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Valuable Veteran Information

Robyn Hardy — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 18:37:02 +0000

Want some valuable information to share with your contact database, post on your LinkedIn, facebook, add to your website, tweet and get out to every possible social network you can? Here it is!!! I am posting this again!!! Everytime I post it, I hear back from several veterans and/or family members who had life changing outcomes.

Every Year I post this information and will continue to do so as long as these programs are viable benefit programs for Veterans and their spouses. There are two, little known, Veteran benefits available that; when combined, will pay up to 3/4 of a qualified Veterans and/or spouse of a Veteran’s assisted living. I know this personally because my ex father in law was in assisted living paying just $600 a month for a one bedroom apartment while the VA sends him a check DIRECTLY for the balance of the $2,200/mo rent. The applicant can have up to $80,000 in the bank, own a home and car and these programs DO NOT effect any other income or benefits you already have!! I share this because, in this economy, it can be very challenging to care for our family members and there are so many Veterans living in back bedrooms isolated from others because they can’t afford an alternative. Here is the information. I hope it helps at least one person live a better quality life while reaping the benefits they so deserve for their service to our country!!!!

Yes, VA Pays for Assisted Living! This might sound like an advertisement or business promotion but it isn’t. This is a true story that may save someone a great deal of pain, frustration and money. I know, I lived it. I make no money on this and just hope that it can help others as much as it has helped me and my family. You are welcome to call or email me regarding this program. It literally saved my Father in law’s life and gave him the independence he needed at a very minimal cost without losing all his benefits. Financial Assistance For Elderly Veterans And/or Their Spouses Is A Well Kept Secret. Did you know the VA will pay for a qualified Veteran’s and Spouse’s Assisted and Home Health Care? I cared for my father-in-law, a Veteran of WWII, for years in our home until I could no longer manage his care safely. Like a lot of people, he had no long-term care insurance or budget for an assisted living facility. We were considering state assistance but then he would lose his social security and have to liquidate the few assets he had. One day, after my father-in-law had a serious hospital stay, I decided to look into care facilities to see what his options were. I walked into one of the premier care facilities in Tucson and was pleasantly surprised to see a brochure on the front desk describing the VA Assisted Living Pension program outlined below. Since that fateful day, my father-in-law has been living in a beautiful care facility with his own apartment and round the clock assistance and meals and the VA has paid him directly for ¾ of his monthly fees. His apartment and meals total $2,100/mo. He is paying just $600 a month and the VA is paying him the difference. It took 4 months for approval but once it was done, the VA sent him a retroactive check covering the 4 months he was living in the facility. That was a beautiful day for all of us!!!!! If you or your spouse is a veteran, the first thing to do is apply for general VA eligibility.

No matter what your circumstances are now, you never know what you or your spouse might need in the years ahead. My father-in-law didn’t apply for eligibility until he was 76 years old. Big mistake and cost him dearly in expenses for medical and prescriptions.

This is where my father in law ended up living until his recent death and he was very happy. www.cascadestucson.com Here are the details. Do not try to do this on your own!! At the end of this is contact information for very good consultants who know this program inside and out. Do not rely on the assisted living social workers or the VA. Very, very few people know how to get this done properly.

Here Are the Details: Ask an elderly Veteran if they are aware they may be eligible for a pension from the Veteran’s Administration and they will tell you ” I’m not eligible because I was not injured in the War.” This is a common misconception, which keeps many Veterans from tapping into a benefit they well earned by serving our country. The fact is elderly, disabled Veterans and their widows may very well qualify for large sums of money, but they have to apply for the funds. There are several Veteran pensions, but the pension designed to help elderly Veterans and widows pay for costly home health care or Assisted Living Facility care is called Pension with Aid and Attendance. It is actually two pensions in one. The two pensions combined can pay a veteran up to $1,674 per month and a widow can receive up to $960 per month. (these numbers may be higher now. These were from 2005) The amount one receives depends upon whether or not they are married, how much their medical expenses may be and their current financial and medical status. The pension is paid by check directly to the Veteran or widow every month as long as they meet the criteria.

