Archive for August, 2014

Relocating Your Loved One in Brooklyn

Saturday, August 30th, 2014
relocating your loved one in Brooklyn

Is relocating your loved one in Brooklyn the best decision for them?

by Charles D’Alessandro | Leave a Comment

This is the second in a series of blogs on caregivers, their loved ones and housing for a loved one in Brooklyn.

In the previous blog post, we focused on caregivers and determining the best housing for a loved one in Brooklyn. This blog post will focus on relocating your loved one in Brooklyn.

Life happens. Our loved ones age. The diagnosis of a devastating disease is given. A chronic health issue appears. Frailty creeps in. A permanent injury caused by an accident changes daily life as we have known it. We don’t know if or when life will call upon us to take on the tremendous role of caregiver, but it is a likely reality that many of us will face. Have any of the following situations occurred with your loved one?

  • You visit your loved one and find their refrigerator is practically empty, their bills are unpaid and past due notices are accumulating, their house is a confusion of clutter
  • A concerned neighbor called to let you that your loved one was found walking aimlessly in the streets, unable to find home, the place where they have lived for the past 30 years
  • Your loved one has been forgetting to take their diabetes medications, greatly jeopardizing their health
  • Your very self-sufficient loved one fell. Their hip is broken, and they can no longer walk up or down the stairs in their home.

Occurrences like these may indicate trouble for your loved one due to Alzheimer’s disease, dementia or some other major change in their health. Reasons for these occurrences should be investigated. It may be time to consider relocating your loved one in Brooklyn.

Because relocating your loved one is a major life change for them and for those who love them, everything should be analyzed thoroughly. Get lots of advice. An outside counselor may help you in considering every possible issue regarding relocating your loved one in Brooklyn. Visit http://www.elderlawanswers.com/new-york-elder-law-attorneys/new-york for a list of New York attorneys specializing in elder law. They can help guide your family in estate and long-term care planning for your loved one.  Deciding to relocate your loved one is an important and challenging decision. When you are trying to decide whether relocating your loved one in Brooklyn is best for them or not, discussions with them and all others concerned is especially important. Encourage everyone to share their thoughts. This will help you make the best decisions for your loved one. Good communication and a strong support system are vital in the relocating process. Talk about your loved one’s:

  • possible living options, all of them
  • needed type of care
  • finances
  • relocation and the roles each person will take on
  • lifestyle changes and adjustments that will need to be made
  • new home and the location of their new home

What is expected and hoped for must be well defined and made very clear to everyone involved. Consider the level of care your loved one needs and all family issues, if there are any, to help direct your planning. Packing and moving is a major job for everyone at any age. But for the elderly who have lived in a home for many years with as many memories and possessions and who have developed strong ties to their community, family, friends, healthcare providers, social life and daily routine, relocating:

  • can be extremely difficult
  • can cause an enormous amount of sadness
  • denotes a tremendous emotional challenge
  • poses a decrease in independence
  • signals a new life stage

The thought of packing and sorting through history, memories and possessions may be overwhelming and delay relocating your loved one in Brooklyn. You may want to look into a company that specializes in organizing a move and arranges to sell or give away furniture and possessions that are no longer needed. They also help pack and unpack. Whether or not you choose to hire help, all involved play key roles in the relocating process. Keep the lines of communication open to help you move through each of the challenges relocating your loved one brings with it. If your loved one owns the home they are moving out of, consider renting it for these reasons:

  1. rent payments can help cover extra upcoming costs
  2. help pay for added care services
  3. offer certain tax benefits
  4. give your loved one more time to adjust to new living arrangements.

Selling the place they have called home for so many years can seem very final and can add a certain measure of anxiety to relocating to a new place. Give your loved one time to adjust to their new living arrangements. Patience and support will help relocating happen with a greater amount of ease.

Caregiving does not come free of challenges, but it does provide an extraordinary opportunity to give back what was once provided to you. Giving back that support and care to a loved one is one of the most rewarding experiences in life. Allow your loved one to talk of their past. Others will learn and enjoy actual living history that can only be read about in our history books.

If you have any questions about relocating your loved one in Brooklyn or wonder if renting or selling might be best for them, please contact me, Charles D’Alessandro Your Brooklyn real estate agent with Fillmore Real Estate, or call (718) 253-9600 ext. 206 for answers. You can reach me by email, [email protected], also.

 

Recommended Reading –

Elder Care Made Easier, Somers, M., 2006, Addicus Books.

How to Care for Aging Parents: A Complete GuideMorris, V., 2004, Workman Publishing.

Moving for Seniors: A Step-by-Step Workbook, Morris, B., 2001, Smooth Transitions.

The Essential Guide to Caring for Aging Parents, Rhodes, L., 2012. Alpha Books (Penguin Group).

