Making money decisions for someone
Are you able to make your own decisions (mentally competent)?
Then you can give another person the legal right to make money and property decisions. This is called a power of attorney for finances. To find out more, click on the Power of Attorney for Finances button below.
Power of Attorney for finances (COMING SOON)
What if someone I know needs a power of attorney but is not mentally competent anymore?
A person who is mentally incompetent can’t give a power of attorney. Depending on the type of income the person has, there are 3 choices.
- Social Security representative payee – Does the person only have Social Security income and needs help managing it? A person can be named to do this without going to court. This person is called a representative payee. If you want to be a representative payee, you need to get a letter from the person’s doctor. The letter must say they can no longer manage their own money. Take the letter to the local Social Security office. Social Security can OK a person or an organization to manage the money. Important: What if the representative payee doesn’t use the money for the person it belongs to? They can be charged with cheating the person (fraud). They could be sent to jail.
- Veterans Administration fiduciary – What if the person gets Veterans’ benefits? The VA has a way to OK someone to manage the vet’s income. This person is called a VA fiduciary.
- What if the person needs help managing money that is not Social Security or Veterans’ benefits? Getting a conservator appointed by a court is likely to be the next step.
To find out more about being a conservator, click on the button below.
Conservator of the Estate En Español (COMING SOON)
Want to give someone the power to make decisions about your health care? Click HERE.