With an increase in the demand for home care over rising nursing home costs, even non-medical home health care can be expensive. This is often a challenge for many families as they consider all options before making a decision.
If your family is in a similar situation, here are some options on how to pay for home care.
1. Long-Term Care Insurance
Long-term insurance is often the most popular and best option when paying for home care. Although not all insurance companies will cover these costs and even include a waiting period such as 1-3 months after receiving assistance before families are allowed access to funds. This insurance will also have coverage limits in dollar amounts that the policy holder is allowed to spend. Assisting Hands Home Care recommends becoming familiar with the requirements and dollar amount limits in the long-term insurance plan and comparing them with the average cost of care in Winnetka, IL and the surrounding areas.
Common factors that affect a long-term care insurance plan include the following: your age and health, income, savings and investments, taxes, support system, and premiums. There are also various sources from which long-term care insurances comes, including state partnership programs, plans by organizations, joint policies, individual plans, and employer-sponsored plans.
2. Line of Credit
A line of credit is an additional fund source given to an individual by a bank or other financial institution. This is another popular option to pay for care as it’s a quick source of funds to cover the cost of care while waiting for long-term care insurance to take effect, selling their home, or for Veteran Aid.
During the signing process, the borrower will pay an unused line fee, known as an annualized percentage on the money not withdrawn. If you have a bank account with the same bank as your line of credit, the line of credit can be used as a form of overdraft protection, personal line of credit, revolving credit cards, home equity, and demand loans.
You should also know that lines of credit require a collateral, such as tying them to a house, annuity, car, or savings account. This is required for security purposes, should the borrower not pay back the loan.
3. Reverse Mortgage
Reverse mortgages allow the home care recipient to pay for care by renting or selling their home. However, there are restrictions within this option, so it’s best to research it in detail before moving forward.
The majority of individuals perceive reverse mortgages to be a loan that doesn’t have to be re-paid, due to the fact that they are paying for care by giving up ownership of their home. But the harsh reality is that the reverse mortgage is due when the care recipient passes on or moves out for over a year.
Good candidates for reverse mortgages include those who are in good health and do not plan to move out in the near future.
Contact Us
If you have any questions regarding the cost of our home care services, give Assisting Hands Home Care in Winnetka, IL a call at (847) 868-9213. We are happy to answer any of your questions and work with you when paying for home care.
