Senior Helpers provides many in-home, caregiving services for the elderly in Southeast Michigan. We offer extensive in-home care services for seniors who embrace their independence and the personal dignity that goes with it. Our in-home care services are provided by bonded and insured caregivers all of whom pass a national background check. If a senior family member needs in-home care services in Milford, Pontiac, Harper Woods, Saint Clair Shores, Keego Harbor, Fraser and surrounding areas, we are an excellent choice with exemplary references. In-home care is the compassionate choice for your elderly loved ones' continued independent living. We promise we will do our best to make it a positive experience for them and you. For more information, please visit: http://seniorhelpers.com/location/2601.

1. Senior Helpers In Home Elder Care of Southeast Michigan Highlights
Top 10 Tax Write-Offs That Caregivers Might Be Missing
Senior Helpers offers tips to help caregivers get the most from Uncle Sam
Farmington Hills, Michigan - (March 2012) – The economy may be slowly recovering, but it has forced
caregivers into a new type of economic crisis: paying their own bills in addition to covering the costs of
caring for an elderly loved one. More than 65 million people are family caregivers in the United States,
spending an average of 20 hours/week caring for loved ones**. And in many cases, that requires
caregivers spending their time as well as their own money. This tax season, Barbara Roden, Owner of
Senior Helpers of Southeast Michigan (MI), wants to be sure that families don’t miss out on valuable
deductions that could help make their lives a little easier this year.
“One fifth of the families in this country are shouldering the cost in time and expense of caring for
elderly loved one,” says Roden. “It’s important for families to know there is help out there, such as
Senior Helpers, to share the burden. But caregiving can be expensive and we want to make sure families
know about key tax deductions they qualify for to help with the costs.” Roden adds, even something as
simple as taking Mom or Dad to the doctor can be a tax deduction.
Top 10 Tax Deductions Caregivers Most Often Overlook*:
Please note, it’s important to check specific guidelines for qualifying expenses when filing your tax
return (http://www.irs.gov). For example, medical and dental costs must total more than 7.5 percent
adjusted gross income to be deducted.
.............1. Medical Expenses – nearly 100 medical individual medical expenses can be deducted,
including hearing aids and prescription medicines
.............2. Long-term health care costs – people often overlook that you can write-off long-term
care services and long-term care insurance (depending on age)
.............3. Mileage – including doctor appointments and out of town visits to a specialist
.............4. Dental expenses – including dentures and artificial teeth
.............5. Home improvements for aging adults – installing wheelchair ramps, hand rails and grab
bars in bathrooms are good examples of deductions. It doesn’t matter if these
improvements are in the senior’s home or the adult child’s home – as long as the
improvements don’t add value to the home, you can write them off.
.............6. Energy saving home improvements – High efficiency furnaces, insulation, windows and
even weather stripping are included. For more specifics, visit www.energystar.gov.
.............7. Mortgage interest – whether it’s adult children or the senior’s home loans, construction
loans or home equity lines of credit… they can all be deductions.
.............8. State and local sales tax – a good idea for those who live in states that don’t have income
tax. If you do, you'll need to decide whether to deduct state and local sales taxes, or state
and local income taxes.
.............9. Estate tax on an inherited IRA - If you inherited an IRA from your parents, you could take
a deduction for federal estate taxes paid on IRA income.
..........10. Charitable contributions – you can deduct not only the value of items you donated to
charity, but also out-of-pocket costs related to volunteering.
Cost of Caregiving Statistics:

2. Senior Helpers In Home Elder Care of Southeast Michigan Highlights
Top 10 Tax Write-Offs That Caregivers Might Be Missing
• . . . . . .7 out of 10 caregivers are caring for loved ones over 50 years old. Source:AARP and
National Alliance for Caregiving, 2009
• . . . . . .47% of working caregivers report that an increase in caregiving expenses has caused
them to use ALL or MOST of their savings. Source: survey by National Family Caregivers
Association, 2009
• . . . . . .More than a third of caregivers have been forced to quit jobs, take early retirement,
reduce hours or take a leave of absence to care for an elderly loved one. Source: survey by
caring.com
• . . . . . .The average family caregiver for someone 50 years or older spends more than
$5,000/year on out-of-pocket caregiving expenses. Source: AARP, 2008
Sources: *Agingcare.com, **National Family Caregivers Association
####
Media Contact: Barbara Roden, (248) 865-1000, broden@seniorhelpers.com
For more information about Senior Helpers, please visit: http://seniorhelpers.com/location/2601
About Senior Helpers:
Senior Helpers provides many in-home, caregiving services for the elderly in Southeast Michigan. We
offer extensive in-home care services for seniors who embrace their independence and the personal
dignity that goes with it. Our in-home care services are provided by bonded and insured caregivers all of
whom pass a national background check.
If a senior family member needs in-home care services in Milford, Pontiac, Harper Woods, Saint Clair
Shores, Keego Harbor, Fraser and surrounding areas, we are an excellent choice with exemplary
references. In-home care is the compassionate choice for your elderly loved ones' continued
independent living. We promise we will do our best to make it a positive experience for them and you.
For more information, please visit: http://seniorhelpers.com/location/2601.