The Aid and Attendance Pension is the government’s best-kept secret. I cannot tell you how many seniors have told me that they called the Veterans’ Administration and were actually told that this pension does not exist or that they do not qualify – they really do exist and your clients, family and friends may qualify. To get the maximum pension amount, a veteran must qualify medically and financially and must have served their country for at least one day during “War Time”. Also the Veteran must have been honorably discharged. Every case is considered individually. If a Veteran or Veteran Widow feels they may qualify, they can apply for the pension. The pension can take many months to actually be approved. The average waiting period is three to eight months. The first check will be retroactive to the date the application arrived at the Veterans’ Administration, therefore the first check may be for thousands of dollars. Subsequent checks will arrive monthly for the approved amount. This pension money can mean the difference between affording adequate care for an aging Veteran/ Widow(er) or having no care at all. As with any governmental program, success is all in the paperwork. The pension application is seven pages long and some of it is in essay form. It is the exact wording used in the essay areas that mean the difference between approval or denial. Also, the Veteran’s Administration does not tell Veterans about all the supporting documents that they would like to see. The better the medical and financial records, the better the chances of approval. Including the right medical forms signed by a doctor is very important for approval. Also typical of governmental red tape is the frustrating lack of communication. Once the application is filed and in the process of being reviewed, it is nearly impossible to get an update or check on the status of the application. In a perfect world, financial assistance for those who qualify should be easily accessible and easy to get. But the reality is that government agencies are inherently complicated and their application processes are never self-explanatory or simple. Ignorance of the rules is no excuse and no one will tell you the rules. The rules are written somewhere, but the Veterans Administration is not allowed to give them to you.Seasoned Eldercare professionals can often navigate these processes for you. They may charge for their services, but to attempt to do it yourself and have your application denied, will cost much more money. The Veterans’ Administration supposedly employs staff to help Veterans and their Widows apply for these pensions for free, but it is these very people who have told so many seniors that they do not qualify, when in fact, they could qualify if they made one small change. Perhaps the Veteran’s Administration is afraid that if they made it easy for every Veteran to apply, the pension fund would go broke. Given that War Time includes the Gulf War Era, which began in 1990 and has not ended yet, it is anticipated the pension fund will one day be either broke or impossible to get. For now, the money is very much available and attainable. Here are the Aid and Attendance eligibility criteria for the year 2005. 1) Veteran served in the Military for at least one day during War Time or had a spouse who served at that time. Spouses are people whom you never divorced. 2) Honorably Discharged from the Military. 3) Currently has medical or psychological condition which make the Veteran or Veteran spouse dependent on the aid or assistance of a non- family member in order to meet their daily care needs or they reside in an Assisted Living Facility (not a nursing home). This claim must be supported by physician signed forms and medical records. 4) Financial: Have assets in their own name below $80,000 (if married) or below $50,000 (if single). The car and house does not count as an asset. Annual income below $16,955 (if single) or $ 20,099 (if married) after all medical expenses such as Assisted Living fees, paid caregiver salary, medications, medical transportation/ supplies, certain housing expenses, etc. In many cases, if a person has a paid care giver, such as a nurse’s aide, or they pay an Assisted Living Facility, those expenses impact so greatly on a person’s net income, that they will meet the criteria for the income level. If a Veteran or Veteran Widow has cash assets above the limit, they are allowed to place those assets into certain investments in order to have them “sheltered”.This sheltering does not have a penalty or “look back period” associated with it. Proper asset sheltering for Aid and Attendance should be done under the supervision of an Eldercare professional or Attorney well versed in Medicaid planning because one could easily ruin the chances of ever getting Medicaid if the VA pension planning was done incorrectly. With a little professional planning, many Veterans and Veteran Widows can receive pensions that make a significant difference in the amount of care they receive. After all, the reason for this particular pension is to assure that a Veteran or Veteran Widow does not live in a substandard environment in their old age. It takes a little work to apply for this pension, but anything worth having usually does. And believe me…it is very worth it. These people know how to get this done. I have personally met them and I am impressed with their dedication to helping Veterans.

They can even help you liquidate Real Estate assets and minimize capital gains taxation by rolling your equity into an annuity which will pay out for the rest of your life.

Andy Smith Smith & Cox, LLC
1846 E. Innovation Park Dr. Oro Valley, Az. 85755
Office (520)318-5505 Cell(520)269-3883 Fax (520)318-5508
www.smithandcoxllc.com
“Retirement Planners for Southern Arizona’s Midwestern Retirees”
Smith & Cox, LLC is an Independent Investment Advisory Firm

Best Wishes. Please pass this information on to anyone you think it may help.

