Dear Mom and Dad: Are Your Finances Ready for Retirement?

Cameron Huddleston, the author of Mom and Dad, We Need to Talk, says that the conversation with your parents about how they are going to financially survive after retiring can happen organically, even with premeditation. Many parents can be uncomfortable with the shift in the care dynamic – the child is placing themselves in the position to care for the parent. Amanda Clayman, a financial therapist and financial wellness advocate for Prudential, advises that the child can tie the conversation to their own life as a way to maintain the original roles. The parent can explain their own choices as an example to their children, and both sides can offer insight to each other.

Carol Levine, a senior fellow at the United Hospital Fund in New York, says that it is best not to bring up these difficult subjects during the holidays. Timing if important, of course, and adult children can get together before broaching the subject with their parents as a unit.

A simple guess of combining Social Security and a 401(k) may not be enough. Online retirement calculators such as AARP’s for the Social Security benefits and NerdWallet’s or T. Rowe Price’s can provide a better start, but eventually any person or couple will need to consult with a financial planner. Another tough subject to attack: whether the parent would want to move in with the child if the time should come that their independence becomes limited. Multi-generational homes are not as common in America as they are in other countries, but many parents may prefer it over living in a long-term care facility among strangers.

See Erin Lowry, Dear Mom and Dad: Are Your Finances Ready for Retirement?, New York Times, February 13, 2020.

Special thanks to Matthew Bogin, (Esq., Bogin Law) and Lewis Saret (Attorney, Washington, D.C.) for bringing this article to my attention.