Thinking of selling your house because the staircase is getting too difficult to navigate? Or the bathroom has become a slip-and-fall zone? Or your kitchen cabinets and appliances demand too much bending and stretching?

Before you start even thinking of moving, check out http://www.homemods.org. It’s the website for the National Resource Center on Supportive Housing and Home Modification. On it you’ll find the latest ideas on safe home design. And, as you’ll see, there are a lot of ideas. Want to remodel your bathroom? The site has links to dozens of designs for safe-entry bathtubs, hands-free faucets and grab-bars ranging from the ornate to the purely utilitarian. There are literally hundreds of items on the non-profit group’s recommended product list.

Now, if you’re in the market to remodel your entire home, visit http://www.nahb.org, the website for the National Association of Home Builders. The group lists more than 1,000 construction experts across the country who have graduated from its Certified Aging-In-Place-Specialist (CAPS) program – a certification course for building professionals developed jointly with AARP. CAPS graduates are trained to help you retool your home so that you can continue living there comfortably despite the physical limitations you may develop as you get older. Hence, the term, “Aging in Place.”

To make it easy, below is a checklist of what you can do to make your home comfortable and safe for years to come:

The Basics

• Create “turning spaces” of five-foot diameter in every room.
• Make sure hallways are wide enough to handle walkers and wheelchairs.
• Doorways should be minimum 32-inches wide – 34 or 36 inches are even better.
• Install thermostats with easy-to-read gauges.
• Use luminous light switches.
• Levers are better than doorknobs – and more elegant.
• All flooring must be non-slip.
• Buy an emergency medical-response device for the bathroom.
• Get lights and appliances with remote controls.
• Install brighter lighting.

For the Bathroom

• Get a bathtub with a build-in seat.
• Make sure the shower has no curb or lip at its edge.
• The toilet should be installed at least 18 inches away from any side wall, cabinet or tub.
• Counters should be no lower than 32 inches with plenty of knee space under the sink.
• Get faucets with lever-style handles.
• The shower head should be hand-held.

For the Kitchen

• Buy an adjustable-height sink – a hands-free faucet is a big plus.
• Work surfaces and counters should be 28 to 42 inches high.
• If possible, get an oven with a swing door and a range with controls on the front.
• Always use large cabinet handles and drawer pulls.
• Design sinks, counters and work surfaces with knee space underneath.

For Outside

• Build at least one entrance that doesn’t require steps.
• Avoid more than a half-inch rise at any door threshold.
• Use plenty of lights along pathways and at all doorways.
• Install handrails wherever you have a step or porch.

Undertaking a full-scale retrofit for your home can cost more than building from scratch. But many of the basic items – e.g. larger cabinet pulls, hand-held showerheads and door levers – can be bought for a relatively modest sum. And, in the end, staying put in your own home is almost always cheaper and what most people say they prefer to do.

You know that physical exercise is good for your health.  But did you know that exercising your brain should be part of your regular routine, too?

The field of brain health is exploding. Neuro-imaging of the brain and well-documented clinical studies show that planned brain exercise can keep the brain healthy as we age.

How to select the right program

So, if you want to tone up your neurons, what’s important in selecting a program?

Sharpbrains.com (http://www.sharpbrains.com) a market research and advisory company in the cognitive health and brain fitness market offers 10 questions to ask when you buy or use a brain health product.

1.  Are there scientists (ideally neuropsychologists) and a scientific advisory board behind the program?  Neuropsychologists are neuroscientists with a specialization in measuring and understanding human cognition and bran structure and function.

2. Are there published, peer-reviewed scientific papers written by those scientists?  How many?  Check out PubMed (http://www.ncbinlm.nih.gov) which provides citations from science journals.

3. What are the specific benefits claimed for using this program?  Make sure the results described are measurable.

4.  Does the program tell you what part of the brain or cognitive skill you are exercising and can you see your progress?

5.  Is the program structured with guidance on how frequently you should use it?

6.  Do the exercises vary and teach something new?  Doing the same exercises over and over isn’t what you are looking for.  In order for the brain to grow, you need to be continually challenged.

7. Does the program challenge or motivate you, or does it feel like it will become easy once you have learned it.  It’s not all that different than weight training – continually increasing difficulty improves performance.

8. Does the program fit your personal goals? Different programs work better for different goals.  For example, do you want to manage anxiety, improve your short-term memory, listen better, or improve concentration levels?  Find a program that fits your goals.

9.  Does the program fit your lifestyle? Some of the questions you might want to ask are:  How much time does it take; how frequently do you need to exercise; and, is it portable?

10.  Are you ready and willing to begin and stick with the program?  If it’s going to add additional stress, it’s probably not the right time to start.  Stress can reduce the creation of new neurons.

