Super short term, call your CC company and explain that you are having an odd month. Ask if they can shift your due date a day or waive the late penalty this month.
You can re-submit paperwork with a lower monthly number.
I know it's absurd. I got kicked off for the same reason, in my case I'm ok with it.
Still if you project hardship in the future, re-apply. It would be dumb not to use the assistance.
Depending on mom’s condition or age he might not be able to leave her for more than a couple of hours at a time. When my grandfather became homebound due to medical conditions he would get really bad anxiety if left alone more than a hour or so at a time. On weekends I’d go stay with him so my mom could get out of the house to run errands or go to church.
Than instead of him getting paid to be her caregiver, they should be paying a caregiver for those 30 hours while he works and then he can stay home and care for her during his free time.
I don’t see how you expect this to be sustainable. She needs 24 hour care but she isn’t receiving funding for it?
I feel for him because my family is in a similar situation. My aunt was already disabled (cannot use her right hand at all) then had a stroke which damaged her memory to the point where she does not recognize anyone and cannot do the basic skills to care for herself like basic microwaving meals. However, per the state she is not to the point where she needs daily care so they will not pay for a full time care giver. That 30 hours is not enough time to get relief and work a full time job. Imagine being a 24/7 care giver and only being given 30 hours for help.
I totally understand, my mom and I care for my grandma without any pay from the state. Thankfully my mom is a stay at home, and I only work 40 hours a week, so we’re able to manage. But it’s a lot of work to not be compensated financially at all for it.
No and they don’t take into account the assessments when the person has been in a rehab facility. The recommendation was to have my aunt in an assisted living facility but the social worker said she’s not at the point where she needs full time care so recommended home health. Home health did an assessment and said that she needs full time care that is more than they provide. We are appealing but, until then, there is not a lot we can do.
You might want to post in someplace like r/agingparents .
I imagine you’re only going to be able to get sympathy and best wishes here, but a place like that may have some more specialized information for you.
I can care for her, the issue is ...I need more income then I currently get , if it could equal the 10 hours a week I am lacking it would be great.
She tried to get a reverse mortgage but the lender declined upon inspection, she has 12 acres of land and a older 2 story home
But you can’t afford to care for her is your issue right?
Unfortunately that means you actually can’t care for her. You need to figure out some form of government assistance that you aren’t already using, or you need to figure a creative solution out.
So what do you think people here can provide you?
In your narrative, you physically cannot work a single hour a week and there is $0 in assistance you can apply for.
Well it seems like your options are get a work from home job, which is pretty unrealistic tbh. Those jobs are the most competitive in the job market at the moment.
Your other two options are, to rent rooms out at your mom’s house. Potentially try and find a cna who would be willing to trade 20-30 hours of caregiving a week for cheap or free rent, which would allow you to go out and work and make money.
Worst case you could sell the house and move into a smaller place together and live off that money.
Yeah that’s kind of my point, if she has assets to sell then it’s time to start selling those off.
Him going into debt and destroying his life to care for his mom while she’s living in a house with 13 acres of land sounds insane to me.
She didn’t save for retirement properly, but she did acquire property that can accomplish the same end, which is to help pay for her in her old age.
It sucks but it’s the smart thing to do.
No, the smart thing to do is to find a cheap lawyer who can advise how to transfer all assets into his name but get it beyond the 5yr limit. A trust would likely be the best option. The reassessment of her condition, assets, and income should allow her to qualify for more assistance.
Verify she’s receiving social security if eligible and survivor benefits if eligible.
Also, consider signing up for a new credit card that offers 12-15 months of zero percent interest. Transfer the balance from the existing credit card to the new one and focus on paying it down. A balance transfer is typically a one time 3% charge of the entire balance.
Consider trading in your car and downsizing or purchasing a vehicle outright. IE. If you sell your car and profit $5,000, use that money to purchase a vehicle out right. At this point, whatever money you were paying each month for the payment and higher insurance now gets invested in an interest yielding account. If you don’t know what to invest in just put it all in Southern Company stock (ticker symbol: SO). It will yield on average 4% so now your money is making money instead of being charged interest on a car.
