Angela called us the other day. She was
worried about her 77-year-old mother, Lois, who resides in Oviedo and
had been showing signs of quickly slowing down and perhaps being
unable to remain living on her own in the two-bedroom ranch she's
owned for the past two decades.
Lois had been spry and energetic until
a couple of years ago when Angela – who lives far away in Maryland
– had visited Mom for the holidays and noticed signs that she
wasn't eating properly and was unable to maintain basic, household
chores like cleaning, laundry and the usual, mundane tasks.
Concerned, Angela had arranged for
visits and help from an Orlando home health care company and that
seemed to help. But recently the company alerted Angela that her
mother seemed to be deteriorating and suggested that she begin
investigating other options: specifically moving her mother to an
Orlando assisted living facility.
She quickly jumped to the phone and
Internet, began researching and calling Central Florida retirement
communities and immediately came face-to-face with what was quickly
growing to an overwhelming task.
How could she – hundreds of miles
away in Baltimore – properly handle everything that needed arranged
and investigated before transitioning her mom to an assisted living
community? On top of the geographic constraints, she groaned at the
things that needed accomplished.
To help with financing the care at the
senior community, Lois' house needed to be sold. And there were a
wide variety of other financial issues that also needed addressed.
Angela discovered she needed to work with her mom's financial
adviser, hire an elder law attorney, handle Social Security and
pension issues, hire a good real estate agent, manage an estate
auction, hire a trash hauling company, arrange for storage, work with
a handyman to fix the house in preparation for a sale, and countless
other issues.
Then there were all the emotional and
family problems: How could she convince her mother to make the move,
especially when Lois broke down, cried, and adamantly refused.
Angela's brother – who lives in Texas – was also against the idea
and he and Angela had exchanged heated words about the entire
problem. She needed help in explaining the entire, broad picture to
her family. But where could she start?
That's when Angela called us. She came
across our information online and chose to reach out to my partner –
Lisa D'Aloise – and I at the Estate Conversions Team of KellerWilliams Realty.
She noted that not only were we
experienced Orlando and Oviedo real estate agents, but we were
Certified Senior Housing Professionals and highly-trained and
experienced in working with seniors and their adult children when the
time came to sell the house of an older adult.
Beginning preparations to sell the
house was Angela's first priority, but she wanted to know what kind
of help we could offer with all of the problems mentioned above.
Our answer? All of it.
That's what we do. As Certified Senior Housing Professionals of The Seniors Real Estate Institute, selling
homes for seniors is our specialty. But we go far beyond that. Our
training and experience has shown us how to help caregiver families
work their way through a process that can be so overwhelming during a
late-in-life move for their Mom, Dad, or other loved one.
That includes sharing ways to bring the
family to consensus, what to look for when choosing an Orlando
retirement community, checklists for the entire move process, help
and recommendations in what assisted living communities may be right
for you, guidance in finding the right professionals (like attorneys,
guardians, probate specialists) and other necessary vendors like
estate auctions, movers, and plenty more.
Most importantly, we are trained to do
far more than just refer you to these other providers. Instead, we
serve as the hub of your entire move, managing everyone involved from
start to finish.
Our primary goal is to be your advocate
and partner and help a senior through this late-in-life move with
dignity and the least amount of hassle possible.
For information and a chat concerning
your unique situation, contact us for more information.
Contact Lisa D'Aloise of the Estate Conversions Team of Keller Williams Realty to Schedule a Showing
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