Frequently Asked Questions
First Meeting
Can you come to my home, hospital or aged care home?
No sorry; as we don’t charge for a first appointment, we are also unable to travel at no cost. Appointments are in our office.
Does the aged care resident need to be at the appointment?
No. It is generally best if they are not. Obviously, they are usually elderly and unwell; it may be time for the enduring power of attorney to take over the financial situation and the aged care resident to focus on their own health issues.
Can we do the complimentary appointment by phone?
Yes, but we do feel a better result is obtained face to face. However, as many of our families are interstate or overseas, we can provide advice completely by phone, email and mail.
Where are your offices?
Melbourne. 2 offices
Level 8, 350 Collins Street, CBD,
OR, 1330 Ferntree Gully Road, Scoresby
Sydney. Level 40, Australia Square building, 264 George Street, CBD
Gold Coast, Level 4, 130 Bundall Road, Bundall
Does the EPA need to be at the appointment?
Yes, but call us to discuss if this is an issue.
There is more than one EPOA, should we all attend the appointment?
Ideally this would be the best situation, however frequently this is not possible. The next best arrangement would be to have the other enduring powers attorney available by telephone. However, in our busy world we understand getting everyone together may not be possible.
We don't yet have the official EPOA document, can you still help?
Yes, the aged care process can move fairly quickly and sometimes clients are still arranging legal documentation. It is best to meet to discuss to financial situation as soon as possible.
FEES
How do you structure your fee?
We charge a fixed fee for our advice – we do not charge by the hour. We charge an initial 50% payment before the commencement of our work and the final 50% is invoiced upon presentation of your advice.
How much do you charge?
We provide a no obligation, no cost initial appointment so that we can learn about our clients’ issues and see if we can help our potential client. If we feel that we can be of assistance, we will quote – at this initial appointment – on what our fixed fee will be.
ADVICE
How long does it take to prepare full advice?
Aged care can be a very quick process, so we need to be quick as well. We can have your advice ready for our presentation meeting within two weeks of engagement of our services.
Do you have an Australian financial services licence?
Yes, our AFSL number is 480387.
We are going to get advice from our accountant, solicitor, mortgage broker, placement consultant, next door neighbour, the fellow down the road, someone who put their parents into care previously.
These people may be experts in their own field, but if they are not an expert in aged care financial advice and do not have an Australian financial services licence (AFSL) to protect you from poor advice: you should not act on their advice. It is a complicated area, mistakes can be costly.
We think everything is really simple and we don't need advice.
Sometimes the family has not realised there is an issue that needs to be solved. The first appointment is complimentary, there is nothing to lose in being safe and thorough.
Do we "have" to sell the home?
No, there may be strategies to avoid having to sell the home.
I hear the best thing to do is for Mum or Dad to give away all their money.
Centrelink have gifting rules around this issue. There are also legal issues concerning this action. You should definitely seek expert advice before taking such a course of action.
Do you have any relationship with a bank or other financial institution?
No, we are extremely proud that we are have our own financial services licence. We do not have any association at all with any other financial institution.
AGED CARE
Explain to me, what is a RAD, DAP, Extra service fee, means tested fee, DAC, RAC, etc?
Sorry, I can only answer questions regarding our service. Your Financial Advisor will answer your questions if you choose to engage our aged care advice service.
Can you negotiate down the RAD for us?
As part of our work, we do discuss the payment structure of the RAD with the aged care home. However, our focus is not to negotiate down the RAD – frequently this actually creates a worse financial result for our clients.
We haven't yet decided on an aged care home, are you still able to help us?
Yes. Frequently clients come to us before they start looking for an aged care home so they can understand the financial implications and establish what size RAD would be affordable – or best – for their situation.
CENTRELINK
Can you complete for me the Centrelink combined asset and income assessment form? (SA457)
Yes, but only if you are an advice client. We have seen a lot of Centrelink errors regarding this form, and so we can only complete it if you are the taking an advice package. We want to make sure we do a perfect job and know all the financial issues of our client.
I have already lodged the asset and income assessment form, can you still help?
Yes, ideally it would be a good idea if you have kept a copy of what you have lodged with Centrelink. However, completing the asset and income assessment form is just an additional part of our advice package, therefore we can still help you.
Blog Posts
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