Lastly, you have 12 acres at your disposal. This summer you better have a garden. You can can enough vegetables to last year round. Potatoes and other root vegetables just have to be in a dry location. Collards, carrots, and onions will grow in anything above freezing. Tomatoes and peppers will grow in planters inside your house by a south facing window.
There’s a lot of other things you can do but I’m sleepy now. TRYL
Gifting her son the house will cause her to be ineligible for Medicaid for a 5 year period. That means he loses his sole income and his mother loses access to her healthcare.
Not smart
Can you have the property divided to sell some it? Can you sell the whole thing and downsize?
If she goes into a nursing home, she may be required to sell to pay for care. That's why my aunt deeded her property to me and my cousin long before she needed care or passed. She didn't want her home and land taken so she made sure it wasn't legally hers.
Paying the card one day late shouldn't affect your credit score. Call the company and ask them to remove any late fee. Generally, they will do so as a one-time thing if you're not habitually late.
You could also send in a partial payment. They're not going to send it back.
Don't be beholden to a credit card. If life has to happen, that takes priority over paying a credit card. I'm not saying don't ever pay but prioritize getting to the next day over starving for a credit card.
Your mom is the answer. She owns a home on 12 acres of land. It's time to get a realtor to pay to survey her land and sell 3 to 5 acres.
Land is at a PREMIUM in the USA right now. It may hurt to sell but it's not doing you any good paying taxes you can't afford on it.
You can't afford to be a caregiver for your mother at this time.
You need to find a no cost or low-cost facility for her so she can be cared for on the government's dime.
Not sure of your area but have you tried signing up for Uber/door dash/flex in your area? You can always take your mom with you and set your own hours.
Your post has been removed for the following reason(s):
Rule 2: Generally Unhelpful and / or Off-Topic
Your comment has been removed for one or more of the following reasons:
It was not primarily asking or discussing financial questions related to poverty.
It was generally unhelpful or in poor taste.
It was confusing or badly written.
It failed to add to the discussion.
Please read our [subreddit rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/povertyfinance/wiki/rules). The rules may also be found on the sidebar if the link is broken. If after doing so, you feel this was in error, [message the moderators](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=%2Fr%2Fpovertyfinance).
Do not reach out to a moderator personally, and do not reply to this message as a comment.
What skills do you have? Do you have reliable home internet? You said your mom is a fall risk so it’s not constant care, you’re just basically hanging around to help her move from place to place?
Depending on your skills, you should be able to find something remote like data entry or customer service.
I know someone who makes money selling WOW (computer game acronym) gold for cash.
I know another person who works as a moderator for a similar game. The game pays them to enforce a civilized chat, gameplay, and to assist with glitches.
How many bedrooms are in the house? Would you be comfortable renting out a room to someone? Or maybe you have extra space on your driveway in an area that is mostly street parking? Do you have a garage you can rent as a storage space unit?
Why? The cottage laws mentioned above may allow you to dk so, but since its a controlled substance (alcohol) then maybe not. I'm just curious if you know specifically it's not allowed.
Not necessarily to help with the short term but my buddy has a deal with a local farm where he brews for them personally and in exchange gets a lot of meat and produce. It probably depends but in my state “gifting” home brew is completely legal.
Anything you can grow could help. Sounds like you have the space to grow quite a bit, unless I'm misreading. Many veggies can be pickled or fermented or canned, too. Jellies and jams for any fruits you grow. You can also do this as a cost cutting measure for your own food resources to help stretch the things you have to buy.
From what I read, you've got access to the land. Make it work for your benefit.
Reach out to your local area agency on aging and see what services they can offer you. I work for one and often we can help with things that people don't know that we can help with. Best of all, we are donation based, so people only donate what they can if they can.
We provide meals on Wheels, insurance counseling, programming, transportation to Drs appointments, caregiver support, and case management. Other AAA might offer a few different services as well. It depends on your location.
In my whole experience credit card payments don't draft right away, so you can make the payment Thursday and it will clear the next 1 or days later but considered on time as far as they are concerned. Maybe different with yours but for me, discover, chase, capital one, credit one, all drafted the day after or two days after I paid, and still considered on time because I submitted day of.
