There is an unfortunate paradox in retirement planning: the best time to start saving is when people are least likely to do so: when they are young.

It is not hard to convince people in their 40s and 50s that saving for retirement is important, but saving at that point is so much more effective if one already has a head start from beginning to save in one’s 20s and 30s.

Families in need of a private-duty caregiver have a laundry list of items to account for during the hiring process. Most importantly is selecting the right candidate, but once that item is crossed off the list, it’s crucial to account for the expenses of hiring this new household employee. When you make a caregiver a compensation offer, it is critical that both of you are on the same page as to what the Gross Wages and Net Pay will be.

By Tom Breedlove, Director, Care.com HomePay, Provided by Breedlove

When a family hires an individual to perform duties in or around their home, they are considered a household employer. The IRS views the worker — whether a nanny, senior caregiver, health aide, etc. — as an employee of the family for whom she works. For most families, having household payroll and tax responsibilities is akin to learning a new language and most have no clue where to go for guidance.

An important change has taken place in Medicare payments for certain types of skilled care, such as physical therapy. Thanks to the terms of a settlement in a class-action lawsuit, no longer will Medicare payments be discontinued because a patient’s condition has stopped improving. This is a significant benefit for many patients whose conditions may not be improving, but who need skilled care to keep their conditions from deteriorating. However, the change was made quietly, without informing Medicare beneficiaries, so many people are not aware of the new rules.

Annuities are an investment tool that investors use to help plan for retirement. Before deciding whether to make an annuity contract part of your financial plan, it is important to understand how annuities work and what potential pitfalls you need to watch out for. Annuity contracts are usually made between an investor and a life…

Despite our hopes, being discharged from rehab to home is sometimes complicated and inappropriate. A family member recently had an extended hospital stay followed by a few weeks in a rehabilitation facility for therapy to regain physical strength.  He only longed to go home and sleep in his own bed in his own home. We all know how wonderful that would eventually be, but being discharged from rehab to home is sometimes complicated and inappropriate. A hospital stay can be disorienting for the best of us, but more so for older adults, making the transition to home more difficult.

Financial Literacy Month is being observed in April 2014. This is an excellent time to recognize the important role that financial literacy plays in individual economic security and the financial health of the nation. Many Americans are not well-informed about important financial issues that affect their everyday lives. Schools, parents, government agencies and financial institutions and advisers all have a role to play in helping to increase knowledge and understanding of critical economic issues.

An Alzheimer’s care facility in the Netherlands is modeled after a village, allowing patients to roam freely and safely, providing a possible model for facilities in the U.S.

As in other dementia-care facilities, patients at Hogeweyk are prevented from leaving for their own safety. However, within the complex, residents may roam freely, visiting parks and shops such as a grocery store and restaurant, staffed by Hogeweyk employees in street clothes. The design of the facility improves residents’ quality of life by allowing them a degree of self-determination in their daily life.

Many people choose to create a revocable living trust as part of their estate plan. Living trusts may be created for different reasons, and they have several different advantages, including potentially reducing estate taxes, avoiding probate, and allowing for a trustee to manage one’s financial affairs in the event one becomes incapacitated. A living trust should be created with the assistance of a qualified estate planning attorney, and it should also be reviewed, along with the entire estate plan, on a periodic basis.

Workers will soon have a new retirement savings option. In his State of the Union address, President Obama announced the establishment of the new MyRA program, retirement accounts for workers who do not have access to employer-sponsored 401(k)s. MyRAs can be opened through employers with as little as a $25 minimum deposit and future contributions…