Your will may be the most important document you’ll ever write. Problem is, after many of us draft one, we put it somewhere for safekeeping and don’t look at it again. That can be a big mistake. Lives change. Our finances change. Loved ones leave us an… Continue reading
Some boomer and Gen X parents want to assist their grown children financially from time to time, either to enhance their kids’ lives or because their sons or daughters are struggling financially. But when is it okay to help one child more than another?… Continue reading
Some boomer and Gen X parents want to assist their grown children financially from time to time, either to enhance their kids’ lives or because their sons or daughters are struggling financially. But when is it okay to help one child more than another?… Continue reading
Losing a loved one is hard in itself. But when that person was a hoarder — like roughly 19 million Americans — managing grief while sorting through mountains of stuff is even more challenging. I know; my widowed grandmother was a hoarder, and I dealt w… Continue reading
My family is all dead, and I never married or had children. The new term for people like me is “solo ager” or “elder orphan.” Aging alone highlights the dilemma of what to do when you need help managing your health, finances and the disposition of your… Continue reading
Many Next Avenue readers are, or will be, stressed, worried and anxious figuring out what to do with their parents’ stuff. We know this because our 2017 story, “Sorry, Nobody Wants Your Parents’ Stuff” is our most-read, most-shared piece. And it led to… Continue reading
The last time Patricia Femia saw her mother, Ada Vocino, was February 14, 2013 — Valentine’s Day. But this was anything but a heartfelt meeting. The two women were in the Morris County Courthouse in Morristown, N.J. and were there for war. Patricia, t… Continue reading
Several months ago, a friend and I were discussing a mutual acquaintance from college. The woman had divorced her husband after 15 years of marriage and he was arrested for securities fraud shortly after. He subsequently went to prison. Our classmate c… Continue reading
Cameron Huddleston, author of the smart new book Mom and Dad, We Need to Talk: How to Have Essential Conversations With Your Parents About Their Finances, remembers the birds-and-the-bees talk she had as a child with her mother. Huddleston says she’d g… Continue reading
In 2016, Mike Liff, now 73, relocated with his wife from San Francisco to Portland, Maine to be closer to family. The retirees explored their new hometown and thanks to a chance conversation at a barbershop, Liff learned that MaineFoodieTours.com was l… Continue reading