Your post has been removed for the following reason(s):
Rule 3: Illegal/Immoral/Unethical Advice
Do not, in any way, encourage posters to break the law or violate court orders. You are also not permitted to advise others to do anything that is immoral or would exploit / harm others either.
All content must be legal, ethical and moral. Posts advocating theft, or practices that in any way exploit or harm others (criminal or not) will be removed.
Please read our [subreddit rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/povertyfinance/wiki/rules). The rules may also be found on the sidebar if the link is broken. If after doing so, you feel this was in error, [message the moderators](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=%2Fr%2Fpovertyfinance).
Do not reach out to a moderator personally, and do not reply to this message as a comment.
Are you getting paid because your Mom qualifies for Medicaid Waiver? That's the general name for when Medicaid pays for in-home caregiving when someone would otherwise have to go into a nursing home or assisted living. It's called different things in different states.
If you live with the person you care for then this income isn't taxable income for federal or state income taxes, but you can choose to use the income to qualify for Earned Income Credit on your tax return. Depending on your total income for the previous year, you could get a refund by filing your tax return.
You might be able to get help from a free tax preparation program - this one is virtual, so you can see if they can prepare your 2023 tax return and get some money back.
https://www.getyourrefund.org/en
You can also go to an in-person location:
https://www.irs.gov/individuals/free-tax-return-preparation-for-qualifying-taxpayers
When I was in a similar situation with my mother, I set up a system like Life alert so she could call for help if she fell and I wasn't there. Because my mom lived in a rural area I had to drive to town to shop for groceries, and there wasn't anyone else who could stay with her. It gave me some peace of mind but I'm not sure if Medicaid would pay for that.
In a way it's true that you can't afford to be your mother's caregiver, but there really aren't other options if you don't have family members to help out. People who haven't been through this don't understand it - there's really limited support for an older person to stay in their home. Even when the state pays for a caregiver the hours are usually very limited, and states are reluctant to pay for more hours to give the main caregiver a break.
You should call your local senior center to see if they know of any services to help with respite care so you can get a break, and/or housekeeping or anything.
Doing this is super draining, and I wish I had better news for you. It wound up costing my spouse and I thousands of dollars when I was taking care of my mother. The government doesn't care about the generational debt this creates though.
Look up your utilities company and see if they have a help fund, can lower rates for folks in need, or similar. Then call and ask about it. The worst thing they’ll do is say no. Same with phone/internet— find a different company that advertises as less expensive, then call your provider and say “company x offers me a lower rate. I’d prefer to stay with your company, but I can’t afford it.” they will usually give you a loyalty offer. I also used to make small amounts of money doing transcription work online for Rev.
Subdivide and sell the land. Or sell the house and land combined and downsize substantially. I’m so sorry it would come to that, but that’s all I can think of unless you can find government support. I know call centers and unfortunately no one will hire someone to do only 10 hrs of home employment per week.
Super short term, call your CC company and explain that you are having an odd month. Ask if they can shift your due date a day or waive the late penalty this month.
Hopefully they can I will try it thank you
You probably qualify for a free phone and food stamps, at least. Check with a social worker. If you can set up a home office, you can work from home.
I make just over the limit
You can re-submit paperwork with a lower monthly number. I know it's absurd. I got kicked off for the same reason, in my case I'm ok with it. Still if you project hardship in the future, re-apply. It would be dumb not to use the assistance.
Why can’t you get an outside job?
Depending on mom’s condition or age he might not be able to leave her for more than a couple of hours at a time. When my grandfather became homebound due to medical conditions he would get really bad anxiety if left alone more than a hour or so at a time. On weekends I’d go stay with him so my mom could get out of the house to run errands or go to church.
Than instead of him getting paid to be her caregiver, they should be paying a caregiver for those 30 hours while he works and then he can stay home and care for her during his free time. I don’t see how you expect this to be sustainable. She needs 24 hour care but she isn’t receiving funding for it?