Luxury Real Estate Marketing: Say “Audi-os” to Vampires

Ron & Alexandra Seigel — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 19:41:01 +0000

Photo by Garytnt

One of the best venues to understand the marketing arena is by watching the Superbowl. The Superbowl reaches over 90 million viewers, and the advertisers’ intent is to generate “buzz”, and to firmly establish their position in the marketplace. As luxury real estate marketing and brand strategy consultants, we pay close attention to how luxury purveyors are differentiating themselves in their arena.

Luxury car makers such as BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Lexus, and now Audi are competing for eyeballs during the time outs of the most watched football events of the year. In 2011, Audi clearly wanted to continue establishing itself as the “new” luxury car. Its message was, “escape the confines of luxury.” It showed wealthy people imprisoned (prison with gold bars) by their old standards of a chauffeur driven Mercedes and listening to Kenny G. This commercial translated into measurable post game sales.

This year Audi has turned to vampires. In its new commercial, a vampire driving his Audi S7 on his way to join his vampire friends drinking blood cocktails in the woods around a bonfire. As he approaches the grounds, he eliminates all his buddies because of the powerful LED headlights. These lights are according to Audi the closest to daylight.

Here is what Andrew Lipman, communications manager of Audi had to say about this commercial, “Audi’s upcoming spot puts Audi signature LEDs up against the focal point of today’s most ubiquitous pop culture craze: vampires. As the most-viewed television program of the year, the Super Bowl is one of the best platforms to showcase a brand’s creativity and voice. The S7 is the epitome of luxury.”

As viewed by Ron Schott, senior strategist at Spring Creek Group, Seattle. “I think this latest campaign is definitely a way for Audi to actually get a little closer with the average consumer during Super Bowl time, I really don’t think it portrays Audi as luxurious .”

This commercial is humorous and entertaining. However, it does not communicate with the luxury consumer whose interest in vampires is minimal, and who is definitely not the average consumer. Will the luxury buyer buy the epitome of luxury to kill vampires?

This is a clear case of competing on features rather than differentiating yourself from the competition. Mercedes already has LED lights around its headlights. LED lights are not a unique feature, and installing enough of them to mimic daylight is not a differentiator.

As luxury real estate marketing professionals it is important not to depart to stay the course of your position (stay in your niche), and to compete on your fundamental difference (not features) in the marketplace.

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Luxury Real Estate Personal and Company Branding: Is Your Slogan on Point?

Ron & Alexandra Seigel — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 22:27:15 +0000

As a luxury real estate marketing professional you can distinguish yourself from the competition with a great slogan. The slogan is effective when you can distill in a few words the essence of your brand. How are you distinct from your competition?

In the highly competitive world of auto insurance, there are many slogans. One company is expressing its unique promise of value using this slogan: “Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there.” Here is Mercury Auto Insurance’s slogan: “It takes more than a good neighbor to save you money!”

State Farm is promising neighborly personal service when you have a claim. That is nice. Isn’t that what is expected from any insurance company? Mercury Auto Insurance is saying that they are not just a good neighbor, they also save you money. Being a good neighbor is important, but isn’t it more important to save you money?

In the smaller competitive world of Farmers’ Markets in Central and Southern California, one of the growers has this slogan, “No baloney just vegetables”. In a venue full of organic vegetables, fruit, etc, this has no validity except for expressing a sense of humor.

A slogan has to be so compelling that in an instant it can communicate its value. In women’s shoes Donald Pliner has a slogan which distinguishes his brand from other shoes made in Italy: “Made in the Mountains of Italy”, which evokes an instant emotional response: the notion of craftsmanship and attention to detail in a small town rather than in an industrial city such as Milan.

What is great about all the slogans mentioned here is the brevity of their communication. The key is getting the entire value proposition condensed into just a few words. That is the art of slogan writing which is what we strive in our strategic branding practice.

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50 Top Luxury Real Estate Markets in the USA: Malibu, CA

Ron & Alexandra Seigel — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 16:57:24 +0000

From the outside looking in Malibu has a very high profile due, in part, to the paparazzi and the media shining a spotlight on its glamorous surface. Certainly, it is known as getaway for many Hollywood celebrities and titans of business. The sitcom, Two and a Half Men takes place here. Even some Malibu real estate agents became local celebrities when they were featured on the reality TV show, Million Dollar Listing. But, beneath the surface Malibu has the intrinsic values of a small, rural California coastal beach town with a Mediterranean climate and a close-knit community. This, plus its close proximity to the diverse amenities of Los Angeles and easy access to the entire globe, makes Malibu one of the top 50 luxury real estate markets in the world.

