Jennifer's Compass

Cautious about long-term care insurance

A woman who watches my Tuesday “Ask Jennifer” segment on NECN’s BusinessDay e-mailed me with a question about long-term care insurance. She says she and her husband are in their early 60s and are curious about the value of LTC insurance for them.

At Compass Planning Associates, we haven’t recommended LTC insurance very often to our clients in the past three years or so. Recent large premium increases at most of the large carriers have made it difficult to assume that most people will be able to afford to carry the coverage until they eventually need it. We’re also concerned about clients meeting the claim requirements the policies impose if they do need care.

That said, your best resources to be sure whether LTC insurance fits your individual circumstances are an elder law attorney and a fee-only financial planner. You can find referrals to both at www.naela.org and www.napfa.org.

Managing your minor windfall

A viewer of my NECN segment wrote with a question similar to many we've been hearing lately at Compass Planning:

“My aunt left me a small amount of money, and I have no idea what to do with it! Mutual funds scare me right now, because my 401(k) is tanking. My student loan has a very low rate, so I'd rather save than pay that off. IRA maybe?”