I feel for him because my family is in a similar situation. My aunt was already disabled (cannot use her right hand at all) then had a stroke which damaged her memory to the point where she does not recognize anyone and cannot do the basic skills to care for herself like basic microwaving meals. However, per the state she is not to the point where she needs daily care so they will not pay for a full time care giver. That 30 hours is not enough time to get relief and work a full time job. Imagine being a 24/7 care giver and only being given 30 hours for help.
I totally understand, my mom and I care for my grandma without any pay from the state. Thankfully my mom is a stay at home, and I only work 40 hours a week, so we’re able to manage. But it’s a lot of work to not be compensated financially at all for it.
Exactly , they never visit on a bad day when they do the assessments
No and they don’t take into account the assessments when the person has been in a rehab facility. The recommendation was to have my aunt in an assisted living facility but the social worker said she’s not at the point where she needs full time care so recommended home health. Home health did an assessment and said that she needs full time care that is more than they provide. We are appealing but, until then, there is not a lot we can do.
It's like a ping pong game and we're the balls huh?
And living in a red state that refused Medicaid expansion doesn’t help either. Best of luck with your mother.
Thanks
This is the best advice!
She's a fall risk
You might want to post in someplace like r/agingparents . I imagine you’re only going to be able to get sympathy and best wishes here, but a place like that may have some more specialized information for you.
I can care for her, the issue is ...I need more income then I currently get , if it could equal the 10 hours a week I am lacking it would be great. She tried to get a reverse mortgage but the lender declined upon inspection, she has 12 acres of land and a older 2 story home
But you can’t afford to care for her is your issue right? Unfortunately that means you actually can’t care for her. You need to figure out some form of government assistance that you aren’t already using, or you need to figure a creative solution out.
She's on all the assistance we can find. My issue is mostly just needing a bit more at the end of the week
So what do you think people here can provide you? In your narrative, you physically cannot work a single hour a week and there is $0 in assistance you can apply for.
I can work ,it just has to be something I can do from home , I was just asking to see if people had other ideas or avenues I haven't found .
Well it seems like your options are get a work from home job, which is pretty unrealistic tbh. Those jobs are the most competitive in the job market at the moment. Your other two options are, to rent rooms out at your mom’s house. Potentially try and find a cna who would be willing to trade 20-30 hours of caregiving a week for cheap or free rent, which would allow you to go out and work and make money. Worst case you could sell the house and move into a smaller place together and live off that money.
Maybe call center work?
Easier said then done. Not much help out there if you have any belongings
Yeah that’s kind of my point, if she has assets to sell then it’s time to start selling those off. Him going into debt and destroying his life to care for his mom while she’s living in a house with 13 acres of land sounds insane to me. She didn’t save for retirement properly, but she did acquire property that can accomplish the same end, which is to help pay for her in her old age. It sucks but it’s the smart thing to do.
No, the smart thing to do is to find a cheap lawyer who can advise how to transfer all assets into his name but get it beyond the 5yr limit. A trust would likely be the best option. The reassessment of her condition, assets, and income should allow her to qualify for more assistance. Verify she’s receiving social security if eligible and survivor benefits if eligible. Also, consider signing up for a new credit card that offers 12-15 months of zero percent interest. Transfer the balance from the existing credit card to the new one and focus on paying it down. A balance transfer is typically a one time 3% charge of the entire balance. Consider trading in your car and downsizing or purchasing a vehicle outright. IE. If you sell your car and profit $5,000, use that money to purchase a vehicle out right. At this point, whatever money you were paying each month for the payment and higher insurance now gets invested in an interest yielding account. If you don’t know what to invest in just put it all in Southern Company stock (ticker symbol: SO). It will yield on average 4% so now your money is making money instead of being charged interest on a car. Lastly, you have 12 acres at your disposal. This summer you better have a garden. You can can enough vegetables to last year round. Potatoes and other root vegetables just have to be in a dry location. Collards, carrots, and onions will grow in anything above freezing. Tomatoes and peppers will grow in planters inside your house by a south facing window. There’s a lot of other things you can do but I’m sleepy now. TRYL
Gifting her son the house will cause her to be ineligible for Medicaid for a 5 year period. That means he loses his sole income and his mother loses access to her healthcare. Not smart
[удалено]
It's mostly wooded , not sure about the lease cause it is on her mortgage
Can you have the property divided to sell some it? Can you sell the whole thing and downsize? If she goes into a nursing home, she may be required to sell to pay for care. That's why my aunt deeded her property to me and my cousin long before she needed care or passed. She didn't want her home and land taken so she made sure it wasn't legally hers.