In the future we are likely to see more programs and new ways to train our brain, and more encouragement from our health insurance plans to engage in brain exercise.  A healthy brain, just like a healthy body, promises to promote greater independence in later life.

What’s one of the greatest gifts you can give your family?  Have your health and financial papers in order.

For both health and financial issues there are some decisions and actions that can only be taken with the proper legal documents in place.  Many of us put it off.  Yet, without signed legal documents in place your wishes are just that –wishes.

Four Basic Documents

Depending on the complexity of your financial affairs, there may be other documents you need so check with an attorney. Here’s a guide to get you started.

1.  A Will

A will is a legal document that details how you want your assets distributed upon death.  Without it, the state will determine the distribution of assets.  Each state has its own laws so make sure that your document is both up-to-date and in compliance with state laws – especially important if you have moved.  Wills can be simple or complex depending upon your assets and the directions you want to give.

An executor will be named as part of the will.  That person, usually a family member, oversees the disbursement of assets according to the will.  This can be time consuming and stressful if there are family squabbles, so make sure the person you select understands the responsibilities.

2. Financial Power of Attorney

If you are incapacitated, having someone pay your ongoing expenses, hospital bills, or take care of your financial accounts requires having a power of attorney in place.  The law demands certain legal documents be presented.  Some of the things you want to consider as you choose the right type of power of attorney is how much authority you want the individual to have over your finances. These are very personal decisions and it is extremely important that the person you select is someone you trust.  You are putting your financial life in their hands. But without it, their hands may be tied.

3. Healthcare Power of Attorney

A financial power of attorney doesn’t do a bit of good when the decision that needs to be made is medical. You also need a healthcare power of attorney – also called a healthcare proxy.  A durable power of attorney for health provides the legal authority to make healthcare decisions for an individual.  This can include routine types of medical decisions such as medical consents, facilities for care, and access to medical records.

4.  A Living Will

A living will is a legal document that details your wishes about future medical treatment, when you are not able to make the decision.  Types of treatment that are covered include resuscitation if one’s heart stops or use of a mechanical ventilator for breathing or feeding tubes.  Make sure your doctors and family members have a copy.

These are important decisions.  None of us know what’s ahead.  But with the right legal documents in place, you can make sure that your wishes regarding your finance and health are carried out the way you want.  That’s a great gift to your family, too.

Find more information at:

Elder Law Attorneys — http://www.naela.org

Elder Law Information –  http://www.ElderLawanswers.com

Legal documents – http://www.nolo.com

Five Wishes – http://www.agingwithdignity.com

The costs for long-term care continue to climb, according to the Genworth 2009 Cost of Care Study.  The greatest increases are for care in a nursing home (4.27%) and assisted living facility (1.37%).  Care at home from licensed professionals has remained fairly constant.  Though other research warns that as the baby boomer population ages and calls upon more at home resources, the prices will climb with demand.

Here are the average national costs of care, according to Genworth.

Homemaker Services (certified) — $17.48 per hour

Home Health Aide (certified) – $18.50 per hour

Adult Day Care – $9.91 per hour

Assisted living (private) – $2825.25 per month

Nursing home (private) $203.31 per day

Rates vary dramatically from state to state and even regions within a state.  For information about your area or where you’ll be living in retirement, check out the interactive map at http://www.Genworth.com .

You can find more information about long-term care insurance and get a quote at http://www.LTCQ.net.

If the drop in the stock market has turned your Social Security payment from “vacation money” to “mortgage money”, then it’s time to figure out how to maximize your benefit.

• Don’t be tempted to take benefits at age 62.  If you can, wait until your normal retirement age to begin Social Security.

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• Staying in the workforce longer not only gives you the chance to build retirement savings but also your Social Security benefits.

• Don’t exceed the maximum income levels if you are receiving Social Security.  You lose $1.00 in benefits for each $2.00 you earn over the limit.  Ouch!

• You can stop Social Security payments that you started before your normal retirement age.  You’ll have to pay back what you received in a lump sum.  But then you can start benefits later at a higher rate.

• Your benefit level impacts the amount your spouse receives if you die.  Use the Social Security estimator tool and understand the long-term impact before you turn on benefits.

Remember Patty Duke?  Well, you’ll see her again when you visit the Social Security website at http://www.ssa.gov.  She’ll tell you how easy their new online sign-up is to use.  And it is!

Especially compared to the hours you could have spent on the phone or in line at a local Social Security office.

Try the benefit estimator.  It will show you what happens to your benefit level at different ages.

When you are ready, apply for benefits online.  It takes you just about 15 minutes.  There is a webinar online that will walk you through the process first.  Or just plunge in – it’s pretty easy to follow.  Then, you can check the status of your application online as well.

There are also great questions and answers and brochures that explain the rules.

If you have ever dieted (and that is most of us) you know the euphoria of losing that first few pounds. Then time goes on, what’s new becomes old…you find yourself rationalizing more frequently “just this once.”