 

FCA Fact Sheet – Downsizing A Home: A Checklist for Caregivers, https://www.caregiver.org/downsizing-home-checklist-caregivers

 

Senior Care, Housing Options Resources –

For great articles on illnesses and symptoms your loved one may be facing, visit

http://www.aplaceformom.com/senior-care-resources/articles

http://www.seniorhomes.com/

 

Brooklyn/New York Senior Housing Options –

http://www.aplaceformom.com/assisted-living/new-york/brooklyn

http://www.seniorhomes.com/c/ny/brooklyn/assisted-living/

 

More Resources –

Family Caregiver Alliance

785 Market Street, Ste. 750

San Francisco, CA 94103

(415) 434-3388

(800) 445-8106

Website: caregiver.org

E-mail: [email protected]

Family Caregiver Alliance (FCA) seeks to improve the quality of life for caregivers through education, services, research and advocacy.

FCA’s National Center on Caregiving offers advice and information on current social, public policy and caregiving issues and provides assistance in the development of public and private caregiver support programs.

Family Care Navigator – FCA’s online directory of resources for caregivers in all 50 states. Includes resources for older or disabled adults living at home or in a residential facility, and information on government health and disability programs, legal resources, disease-specific organizations and more.

 

Article Resource: https://www.caregiver.org/preparing-for-caregiving

Copyright: iofoto / 123RF Stock Photo

Determining the Best Housing for a Loved One

Thursday, August 14th, 2014

by Charles D’Alessandro | Leave a Comment  

best housing for a loved one

Caregivers may need help determining the best housing for a loved one

This is the first in a series of blogs on caregivers, their loved ones and determining the best housing for a loved one in Brooklyn.

A caregiver is defined as one who provides support to a loved one who may be feeble from old age or disease, or who may not be as strong or as stable of mind as they once were. The list of care a caregiver provides is a long one. In this blog post we will focus on caregivers and determining the best housing for a loved one in Brooklyn.

Assisting or handling the real estate or housing needs of a loved one as their caregiver  is quite different from buying or selling a home for yourself.  When determining the best housing for a loved one in your care, it may help to consider the following:

  1. Pursue in-home support services and community services for their continued independence. If in-home support services and community services are needed and available, acquire them. The feeling of being independent is precious to a senior.
  2. Don’t do what your loved one is capable of doing for themselves. If they are able to pay their bills and cook their meals, let them. Allowing them to maintain as much of their independence as they can will make them feel better about receiving the care they now need from you.
  3. Unless they are not able to make decisions for themselves or their behavior could put others in danger, honor their right to make decisions about their life while they are able to.
  4. Provide them with the basic freedom of making choices. Allow them to choose where to live, what to wear or what to eat for dinner. The ability to make choices on their own may diminish over time. As their health declines, people dear to them pass away or finances start to tighten, the ability to communicate who they are through their choices will become harder for them to do.

To help you in determining the best housing for a loved one, present and discuss these questions with them:

  • What standard of living do you want for yourself?
  • What surroundings would you enjoy?
  • Is location important to you?
  • Would you like to be near family and friends, doctors, pharmacies, doctors offices, shopping, senior centers, a church and other comforts or conveniences?
  • Consider your current health situation. Do you need to look for a place with features that will allow you to move about easily?
  • Can you afford the cost of the type of housing you would like to live in?
  • Does the type of housing you like include in-home support services of any kind?
  • Are you eligible for publicly-funded or subsidized services such as Medicare or Medicaid?
  • Will the in-home support services that are available to you now be available in the future, also?
  • Have you included appropriate family members and friends in your decision making?
  • Have you determined the role others will have in making decisions for you and with you in the future?
  • Would you like to speak with an attorney to make sure that you understand your rights and get answers to any legal questions you may have?

The best housing for a loved one is the one that makes certain their health, social and financial needs are well taken care of and that their legal rights are protected.  Your ultimate goal should be to help your loved one enjoy independent living at home for as long as they possibly can. So, plan carefully, take good care of yourself and get informed about caregiving.

Senior Care, Housing Options Resources
For great articles on s illnesses and symptoms your loved one may be facing,visit

http://www.aplaceformom.com/senior-care-resources/articles
http://www.seniorhomes.com/

Brooklyn/New York Senior Housing Options –

http://www.aplaceformom.com/assisted-living/new-york/brooklyn
http://www.seniorhomes.com/c/ny/brooklyn/assisted-living/

If you have any questions about determining the best housing for a loved one or wonder if selling and relocating might be best for them, please contact me,  Charles D’Alessandro Your Brooklyn real estate agent with Fillmore Real Estate, or call (718) 253-9600 ext. 206 for answers. You can reach me by email, [email protected], also.

 

Photo Copyright: alexraths / 123RF Stock Photo