AZ: If you are managing the finances of a loved one, new resources can help

 

By Naomi Karp, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau

 

As many as 25 million Americans are managing money or property for a family member or friend who is unable to make financial decisions and pay bills.

 

In Florida, Hector stepped in to help his elderly mother after a niece stole nearly $100,000 from her. Despite his own severe disability, he works every day to make sure her nursing home bills are paid and her accounts are in order. “When you have to take care of someone else’s finances, you feel more responsible for their affairs than you do for your own. It’s overwhelming.”

 

Kristin in Virginia had to take over financial management for her 35-year-old brother when he suffered a traumatic brain injury in a devastating car wreck. “Taking over financial caregiving for my brother was especially challenging when coupled with the physical and emotional trauma of his accident. Even though I’m a financially savvy individual, I had no idea where to get help…. Unfortunately, there was no guide, no checklist, or a book of best practices to refer to.”

 

At the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), we listened to consumers about the need for easy-to-understand tools to help manage a loved one’s money. These adults know how challenging financial caregiving can be, and now there is help available for family members and friends who are serving in fiduciary roles.  Working with experts in Arizona, we’ve created new guides for you with information specific to your state. The guides are for:

 

• Agents under a power of attorney
• Court-appointed conservators
• Trustees
• Government-benefit fiduciaries (Social Security representative payees and VA fiduciaries).

 

The guides help financial caregivers in three ways: they walk them through their duties, they tell them about protecting their loved ones from financial exploitation and scams, and they tell them where to go for help.

 

You can download or order free print copies (including bulk orders).

 

Together with state and local organizations in Arizona, the CFPB is working hard to empower older Americans to have a secure financial future. Sometimes, family members, caregivers, and others in the community must pitch in. The Managing Someone Else’s Money guides will help Arizonans tackle the role of financial caregiver.

 

This content was provided by the CFPB.