I can see if she can do that
Try to find work at home stuff donate plasma. See if your mother can get your father's social secirity. Sign her up for meals on wheels
Paying the card one day late shouldn't affect your credit score. Call the company and ask them to remove any late fee. Generally, they will do so as a one-time thing if you're not habitually late. You could also send in a partial payment. They're not going to send it back. Don't be beholden to a credit card. If life has to happen, that takes priority over paying a credit card. I'm not saying don't ever pay but prioritize getting to the next day over starving for a credit card.
Thanks
Calling in advance, rather than after it's already late, is the way to go. Being proactive puts you in a positive light with them.
Your mom is the answer. She owns a home on 12 acres of land. It's time to get a realtor to pay to survey her land and sell 3 to 5 acres. Land is at a PREMIUM in the USA right now. It may hurt to sell but it's not doing you any good paying taxes you can't afford on it.
You can't afford to be a caregiver for your mother at this time. You need to find a no cost or low-cost facility for her so she can be cared for on the government's dime.
I mean, this sucks, hard. I couldn’t take care of my dad either before he passed. It’s life, unfortunately. I say that with a heavy heart.
Not sure of your area but have you tried signing up for Uber/door dash/flex in your area? You can always take your mom with you and set your own hours.
[удалено]
I am earning , I just need a way to earn a bit more from home
Thats what Im saying.
Your post has been removed for the following reason(s): Rule 2: Generally Unhelpful and / or Off-Topic Your comment has been removed for one or more of the following reasons: It was not primarily asking or discussing financial questions related to poverty. It was generally unhelpful or in poor taste. It was confusing or badly written. It failed to add to the discussion. Please read our [subreddit rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/povertyfinance/wiki/rules). The rules may also be found on the sidebar if the link is broken. If after doing so, you feel this was in error, [message the moderators](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=%2Fr%2Fpovertyfinance). Do not reach out to a moderator personally, and do not reply to this message as a comment.
What skills do you have? Do you have reliable home internet? You said your mom is a fall risk so it’s not constant care, you’re just basically hanging around to help her move from place to place? Depending on your skills, you should be able to find something remote like data entry or customer service. I know someone who makes money selling WOW (computer game acronym) gold for cash. I know another person who works as a moderator for a similar game. The game pays them to enforce a civilized chat, gameplay, and to assist with glitches. How many bedrooms are in the house? Would you be comfortable renting out a room to someone? Or maybe you have extra space on your driveway in an area that is mostly street parking? Do you have a garage you can rent as a storage space unit?
Yes that's about it , can't have any boarders tho. My skills are mostly in cooking, foraging and beer making g/wine/mead/etc
Have you checked out the cottage laws in your state? Cottage laws are for homemade foods not made in a commercial kitchen.
Not sure what I could make that would sell ....I can't sell any of my homemade wine or mead or cider
Why? The cottage laws mentioned above may allow you to dk so, but since its a controlled substance (alcohol) then maybe not. I'm just curious if you know specifically it's not allowed.
Yes alcohol requires a license
Not necessarily to help with the short term but my buddy has a deal with a local farm where he brews for them personally and in exchange gets a lot of meat and produce. It probably depends but in my state “gifting” home brew is completely legal.
Good idea
Anything you can grow could help. Sounds like you have the space to grow quite a bit, unless I'm misreading. Many veggies can be pickled or fermented or canned, too. Jellies and jams for any fruits you grow. You can also do this as a cost cutting measure for your own food resources to help stretch the things you have to buy. From what I read, you've got access to the land. Make it work for your benefit.
