LTC Insurance and Fairfax Land

A couple of items on the long term front.

Last night Diane and I purchased long term care insurance. Our financial planner had identified this as a weakness that could impact our retirement goal. Normally you would think this would result in peace of mind but the exact opposite is true for me. I had trouble sleeping which is something that never happens to me. I agonize over any major purchase unless it’s something I can’t avoid. The cost of the policy for us amounts to over $4000 per year! I’m not really questioning the need for some type of protection but I think the amount is quite high. The sales guy was not pushy or anything like that but we went ahead and purchased the policies knowing that we have time 30 days from the time we receive them to get a full refund. I’m starting a search online to see if we did the right thing. One thing I saw already from both the Maine and Colorado state sites is that you should compare at least 3 companies so I will at least do that. The other thing I will do is run through the math and see if we really need $5000 per month coverage. This seems like too much to me.  I think I’ll sleep better tonight.

On a very positive note I got a call from my brother Mike and he wants to meet to discuss plans for the family land. It looks like eldest brother Jerry will be buying the house from my parents and moving in with them. I’m not sure if he plans to expand the house.  Mike said that he knows Diane and I plan to build on the land but he does not plan to. He wants to maintain the land in a state as close to it’s present one so that he and his children can enjoy it. He agrees with Jerry and me that we should keep any houses in one area on the road and not develop anywhere else. The most likely scenerio would be 4-5 of us settling up there. He suggested we meet this spring or summer and draft out a proposal to send to the other siblings. I also liked his suggestion that we plan to discuss the topic every year in the future. That will keep things from becoming a sore point with anyone. Having these kinds of discussions brings be peace of mind.

I just remembered that I had a dream last night that my mom had a copy of my online diary and had read my entry regarding my concerns about being allowed to build on the land.  Quite a coincidence.  Or is it?