According to the National Alliance for Caregiving and AARP, nearly 44 million Americans – 1 in 5 adults – are caring for an aging loved one. Many of those caregivers live at least an hour away from the family members who need their help. This presents a significant burden to those distance caregivers, who often have to take time off work for travel to help with shopping, medical appointments and paying bills.

One of the first areas where elders need help is managing household finances. Approximately 7% of adults receiving social security benefits have difficulty managing their household finances, according to AARP. In most cases, when elders need help managing money, adult children step in. But if the adult children live far away it may make daily, hands-on money management difficult or impossible.

This is where a Daily Money Manager (DMM) can help. A DMM works with the senior and any involved family members to provide support in managing and organizing the day-to-day financial responsibilities of the household. This may include routine tasks such as paying bills, preparing checks for signature, making bank deposits and filling out complex paperwork, such as filing claims for Long Term Care insurance. It may also include more complex tasks like developing a household budget, creating financial scenarios, negotiating with creditors and preparing household payroll for caregiver or other home employees.

A Daily Money Manager’s role is three-fold:  An advocate, who informs the elder about available community resources, benefits he or she is entitled to, and provides application assistance; a debt manager, who helps negotiate with creditors; and a bill payer, who organizes the bills and establishes a record keeping system that captures relevant documents for tax preparation at year end.  Daily Money Managers can also play a role in protecting elders from financial abuse or scams. They can review bank and credit card statements looking for signs of abuse or fraud – such as large, unexplained withdrawals of money, an excessive amount of checks written to charities or other groups, or any other suspicious activity.

Daily Money Managers come from a variety of backgrounds. While the profession is not yet licensed, there is a certification process – Professional Daily Money Manager (PDMM) – which requires sitting for an exam and keeping current through ongoing education.

A common thread among some DMMs is the experience of watching over an older adult’s financial well-being.  In my case, in addition to helping my parents, I’ve leveraged my education – engineering degree and MBA – and 30 years of experience in the corporate world to build a business helping seniors and their families navigate the day-to-day activities of managing their household finances.  Some of the things I’ve done for clients include: setting up online bill pay; negotiating contracts with vendors; reporting to the appropriate authorities when I suspect elder financial abuse; and developing various financial scenarios to help families determine the most economically feasible living situation for their senior.

The greatest value I provide, however, is the peace of mind for adult children or others who are caring for their aging loved ones from a distance.  If you know of someone who could use the help of a Daily Money Manager, please let me know. If I can’t help them directly, I can put them in touch with my network of Daily Money Managers across the country!