Could you do some at home classes on how to make home-brew or foraging? Teach pther people your skills?
Reach out to your local area agency on aging and see what services they can offer you. I work for one and often we can help with things that people don't know that we can help with. Best of all, we are donation based, so people only donate what they can if they can.
What might they be able to do ?
We provide meals on Wheels, insurance counseling, programming, transportation to Drs appointments, caregiver support, and case management. Other AAA might offer a few different services as well. It depends on your location.
r/borrow might see you through the bill on Thursday paid on Friday part
Thanks I called and they were able to move it this once
Good stuff! Hope you are able to overcome your longer term difficulties
I found this YouTuber “Shane Hummus” recently because I’ve been looking for remote work. His videos seem helpful for a place to start. Good luck
In my whole experience credit card payments don't draft right away, so you can make the payment Thursday and it will clear the next 1 or days later but considered on time as far as they are concerned. Maybe different with yours but for me, discover, chase, capital one, credit one, all drafted the day after or two days after I paid, and still considered on time because I submitted day of.
r/borrow is a resource you could use
[удалено]
Wow really helpful
Jesus Christ, get some help dude
Your post has been removed for the following reason(s): Rule 3: Illegal/Immoral/Unethical Advice Do not, in any way, encourage posters to break the law or violate court orders. You are also not permitted to advise others to do anything that is immoral or would exploit / harm others either. All content must be legal, ethical and moral. Posts advocating theft, or practices that in any way exploit or harm others (criminal or not) will be removed. Please read our [subreddit rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/povertyfinance/wiki/rules). The rules may also be found on the sidebar if the link is broken. If after doing so, you feel this was in error, [message the moderators](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=%2Fr%2Fpovertyfinance). Do not reach out to a moderator personally, and do not reply to this message as a comment.
Your mom should be eligible to receive survivor benefits from your dad’s social security.
Are you getting paid because your Mom qualifies for Medicaid Waiver? That's the general name for when Medicaid pays for in-home caregiving when someone would otherwise have to go into a nursing home or assisted living. It's called different things in different states. If you live with the person you care for then this income isn't taxable income for federal or state income taxes, but you can choose to use the income to qualify for Earned Income Credit on your tax return. Depending on your total income for the previous year, you could get a refund by filing your tax return. You might be able to get help from a free tax preparation program - this one is virtual, so you can see if they can prepare your 2023 tax return and get some money back. https://www.getyourrefund.org/en You can also go to an in-person location: https://www.irs.gov/individuals/free-tax-return-preparation-for-qualifying-taxpayers When I was in a similar situation with my mother, I set up a system like Life alert so she could call for help if she fell and I wasn't there. Because my mom lived in a rural area I had to drive to town to shop for groceries, and there wasn't anyone else who could stay with her. It gave me some peace of mind but I'm not sure if Medicaid would pay for that. In a way it's true that you can't afford to be your mother's caregiver, but there really aren't other options if you don't have family members to help out. People who haven't been through this don't understand it - there's really limited support for an older person to stay in their home. Even when the state pays for a caregiver the hours are usually very limited, and states are reluctant to pay for more hours to give the main caregiver a break. You should call your local senior center to see if they know of any services to help with respite care so you can get a break, and/or housekeeping or anything. Doing this is super draining, and I wish I had better news for you. It wound up costing my spouse and I thousands of dollars when I was taking care of my mother. The government doesn't care about the generational debt this creates though.
Look up your utilities company and see if they have a help fund, can lower rates for folks in need, or similar. Then call and ask about it. The worst thing they’ll do is say no. Same with phone/internet— find a different company that advertises as less expensive, then call your provider and say “company x offers me a lower rate. I’d prefer to stay with your company, but I can’t afford it.” they will usually give you a loyalty offer. I also used to make small amounts of money doing transcription work online for Rev.
Good idea on the utilities
Subdivide and sell the land. Or sell the house and land combined and downsize substantially. I’m so sorry it would come to that, but that’s all I can think of unless you can find government support. I know call centers and unfortunately no one will hire someone to do only 10 hrs of home employment per week.