This really depends on your definition of “afford”.

If your version of afford means, your income will exceed your expenditure, then you need to find an option to fund your aged care that delivers a cash flow surplus or find another facility where the Accommodation payment & other daily fees delivers a cash flow surplus.

However, there are other definitions of the word afford.

Another definition is- will I have enough in savings/assets to fund aged care for the rest of my life. One limitation to this is, none of us know how long we will live, but on the assumption, we live our normal life expectancy for someone of an age, then we can work out whether it will be affordable. It is possible that maybe family are prepared to contribute, or after your assets have depleted, the Government will come to the party with a “hardship” claim.

I have one elderly client, a lady who asked me if she could afford the aged care facility she had chosen (which was quite “up market” & not cheap- but was beautiful) she was 93 years of age, & had decided to sell her home, had no children to leave assets to. I told her that if whoever she has decided to leave her assets to in her will are happy to get less for the inheritance, then the answer is YES. That lady is still there today, being well looked after in luxurious surroundings for the rest of her life. She feels like she is in a holiday resort & had never been able to afford this sort of luxury before, so why not spend the last years of her life in a “resort” type of environment if she wants.

Sometimes we just need to show people that the “glass is half full, not half empty”. A Balance Retirement & Aged Care Specialist can show you whether you can afford aged care, or what the impact on your assets/estate would be, if you want something nicer. Contact us here.