Mary Alexander: Hi, I am Mary Alexander from Home Instead Senior Care. Today I am going to provide some tips on how to help your senior loved ones manage their finances, and tips to prevent them from becoming targets of fraud.

I know for some of you that managing your own money is a daunting task. Never mind taking on your parent's financial management as well. The good news is that there are reputable services and firms that you and your parents can take advantage of to make money management easier.

Money isn't an important concern at any age. But for seniors, money management and financial and estate planning are three issues that must be carefully thought out and well organized. In many cases, income for seniors gets reduced or remains stable, but expenses especially for health and medical care are likely to arise. Without careful financial balancing, some seniors are likely to put themselves at risk for illness, either through skipping meals, medication, and home repairs, in order to save money. Others forgo socializing and vacations, which can lead to depression. Others become so concerned about having enough money that they let down their guard, and become a target of a scam.

Senior scams are costing older adults their life savings, their homes, and even their lives. Seniors often worry that they will outlive their money, and are concerned that they might not be able to continue to live the lifestyle to which they have become accustomed. Some may get caught up in these schemes, because they're looking for ways to improve their financial situation.

All of these sounds like pretty scary stuff, and it is. So to help, in this video series we're going to give you ideas to get your parents financially organized, teach you how to pull together a professional service team, help you learn about options for financing care, and give you day-to-day ways to help parents manage their money, and help prevent them from becoming victims of fraud.

Home Instead Senior Care, the national leader in providing home-care services for seniors, is bringing you this video series to help you, help your senior loved ones. Helping seniors is something Home Instead has been doing passionately for more than 15 years. I not only work for Home Instead Senior Care, but I'm a Certified Senior Advisor. More importantly, I am a long distance caregiver for my dad. I spent several months caring for my mom locally. In both cases, I learned a lot about helping my parents manage their finances. Let's start first by talking about pulling together a financial and estate management team.