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My attorney instructed me to condense all of my mother's CD accounts into one account. This sounds absolutely absurd as my mother would lose all of her investment and interest earned.

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I agree with Alva. THere are multiple reasons to NOT do this. Yes it is good to maximize interest rates. But some risk if > 250,000 in one bank. I think for advising on this, it should be a financial planner, not an attorney ?

Consolidating to one CD makes things easier to track. But may not be the best.

One other thing to consider - some Money market/ online savings accounts can have interest rates close to CDs, and the money is not tied up for a specific length of time , again, a financial planner / accountant would best advise
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Reply to strugglinson
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I wouldn't do that until the CDs come due. I also think it bad advice to put money into a single bank when the funds are only covered by FDIC for 250,000. I am also thinking these CDs may have been placed so that they were POD to different beneficiaries.

I see no need to do this. The thing you must do is to keep meticulous records of each account. As far as I know your duty is the same as a POA which would be to get as decent SAFE rates as you can on her funds. If this attorney is your advisor for your guardianship I would ask him a HUGE "WHYYYYY????" And if I didn't get a dang good answer I would switch attorneys quick. Now, he's an attorney; he may know something I myself don't know--that's for certain. So do ask him why.
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Reply to AlvaDeer
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It is most likely due to your guardianship. I am assuming your are not on the accounts as joint or able to currently act on the account.

Are you are going to apply for Medicaid Long-term care in near future? This may be more beneficial to condense accounts if under the FDIC limits. You will need to pay taxes on interest for each account and that is considered income.

However In a guardianship Situation it may be different due to legalities of the state. It is best to speak directly with the the attorney. Have a list of questions in writing to keep focused and don't feel te crunched. Refuse to be dismissed due to their time constraints. Goodluck!
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Reply to AMZebbC
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BillyJack Dec 24, 2024
No, I do not share joint-ownership; but I HAVE managed my mother's accounts for the past 4 years with mom's consent.

And no, mom is no way near being under FDIC limits. And again, my mother earns a significant profit with the interest earned on her CDs. I just can't comprehend how the court can prevent someone from keeping their investments???

I was the one who petitioned the court for guardianship; not so that my mother would lose her income, but to make sure her accounts remain intact. I just don't get it?
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Thank you, Alva. I agree with every one of your points.

Unfortunately, the communication between myself and the particular attorney I am working with is extremely poor, imo. I receive, what I would consider, "vaugue" emails that leave me dumbfounded as they are not in the best interest of my mother.

I'm thinking...if my mother had a billion dollars, she's supposed to place the billion dollars in ONE guardianship account??? It makes no sense.

I'm proceeding with common sense as I visit my mother's bank this week. Attorney is out of town for the holidays, so I will wait to speak with her after the first of the year.

I feel so overwhelmed because prior to me becoming guardian, I've managed my mother's (96yrs old) for the past 4 years or so without incident.

Now, what use to be a simple task of renewing CDs at maturity (which is what my mother has always done), my attorney is looking to upsurp the whole process. I just can't make sense of it.
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Reply to BillyJack
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It may have to do specifically with being a guardian as opposed to being a PoA...? So that financial management and transactions are more transparent and there's accountability?

I agree the attorney needs to tell you why.
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Reply to Geaton777
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Response to Alva: Well, the Order comes from the court. I wish I could take a picture and post it here so that we could all read (and learn) what to do and what NOT to do in looking out for our aging parents where the state/courts are concerned.

The tragic irony of this is I am the one who petitioned the courts of my own validity for guardianship, thinking that I was doing a smart thing. I am regretting my decision. I simply could have been made joint-owner of my mother's accounts and would have avoided this whole mess. My mother would have been okay with that.

I am over-simplifying things a bit, however, as I DID/DO have reason in wanting to secure my mother's assets. Only, I think I went about it the wrong way in obtaining guardianship? Had anyone told me beforehand that all my mother's CDs would have to be closed, I wouldn't have sought guardianship.

I emailed my attorney and told her that the Order has to be changed; that I am not closing her CDs as this would be detrimental to her financial investments.
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