home to make sure that it remains safe for them. It gives you peace of mind, and you don’t have to worry about accidents happening. This way, you save on taking care of your loved one. You can also look for non-profit organizations that can help shoulder some of the costs of doing home modifications. Check out if there is a home modifications assistance program in your area.
Lower HVAC Costs
The elderly are more prone to react to sudden temperature changes. This can lead to higher utility bills. One of the ways you can lower your costs is by enrolling in a public energy assistance program that helps individuals who care for senior loved ones to pay for their utilities. You can also take advantage of assistance programs from the state. They assist in paying for home modifications geared towards lowering energy use.
Look for Low-Cost Meal Services
When it comes to meals, the elderly need to have special and healthy meals prepared for them, and this can be costly. Check out services like Meals on Wheels that provide subsidized meals. Once you enroll in this service, this means that you have to pay for fewer hours for your caregiver, as they will not need to prepare meals.
Find Respite Care
Some states have respite programs for qualified senior citizens. Take advantage of them when you can so you can reduce the hours that you have to pay your caregiver.
Take Tax Credits and Tax Deductions
When you are the primary caregiver of your elderly loved one, you may be qualified to claim them as a dependent. As such, you have the right to get state tax credits or take advantage of tax deductions. You can inquire with an IRS-certified volunteer to help give you more information about this. You can also include it in your tax preparation software.
Caring for the elderly is a tough and expensive task. When bills start to pile up, don’t hesitate to look for ways on how you can cut down your costs.
Living with an older adult that needs constant care can be expensive. If you are the primary caregiver, this means that you have to shoulder most of the costs. Home caregiving can significantly affect your budget. As such, you need to look for ways to cut down the costs. Here are some of them:
Hire an In-Home Caregiver Through a Care Home
If you need to hire a caregiver, it is best to do it with the help of a partner care home. Some would think that it is cheaper to hire a caregiver privately. But, in reality, it often ends up more costly since you have to shoulder additional costs. If you hire through a partner care home like Husky Senior Care, you get the assurance that they already did the usual background checks, insurance, training, taxes, and worker’s compensation. You also benefit from getting a backup caregiver should the one that you hired be unavailable. If you hire privately, you will have to take care of everything, and this can lead to more costs on your end.
Use Tech-Aided Monitoring
If you want to cut the costs of assisted living, you can set hours on when they should be present. For instance, they can only be there during the day when your elderly family member needs the most care. Then, at night you can use tech-aided monitoring systems to help ensure that your loved one remains safe even without the presence of the caregiver. You can also use this monitoring to see whether the caregiver is performing their job well.
Make Necessary Repairs
Our elderly loved ones are prone to slips and falls. It would be wiser on your end if you would make the necessary repairs in your home to make sure that it remains safe for them. It gives you peace of mind, and you don’t have to worry about accidents happening. This way, you save on taking care of your loved one. You can also look for non-profit organizations that can help shoulder some of the costs of doing home modifications. Check out if there is a home modifications assistance program in your area.
Lower HVAC Costs
The elderly are more prone to react to sudden temperature changes. This can lead to higher utility bills. One of the ways you can lower your costs is by enrolling in a public energy assistance program that helps individuals who care for senior loved ones to pay for their utilities. You can also take advantage of assistance programs from the state. They assist in paying for home modifications geared towards lowering energy use.
Look for Low-Cost Meal Services
When it comes to meals, the elderly need to have special and healthy meals prepared for them, and this can be costly. Check out services like Meals on Wheels that provide subsidized meals. Once you enroll in this service, this means that you have to pay for fewer hours for your caregiver, as they will not need to prepare meals.
Find Respite Care
Some states have respite programs for qualified senior citizens. Take advantage of them when you can so you can reduce the hours that you have to pay your caregiver.
Take Tax Credits and Tax Deductions
When you are the primary caregiver of your elderly loved one, you may be qualified to claim them as a dependent. As such, you have the right to get state tax credits or take advantage of tax deductions. You can inquire with an IRS-certified volunteer to help give you more information about this. You can also include it in your tax preparation software.
Caring for the elderly is a tough and expensive task. When bills start to pile up, don’t hesitate to look for ways on how you can cut down your costs.