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As you get older, the bills don’t stop coming, and when you’ve built a family, it can get even more complicated. We’re all familiar with the idea of raising a child, teaching them how to live, and then releasing them from the nest at a certain age, expecting them to make it on their own.
After the child you raised becomes a successful and self-sufficient adult, it becomes a point of pride for the parent, but it doesn’t always work out that way. So what happens when your child doesn’t become fully independent as an adult? Or what happens when they falter after some sudden financial difficulties?
You’re about to find out. These tips can help seniors find a way to assist family members that are struggling financially.
Why Are They Struggling?
It’s essential to figure out when a family member calls asking for money; why they need it. People will come up with all sorts of excuses for why they suddenly need their aging parents to dole out thousands of dollars.
Avoiding being swindled out of your money by an unscrupulous family member intent on taking advantage is important. Their reason for needing money has to make sense, be believable, and legitimate.
A child that winds up going from one odd job to another while blowing their entire paycheck on drugs or gambling doesn’t need money; they need rehab and some good advice. On the other hand, if your grown son has held down a good job for years and never missed a mortgage payment until they faced unexpected medical expenses, you might want to consider helping them out.
Life happens. It’s not uncommon for younger people to get overwhelmed by unexpected financial losses or expenses. As a seasoned individual yourself, you probably remember having a few difficulties of your own in your youth.
The point is, there are many legitimate reasons why a family member would ask you for money. Just make sure that they have a good reason for needing your help.
How to Help a Family Member That’s Struggling with Their Finances Without Making Them Dependent on You
The key to helping a family member struggling with their finances is to ensure that it doesn’t become a recurring issue. Giving your son, daughter, or grandchild some cash to help them get by after an emergency is one thing, but dependency is another.
Wanting to be there for your loved one is perfectly natural, but that doesn’t mean the person should be dependent on you. When a family member gets the idea that you’ll send some money their way whenever they ask for it, they might start taking advantage of your generosity.
One day it’s $2,000 to get their car fixed, the next time, it’s $10,000 to pay off credit card debt, and the next time it’s $100,000 to pay for a new house. Of course, not every family member will take advantage of you in this way, but it happens often enough to be cautious. There’s nothing wrong with helping a loved one, but you must remember your responsibilities as the steward of your retirement savings.
How to Raise the Money to Help Out a Loved One Without Breaking the Bank
When a loved one is down and out and in need of financial assistance, the real challenge is to figure out how to give them the money they need without jeopardizing your personal finances. You don’t want to be the one asking another family member for money because you’ve given too much money to someone else.
Sometimes a loved one only needs a few hundred bucks to solve their particular problem; other times, however, the amount is much more significant. So what should you do? Hand over your life savings? Refinance the family home? Bury yourself in credit card debt? As it turns out, you don’t have to do any of these things.
You can raise the money to help a loved one by selling your life insurance policy to a third party.
What Is a Life Settlement and How Can it Help?
A life settlement is a term for a transaction in which someone sells their life insurance policy for cash. Many seniors have raised at least $100,000 by selling their life insurance policy. In most cases, that’s more than enough money to help out a loved one in need of financial assistance.
You might even have a fair amount of money leftover. Treat yourself to something nice, you’ve earned it! Not everyone has the generosity to hand over large sums of money to a family member that couldn’t keep up with their finances.
Free Up the Cash You Need to Help Out a Loved One with MRE Finance
If you have determined that your loved one has a legitimate need for a large sum of money, you may be able to raise that cash with one phone call to MRE Finance. We help seniors like yourself find a buyer for their life insurance policies.
For a free estimate of your policy’s potential value, visit https://mrefinance.com/free-life-settlement-calculator/ or call 1-800-521-0770 or visit the website MRE Finance today and ask about how you can benefit from selling your life insurance policy!
