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Avoid Being Exploited Financially in Florida

By David M. Goldman

As we age, it is very common to lose some of the wits you had when you were younger. Due to the growing number of senior citizens that are falling victim to financial abuse, careful estate planning is a necessity while you are still fully competent. Financial abuse of the elderly usually occurs in a time when the person?s mental capacity is diminishing. Also, it is common that the senior can?t say no to someone who repeatedly requests to be included in the estate.

In a recent article by Eileen Ambrose, she provides an in depth analysis of this blight in our country. Arguably the most shocking statistic related to financial abuse of the elderly is, in approximately one-third of all cases, a family member of the victim is the person who takes advantage of the senior. This is the reason that it is essential for aging adults to create a complete estate plan while they remain fully competent. Protecting your assets is a complicated matter that should be handled by a Florida Estate Planning Lawyer . In addition to seeing an attorney, the following list is advice Ambrose shares in her article:

1) Choose a trustworthy agent to represent you who manages his or her own finances properly and is not a spendthrift.
2) Maintain control of assets refrain from including a child?s name in your a bank account.
3) Report pressure exerted by anyone who is pressuring you to be given Power of Attorney to a loved one or appropriate authorities.
4) Compensate agents for the work they do to maintain your finances because it is a time consuming job.

Full post as published by Florida Estate Planning Lawyer Blog on July 22, 2010 (boomark / email).