As you get older and develop medical conditions, you may need to consider getting assistance in the form of senior care. From in-home care to an assisted living or nursing facility, there are many options that can meet your needs. But the unfortunate reality is that senior care often comes with a high price tag, and you need to know what costs to anticipate—and how you’ll cover your care. In this post, we’re exploring how you can finance this important step in your journey—and live comfortably and affordably throughout your later years.

For many seniors, long-term care (LTC) insurance—an insurance policy that helps pay for chronic medical care—can be a worthwhile choice. After all, nearly 70% of seniors aged 65 or older will require some form of long-term care in their lifetime—a service that can be prohibitively expensive, setting families back thousands of dollars a month.

But is long-term care insurance worth it? This policy tends to come at a steep price: in the U.S., for example, the average 55-year-old man pays an annual premium of $2,220. And thanks to insurance marketing tactics, potential buyers often believe that they’ll spend years in a nursing facility—which isn’t always the case.

The decision to move yourself or a loved one into long-term care can be a difficult one, and determining how to pay for long-term care can add unnecessary stress to a phase of life that’s already full of transitions. Understanding the costs you may encounter and developing a proactive plan to afford long-term care can help ease the burdens that accompany it.

Ah, retirement. The reward at the end of years in the labor force, of saving and investing and planning for financially sound, restful, and even adventure-filled golden years. Millions of Americans enter retirement annually, but increased reliance on Social Security income and Covid-19’s impact on employment, access to social supports, and mental and physical health have altered the retirement experience for retirees across the U.S. With retiree numbers significantly increasing in the last year and predictions of more to come at an accelerated rate, we wanted to know if retirement still lives up to expectations. Are retirees experiencing the retirement they expected, or do they have regrets?