We’re entering a similar danger zone in financial planning.  How you react to the more upbeat economic news could have a significant impact your financial success in living the life you want.

Here are five tips for staying on course.

1. Keep spending and saving in balance. If you feel you’ve reached the right balance with your spending and savings, keep at it. If not, keep working. Make sure you have your emergency fund in place (three to six months worth of expenses) and keep contributing to your retirement savings, even if your company has stopped matching.  If you are 50 or older take advantage of the “catch up” provisions of 401(k) and IRAs.

A move toward greater simplicity and a “less is more” attitude is growing in popularity.  A recent study by the Natural Marketing Institute (NMI) found over half of baby boomers believe they can “live a more satisfying life by having fewer possessions.”

2.  Keep your debt under control. The debt monster pulled many people under in this economic crisis. If too much debt has been your financial Achilles heel, don’t go back to your old ways.  Keep reducing the debt on which you are paying interest.  And don’t be lured into increasing those balances with new purchases.  And if you are readying for retirement, make debt management a high priority.

3.  Do the math on retirement income. Stop guessing and start figuring (on your own or with the help of a financial planner) what your expenses will be in retirement.   Get up-to-speed on Medicare and Social Security.  Be realistic about how long you’ll need to work or if you need to go back to work.

If you are already retired, how much can you be withdrawing safely without worrying about running out of money?  Have you looked at options for guaranteeing some income through an annuity if you don’t have a defined benefit pension plan?

4. Use insurance to protect yourself from the big risks. Life insurance long-term care insurance, health insurance, and auto/home insurance protect you from catastrophic risk.  If your financial situation has changed, get help from an insurance agent or financial planner on whether your current insurance coverage needs to be adjusted. Try these sites for quotes: life insurance – http://www.iquote.com; long-term care insurance http://www.ltcq.net ; Medicare health plans- http://www.laihealth.com.

5.  Be on alert for scams. Scams proliferate in a period like this as people look to take advantage of swings in the stock market and stimulus money begins to flow. You’ve seen the ads offering free money, warning you not to be left out of the next big money maker.  Don’t fall for it.

Following these five steps will help you keep on track to reach your financial goals.

R-I-S-K – thanks to the economic crisis, we have new respect for those four simple letters.

The ability to effectively manage financial risk has only one basic prerequisite: You must acknowledge that there is a chance something will happen and its financial impact is not something you can accept or afford.  That’s it? What’s the big deal?  The big deal is that we rarely, consciously, acknowledge the financial risks in our lives or the tools we use to protect ourselves from them.

Most people simply don’t think about risk management as a strategy, that guaranteeing quality of life is what they are trying to accomplish, or that the basic function of insurance is to act as a tool for covering expenses we otherwise could not afford.

How many of us ask ourselves, what happens if (fill in the blank) _________  (I lose my job, my 401k loses 40% of its value, I get diagnosed with Alzheimer’s)? Can we still live/retire the way we want? How will my family cope?  Similarly, we buy insurance not because we immediately recognize that the cost of repairing say, our car, might well be greater than we could afford but rather because we’re required to by state law.

This is normal because most of us are neither planners nor cynics by nature.  However, the recent economic upheaval has given even the most optimistic among us a new appreciation for what happens when our assumptions are proven wrong and new motivation for doing something about it.

So challenge yourself to think differently about risk this month. Ask yourself, do I really understand what I would do if my income or investments fell sharply (again) or if my expenses shot up due to an accident or illness?  Can I afford the worst case scenario? If the answer is “no,” or “I don’t know,” make a commitment to yourself and your family to first get educated and then to get a new plan.  Denying the medical and financial realities of life today is just like driving without insurance, except of course you’ll have to police yourself.

Yes, peaceful sleep is an attainable goal, but managing your risk rather than letting risk manage you is a required first step.

Healthy living is about more than eating right and exercise.   As we age, there are normal physiological changes that affect our body, our mind and our attitude.  We can experience small physical changes like poorer vision and more aches and pains to more serious an increase in chronic illnesses such as heart disease, diabetes and high blood pressure.  On the other hand, as we age we tend to become more optimistic.

Learning to recognize and counter-act some of the bad stuff and enhance some of the good stuff, can lead to a healthier and happier life. Here are five tips for improving life at mid-life.

1. Break Bad Habits

Now is the time.  If you want to stop __________ (you fill it in – smoking, overeating, drinking, being a couch potato, etc.), decide now is the time to change. Pick one thing to focus on.  Too many goals and you’ll become unfocused and frustrated.  Be patient, get help from a buddy, and reward small successes.  The benefits extend beyond your health to your pocketbook and your outlook on life.

