Together forever: Why poorly planned elderly couples are finding themselves forced to split up

So you’ve found ‘happily ever after’ and the partner of your dreams.

As we age, the ideal life plan is to live out our later years surrounded by those we love.

However, if your wish is to spend the rest of your life with your partner, you may want to start planning.

Elderly couples that thought ‘together forever’ was a part of their plan, are finding themselves in heartbreaking situations, forced to split up when the move into a retirement home becomes the only option.

Brisbane based Financial Planner Cara Brett warned couples needed to plan well in advance if they wished to end up in the same aged care facility.

Mrs Brett said it was tough assisting elderly people with their financial plans once their resources started to ‘dry up’.

“One thing I’ve come across regularly … which always broke my heart … was when couples were split up,” Mrs Brett said.

“Most people never actively investigate what is involved in getting into a nursing home”.

She said plenty of couples lived by false assumptions while preparing for old age.

“Wanting to not think about it, most people go on with the assumption that they can simply pop on down to the local nursing home, which will take them both in for free,” she said.

“Sadly this is not the case”.

Moving into a nursing home is not only costly, but can also be a long process.

In many cases it can lead to couples being split up at a time when they need each other the most.

“I still recall one client, an elderly man … He resided in one nursing home and his wife resided in another, a reasonable journey away,” Mrs Brett said.

“His one request was to have enough money so he could see her twice a week instead of one … this simple request broke my heart”.

Unfortunately, an aging population means the process of moving into a nursing home will become a lot harder due to limited resources.

This means, those with the money to pay for it will most likely have priority over those who do not.

“Nursing homes are a business and despite receiving funding from the government, in most cases they will prioritise those who are able to pay,” she said.

“Typically to get into the same facility, a couple need to have a fair amount of money behind them to use in the negotiation upon entering their preferred aged care facility. The more the better, but most people come up short if they haven’t planned for it”.

In reality aged care is far from a free ride.

“For everyday people, their main asset is their home, so typically that needs to be sold in order to get into the facility itself,” Mrs Brett said.

“From there, the aged care facility take a large portion of your aged pension requirements to fund your ongoing basic costs such as food and electricity.

“On top of this, many children need to top up payments where it is not enough, meaning the burden is then passed onto younger generations”.

Mrs Brett warned couples that left their plans to the last minute could end up in a situation where they don’t have a lot of options.

“It doesn’t matter how far you put your head in the sand, you will age at some stage and need some type of care,” she said.

“In most circumstances people think retirement is going to be full of social activities and yearly holidays. But after paying for the aged care facility and ongoing expenses associated, there is nothing left.

“The pictures of the ‘over 50’s’ communities are amazing and what people should be aiming for, but that is definitely not what a government funded aged care facility looks like. The basic needs are covered, which is great, but most people want a little bit more out of retirement.

“By making plans early, you can ensure at the time you need care, you will have options available to you”.

For more information visit www.bouncefinancial.com.au.

News break – November 18