How to invest my dad's money

So, my dad is 83 and has several thousands of dollars just sitting in his checking account.  He has another couple of thousand in a CD.  I'm thinking that we should invest a portion of his money in a conservative vehicle yet not as conservative as a CD.  Any thoughts would be appreciated.

tx


sounds like it's too little $, too short an investment horizon to do much with it. It'll make so little in a CD or MMA, I wouldn't even bother. And it's too risky probably at 83 to put it anywhere even slightly volatile.


About $30K.  I'm too scared to loose money since he is 83, but then again he makes so little where it is.  Is there a middle ground?  What do you think of Vanguard mutual funds for him?


Agree 100% with Con, leave it alone, don't worry about it


$30k is more than you made it sound but still not enough to gamble on a mutual fund.  A bad year or two and he could actually LOSE some of what seems like an already small nest egg. Sadly, not enough time for it to re-bound.  Even if it were a good year or two, the amount he's going to make isn't worth the hassle.


You might at least put some of the money into one of those 'high' yield savings accounts like at Capitol One rather than just having it sit in the checking account.  Funds can easily be transferred online within one or two days time.


Is this a large percentage chunk of his savings? 

I think sac has a good point.


If you just want to make most of it inaccessible on a whim, maybe put $20k in a six-month CD, then keep turning it over.


mrincredible:  it's about 50% of his savings.

Thank you everyone for your thoughts.  Very informative and I will leave my dad's money alone.  Will look into a high yield savings and another CD.

Thanks, again.


is the money for his long term care or for you? If the former, everyone on here is right. Vanguards and ETFs are a conservative bet, and while better than a checking account for annual returns, time is not on your side. Kinda sorta something he should have done ten years ago. I'd hold your current position.


nevermind, I see you've already reached a wise conclusion.


grocery:  if you ask him he'll say it's my money.  He's a healthy 83-old thank god, but you never know what could happen, so I'm just going to leave his money alone like you all suggest.


I would look into an Elder law attorney. Does he have other assets? House? Is he a veteran? Combat veteran?

Depending on his circumstances, a couple of thousand now can save tens of thousands later and give you both peace of mind. The attorney should be one in his home state.


P.M. if you want more info.


You should talk to an elder law attorney to protect the assets in case he ever needs Medicaid.


don't spend $1000s of $ on a lawyer when he has such a small savings amount. I think that's bad advice.


That depends.

Consults are usually free. I had a consult for my mother where they told me the options to protect her assets.


Initial consultation is usually free or for around $25.00. Call the Bar Association in the county where he lives and ask for elder law referrals.


If the only asset is 30K,  that is one thing. That is why I asked if there was a house involved or if he was a veteran. One or both of these substantially change the picture.


Hi, Former: 

My dad's only asset is 30K at the moment.  No home and he's not a VET and has minimal expenses, because he lives with a family member.  That's why I've been thinking of investing some of his money in something other than CDs.  He saves almost his entire SS check every month. 


Basically agree with what's been said. A few added thoughts:

Rather than one CD, you can ladder multiple CDs. At current rates, it won't make a huge amount of difference, but going forward it might add a few bucks to the pot. Interest rates are expected to gradually rise; of course, they've been saying that for 5+ years.

As far as how much ready cash to keep on hand, you should also factor in any reliable income--e.g., social security, pension, dividends/interest.

Check out bankrate.com for highest rates on CDs and bank money market funds. Put the money only into FDIC-insured places, and watch out for fees and minimum required balances.


Since it is your dad's money, why do you feel that it is your place to search for a solution to an issue that is not apparent.  Your dad does no have much money, yet you are being advised by some to look at very expensive solutions to this question.  Interest rates are very low, with one result that your best answer is probably a savings account with a yield of about 1 percent.  You are casting about for a magic solution to an issue that affects many savers of all ages.  The worst thing you could do would be to get seduced by a high risk solution that might result in a sizable loss. 


I would encourage him to spend it.  Travel, treat himself, etc, while he still can.  


^^^ this is actually one of the smartest responses in the thread, if not for that that threat of lingering medical costs later in life.


my thinking is that late in life health care will take 80k in three months. Enjoy it now.


thechamp said:

Since it is your dad's money, why do you feel that it is your place to search for a solution to an issue that is not apparent.  Your dad does no have much money, yet you are being advised by some to look at very expensive solutions to this question.  Interest rates are very low, with one result that your best answer is probably a savings account with a yield of about 1 percent.  You are casting about for a magic solution to an issue that affects many savers of all ages.  The worst thing you could do would be to get seduced by a high risk solution that might result in a sizable loss. 

I didn't get the impression she was looking for a magic solution or willing to even entertain anything risky- merely inquiring abut whether there were decent options out there she might want to suggest to her father.  Lighten up


Indeed. I'm not that old and I remember when you would never let a sum like that sit and earn nothing. It's always worth doing a little research to do the best you can for your parents.


My parents have no idea about that sort of thing and no interest in learning.  It would always be me inquiring about it for them and probably me making final decisions.  In our family, the "not my place" thing is silly- they would always want me involved or taking charge.  In my husband's family, he would never get involved in anything like that.  In fact, his mother once tread very lightly asking if she could ask me a "very personal question"- turned out the question was about the mortgage rate we got. LOL  Different rules, different families. 


NizhoniGrrrl said:

Indeed. I'm not that old and I remember when you would never let a sum like that sit and earn nothing. It's always worth doing a little research to do the best you can for your parents.

Before she went into dementia/assisted living, my mother had 90K in savings accounts earning 3/4 of 1%.


What doesn't Medicaid cover? Are all these horrific expenses people are talking about in regard to dementia only?  or are there other Medicaid gaps?

And why hasn't anyone tackled the problem of dementia care not being covered by insurance?  I'd like to see that be a priority within healthcare reform.


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