I've asked a few questions and am learning as I assume the trustee responsibility.
I'm moving my mom's belongings into her new AL studio. I need to pay someone to help, how do I do this? Mom also wants to pay me for my time and labor but I've told her she can't write checks anymore. To be honest, I'm concerned about paying myself for my time. She asked if I can't just take her to bank to get cash?
I'd also like to learn about how a trustee is paid? It hasn't even been a week yet but I've put in about 15 hours doing all kinds of things and driven around town tracking mileage. I just read that a standard hourly fee is 25 to 35 an hour. I live in California and my hourly rate when working is $125 an hour! I expect at some point the efforts I put out will diminish. Is it better to do the work and pay yourself or hire someone who charges twice as much?
Has anyone else dealt with this before?
Thanks
It depends on what you're comfortable with. You do deserve to be paid for your time -- no question -- but you could talk to your trust attorney to see what he recommends. (Mine was less than useless by telling me to pick an amount and go with that. 🙄) Some people get paid a percentage of the value of the estate, but that would have been way more than necessary in my opinion.
I am Mum's POA. It states that I will be paid $15 more than the current minimum wage. It is not a large amount of money, currently just over $30/hr in my province.
I also can claim mileage and any out of pocket expenses.
You should write a cheque on Mum's account and keep a copy with a breakdown of your hours, mileage and other expenses.
I don't know if that includes gas expenses, but you could look it up.
Looking back at caregiving expenses, I should have been reimbursed! But I kept thinking this won't cost too much, it won't be for too long, or I did not want to charge family.
What is fair and reasonable?
What is fair when others do little, it seems they are taking advantage of me.
I hire qualified and insured companies for heavy work, such as collecting heavy items and transferring them for disposition. I can't do that alone, and never would try. But I can handle the legal work better b/c of having worked in law firms for decades. The only work I would hire through a law firm is something with which I'm not familiar and can't figure out on my own.
I've used Excel for years for taxes and other inventories, including household goods. At one point I made entries on the days that the expenses occurred, but wasn't able to do that toward the end of my father's life. There was just too much happening too quickly.
Ask yourself what are your skills, your strong points, as well as your weaknesses and less developed traits, and consider starting from there. If there are aspects at which you excel, do those yourself. But hire reliable and insured companies for heavy duty work, and possibly taxes.
All expenses pursuant to the trust have to be documented, especially if there are other heirs as you can anticipate that they may demand accountings as to use of Mom's money. I think over time you'll find that some activities are so repetitive that you can just copy and paste in an Excel document.
I also think that charges to act as Trustee can vary depending on the assets in the Trust. Is it fully funded? Are all assets in the Trust?
I noted to my mom that I have to track her money. I'm finding it very hard that if she asks me to get her cash I have to track what I've given her, how am I to track what she does with it? I cannot track what she does, only what I've given her, keeping withdrawal receipts and noting them. Is a trustee supposed to tell the person the trust is for that they can't have money when it's theirs to begin with?
You indicate that your mom named you her POA while she is alive, and the Trustee when she passed away. I’m assuming you have a notarized copy of her Will, Trust, POA and HCPOA documents.
* Bank Accounts: if you haven’t already done so, take the POA document to the bank and have your name added to her accounts. Bring your mother with you can. My mother’s bank required her signature AND they drafted a bank POA form in addition to the POA document we already had. The new document had to be notarized.
* Paying her Bills: For your convenience, you can set up autopay for your mother’s bills.
* Caregiver Services/ Personal Care Agreement: Use the search function to review articles on this Forum describing pay for a family caregiver. You cannot be paid from her estate once she’s gone unless you have a formal agreement - in writing - that is signed/dated by mom. A Personal Care Agreement spells out the duties you will perform and the compensation you’ll be paid. Without it, you could find yourself with legal problems should other beneficiaries (if there are any) challenge you.
* Trustee Compensation: Check your mother’s Will to see if she made a provision for compensation. The percent of compensation varies by state and is governed by state law. It is paid from the Trust after her passing.
This literally takes about a third to half of my availability and who could work a normal job doing this? Sorry, boss! I have to go inspect the room for my mom, oh sorry boss, I have to take mom to the dr, sorry boss, I have to go meet themovers... It goes on and on. I can't work a full job and it's hurt financially. Some of these situations are not easy and I congratulate those who didn't have issues but I suspect for every one that was easy there were 2 more that broke the main support person like me.
This is a tough job and you will be on the phone for hours hiring movers in your area, getting phones set up for ALF, and etc. The first year was a year in hades for me.
I would never do this again. I learned a lot and am glad I did do it for my beloved brother, but I wouldn't do it again.
Start with an Elder Care attorney, take in all your papers. Have you been to the banks to set up the accounts yet with your papers? Just start with attorney. After an hour of time and getting all your questions answered will let you know if you are capable of, but more importantly do you WANT to do this work.
Fiduciary in California (So Cal) as of two years ago about 90.00 an hour. Your documents will stipulate what you can get paid, and it won't be that. I would hire this out, making certain I had a trusted Fiduciary in your area.
Oh, and movers. Call those in your area after finding them online. Stipulate how much an hour and how many hours needed. If you know a handyman with a pickup you are in luck. Otherwise, good luck.
Please, you are missing info you need to have. PLEASE see an elder law attorney as to how to do this. It is a JOB, and it is not an easy one, and it wouldn't even be easy for me to BEGIN to tell you all you need to do.
As to moving stuff? Yeah? You know someone who can do it, pay them to do it. If not you are down to paying movers. Just like anyone else moving anywhere at any time. I moved my bro into ALF from his small home, then out of ALF after his death. In one instance we looked about for the cheapest handy guys to do it, and in the second, a friend helped (and I paid him for his trouble as that was in Covid times and restrictions.
I'm not sure I can be paid as a caregiver, mom lives independently. Speaking truth isn't berating, it's truth. I have no doubt many others have found themselves in similar situations, not all families have it together and work for the same goal. When one sibling has excuses and is retired and has time to help and lives 5 miles away and won't help, what else do you call it? I good friend of mine advised me after going through a similar situation to track my time and get paid for it as he didn't and had a sister who did nothing and received 50% of their trust, he was not pleased but he was the one who had to do ALL the work. Before that, I had never considered that a possibility, I just assumed 2 sisters would help equally, nope!