by Andrea Palmer
The Clifton Park Community Center provides a variety of services for those 50 and up. The town of Clifton Park took over the center in 2016 and has been running it ever since.
“Our programs are better than ever and our membership has increased tremendously, almost double in size,” said Susan Leonard, director of the center for the last two years. “We are all very proud of our accomplishments”
by Andrea Palmer
Saratoga Life is a Saratoga Springs-based insurance broker, providing solutions for insurance and Medicare issues to people over 50.
Kandis Paolone, owner, has lived in the area for 20 years.
“We now specialize mostly on senior products, such as Medicare,” she said.
Besides selling insurance, Paolone works at being a resource to seniors, as well as military veterans. She advises them about activities they may be interested in, special discounts, transportation and additional benefits they could be eligible for.
By Jennifer Farnsworth Maintenance-free living in Ballston Spa can be found at Kasey Pass Condos in Ballston Spa, a 36-unit community located within the Beacon Hill community. Pigliavento Builders of Schenectady did the construction. Alisha Pigliavento Houle of Alani Real Estate said anyone interested should act fast as 14 of the 36 units have...
The House Education and Labor Committee’s approval of the Protecting Older Workers Against Discrimination Act (POWADA) in June was lauded by AARP as a key step toward enactment.
“The vote puts us one step closer to restoring fairness for older workers who experience age discrimination,” said Nancy LeaMond, AARP executive vice president and chief advocacy and engagement officer. “The legislation makes Congress’ intent clear that discrimination in the workplace—against older workers or others—is never acceptable.”
By Jennifer Farnsworth
The Wesley Community in Saratoga is undergoing renovations.
Wesley CEO Brian Nealon said the $20 million project will include apartment renovations, a memory care assisted living facility and a training center.
Nealon said the entire project will take about three and a half years to complete, pending final approval from the city.
Renovations on the 37-acre property have already begun on the Springs building, the oldest part of the property, according to Nealon.
He said the fifth floor of the residential building has been completed and they will continue to work their way down to lower floors, working on about a quarter of the floor at a time.
By Rose Miller
As the first wave of this generation begins reaching 55 in 2001 and heads toward retirement, the workforce could lose substantial numbers of experienced workers from all walks of life.
Most boomers have neither the inclination nor the financial means for early retirement. According to a recent study, 80 percent of those born between 1948 and 1965 expect to work past age 65. Compare that with the roughly 10 percent of the over-65 group who held jobs in 1998. In other words, they will become “boomerangs”.
By Susan E. Campbell
Choosing to leave one’s home is one of the last major decisions a senior citizen may make, and one of the most difficult. A local company serving the Capital District and beyond is helping to make not only the decision but also the transition a comfortable, stress-free process.
“We really do make moving easier,” said Michelle Kavanagh, CEO and founder of Organize Senior Moves LLC, a certified woman-owned business.
Kavanaugh’s enterprise was first a companionship service offering such help as food shopping and preparing meals.
By David Kubikian
When I meet with prospective clients who want to engage in estate or elder law planning, it is not uncommon to hear them forcefully tell me something along the lines of, “I will never go to a nursing home” and/or hear them allude to preferring to take walk in the woods and “take matters into their own hands”
I understand what they are saying. It should be nobody’s life goal to ever call a skilled nursing facility their home. Nonetheless, we don’t always have a choice in life and the truth is that with caring and compassionate skilled care, the quality of our life can greatly be enhanced, even in a nursing home. There is however, an alternative called “aging in place”.
By Stephen Kyne
We’re halfway through 2017, so it’s time to take a look at how the year is progressing, and where we see the remainder of the year going, in terms of risks and opportunities in the economy.
The economy has grown at a faster-than-expected pace so far this year. First quarter GDP has been revised up, twice, and well exceeds expectations. Almost all of the S&P has reported earning for its first fiscal quarter of the year, and are trending toward a year-over-year growth of upwards of 20 percent (12 percent, not including the energy sector). These are largely due to top line revenue increases, meaning that increased profits are largely due to business growth, rather than cost cutting. We expect this trend to continue throughout the year.
Inflation is holding steady, in line with 2016 figures, at roughly 2 percent. Some inflation, perhaps counter-intuitively, is fundamentally good for the economy. When we expect goods and services to be more expensive tomorrow than they are today, we make purchases today, which means inventories need to be replenished, which puts people to work and gives them money to spend on the things they want and need. Without some inflation, the economy stagnates.
Another driver of spending this year may be interest rates. The Fed increased rates another .25 percent in June, as was expected. With the Fed finally making good on promises to increase the rates they charge banks, we’ll see that increase reflected in higher mortgage rates. The expectation of higher future rates pushes fence-sitting potential buyers into the housing market. As a result we’ve seen, and will likely continue to see, increased sales of new and previously owned homes. The same will likely be true of any purchases which are typically made on credit, including automobiles and business capital items.
An asset class that may be hurt by rising interest rates, however, would be bonds – specifically many bond funds. As newly issued bonds carry higher interest rates, the value of previously issued bonds, with relatively lower interest rates, should decrease. These changes should be reflected in the overall value of the funds that hold them.
By Brian M. Johnson, MBA, CLTC
If you’re approaching age 50 or thinking of retirement, keep this acronym in mind “SWAN.”
Surveys from folks in this retirement planning age group are interesting because these concerns are almost always in their answers to questions such as: What do you worry about after your working years are over?
Here are some top-concerns:
• Outliving my money.
• Keeping my nest-egg secure (no or little risk of principal).
• Dieing to soon.
• Becoming sick or disabled which in turn could eat up my retirement nest-egg.
• Becoming dependent on my children.
• Leaving a meaningful and significant legacy to my children/grand-children/charity.
These concerns are real-life and can happen to any of us without proper planning