2. Keep Active

First and most important:  Find something you enjoy doing. The goal is to develop a new habit of exercising regularly and if you find an activity you like, you are much more likely to stay with it.  Even mild exercise is a lot better than none. .Regardless of the program you select, it’s important to begin slowly and have fun so that you will continue to do it. Make exercise part of your daily routine so that it becomes a lifetime habit.

3. Reduce Stress

We all experience some stress from time to time.  But when it becomes constant, stress negatively impacts our health –mentally and physically.  Sometimes we don’t even recognize it – a problem that is frequently faced by caregivers who become so engrossed in the care they are giving they forget to take care of themselves.  If signs are severe, you should see your doctor.

4.  Exercise Your Brain

Researchers have shown that we can exercise and improve our brain’s performance.  Good brain exercises are marked by novelty, variety and constant challenge.  Activities like cross word puzzles, brain teasers and Sudoku are a good start.  Electronic or computer based games are even better because there is more variety and the level of challenge can be changed.

5.  Stay engaged

Research shows that staying engaged in the community, having friends and a social network can be a great boost to your health and longevity. And, here’s good news, as we get older we actually become more content and less stressed. A University of Chicago study found that while we may have fewer intimate relationships, older individuals (57-85) are more likely to be involved in social activities like volunteering, attending religious services and spending time with neighbors.

Some significant adjustments may be coming to Medicare in 2010. If you are Medicare beneficiary –or will soon be – here’s some things to watch out for in the coming months..

Medicare Advantage Changes

A Medicare Advantage plan wraps physician and hospital services into one plan. Unlike traditional Medicare, the government doesn’t pay providers directly but instead pays insurance plans to manage care.   The health care reform bill being debated by Congress proposes cuts to insurers.  That could increase the amount you pay each month by $50 – $80, said Alissa Fox, senior vice president in the office of policy and representation at Blue Cross Blue Shield.

The enrollment period for Medicare Advantage plans (and Medicare Part D) begin Nov. 15, 2009.  If insurers put through significant premium increases, it will be time to shop and compare your Medicare coverage in the fall.

Doctor’s Opting Out

If you have Original Medicare and a Medicare Supplement (“Medigap policy”) you may face a new dilemma– finding a doctor who accepts Medicare. Some doctors unhappy with the payments from Medicare are refusing to take additional Medicare patients.  Even current patients who are covered by Medicare can be told by their doctor that they will have to look elsewhere for care or pay out of their own pocket.

Why are Doctor’s opting out?  Low reimbursements for the services they provide and lots of paperwork.

What to do now

So what do you do if you are turning 65 soon or if you just found out your doctor is opting out of Medicare?

1. Don’t wait.  If you are approaching 65, check with your doctor to see if he/she will continue to treat you once you are covered by Medicare. Ask what Medicare plans they accept.

2. If your doctor says he/she is opting out of Medicare start looking for a new doctor. Ask for a referral from you doctor.  Ask friends and family members who use Medicare for suggestions.

3.  Check with stand alone urgent care centers in your community to see if they will take primary care patients who are covered by Medicare. The Academy of Urgent Care Medicine plans to add a list of centers it has accredited to its Web site, http://www.aaucm.org.

In this economy it can be hard to figure out what to do next to secure a sound financial future. So here’s a place to start.  Get healthier. There is a direct connection between health and wealth.

So what can you do to get your health and wealth working together? To begin, try these three:

• Face the Facts. It’s natural to avoid things we don’t like to do.  Or push them aside until later.  Whether it’s eating less and exercising more or saving more and spending less, many us say “later” until it’s too late. However, spending and eating too much is in fact bad and no amount of denial can change that.

• Seek Good Counsel. Both health care and financial services are filled with complex terminology.  It can be confusing and frustrating.  You can’t fix what you don’t understand.  So find professionals who will answer your questions and speak with you in ways that make your options clear and help you take the next step.

• Embrace Simple Routines. Regular visits to the doctor and preventive tests can mean a healthier and longer life.  Similarly, regularly measuring how you are doing against your financial saving and spending goals can lead to a more secure financial future. The old saying still applies “if it’s not inspected, it gets neglected,” so make your check-up routines simple and stick with them!

What are the practical results that living a healthier life can have on your wealth?  Here are a few:

• When you are healthy, you can do more and pay less.  Having fewer physical limits means you can work longer if you want to.  Or, at a minimum, you’ll spend less because you don’t need help with everyday tasks.

• Chronic health conditions are expensive: medication, doctor visits, hospitalization, loss of time at work, and home care.  Again, if you are healthy you have fewer out-of-pocket costs.

• Your health directly impacts how much you pay for insurance, including health, life, and long-term care insurance.  The healthier you are the less insurance can cost. Some health conditions will make you uninsurable.

If building or rebuilding your financial security seems hard right now, why not start with a morning walk – just taking those steps will help both your health and your wealth.  And, once you’re moving, just watch how far momentum will take you!