50 Top Luxury Real Estate Markets in the USA: Carmel, CA

Ron & Alexandra Seigel — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 17:41:29 +0000

Actor-director Clint Eastwood once was the mayor of Carmel. Edward Weston and Ansel Adams, two of the most innovative and influential 20th century American photographers lived here. Each of these men are considered true masters in their own right and faithfully represent the rich artistic history that is at the core of Carmel-by the Sea, the center point of California’s North Central Coast.

Over the years, the natural beauty of the area has inspired poets, writers, painters, and architects alike. Mike Canning, who represents Carmel’s legendary Butterfly House, says, “It is one of only 5 true oceanfront properties in Carmel. The home, designed by Frank Wynkoop, is anchored directly into the rocky shoreline and has panoramic views from Point Lobos to Pebble Beach. Captivating Carmel residents and tourists for decades, this oceanfront architectural landmark exceeds unique”.

To view slide show, click below

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Luxury Real Estate Marketing: Serving the Ready Minded Consumer

Ron & Alexandra Seigel — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 21:33:33 +0000

In our previous post, we discussed ease of use for the consumers as one of the important keys to enhance your web site. Once the ready minded consumer contacts you, what is your response time? Availability and response time go hand in hand. If both are not in harmony, the consumer will go on to another site. According to Gary Beerman, vice president of Alert Site, “The Industry standard is that a brand’s website has to load within four seconds, or the probability that the consumers will leave the page is quite high.”

If the response time is more than 5 minutes, the probability that the consumer will leave the site and go to a competitor’s site is also high. According to a survey generated by Lead Response Management.org

When a lead is contacted in 5 minutes versus 30 minutes, it will produce a significant increase in qualified leads that have the potential of closing.

The best time to call to qualify a lead is mid to late morning (not before lunch) and late afternoon (4-5PM is best 5PM-6PM is OK). The best days to follow up/qualify are on Wednesday and Thursday. The worst days are Monday and Tuesday. Friday is good to make contact, but not to qualify.

It is a good idea on your web contact form to have a form which asks the prospect their communication preference, i.e., email, text, or phone. Asking that question ensures the beginning of a fruitful relationship.

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Luxury Real Estate Marketing: The Evolution of Web Sites & the Consumers Who Use Them

Ron & Alexandra Seigel — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 20:06:52 +0000

As a luxury real estate marketing professional, it is important to continue to meet the current needs of potential clients on your web site. Luxury real estate sites need to evolve as consumers become more web-savvy, clearer about what they are looking for and more time-starved.

Consumers now expect to instantly find what they came for and also be able to control the speed at which they consume the information they find. “Flash” sites and rich media sites are a thing of the past. They can be a turn-off or a distraction for the “ready-minded” person.

For example, watching a slide show or a video about a particular listing presents the information at the speed you set which is not necessarily their speed. A slide show with thumbnails that they can click on, touch to view (on a touch screen) or hover-over at their own pace is now preferred.

Luxury real estate websites should be easy to navigate and facilitate immediate access to information in a self-serve environment. The MLS can be viewed from a multitude of sites. Property search is a commodity and it is free. The days of having someone register to view properties are over unless you offer an extraordinary promise of value that cannot be found on your competitors’ sites.

Less is more! Pare down unnecessary information. Luxury buyers do not want to access properties in all the neighborhoods in a given marketplace. They most likely are interested in the luxury areas only. Therefore, augment custom search functionality with pre-set search queries based on anticipated criteria, such as property type, location, and price range. This offers them the luxury of time and makes it easy to get what they want which is an added value.

Less is more in design as well. Keep it simple and elegant. Think of website design as a map to guide your viewer’s eyes to what they want to see. Your sellers want to see their properties displayed elegantly. Your buyers want to see your listings as well as the rest of the relevant inventory in your marketplace. Present the canned information (schools, demographics, etc) stylishly. Do not take the easy way out and just give them a links to other sites.

Today’s luxury real estate consumer expects to find original content in addition to commoditized information that most likely can be found on all of your competitor’s websites. Blogs offer the vehicle to present original information from the author’s point of view. Yet, very, very few luxury real estate marketing professionals properly maximize this opportunity to connect with web-savvy consumers. If you offer truly original content, consumers will actually slow down and take the time to appreciate your unique slant because doing so is a luxury.

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Luxury Real Estate Marketing: The New Frontier/Original Content Marketing

Ron & Alexandra Seigel — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 17:23:36 +0000

Another leading trend in the affluent sector that impacts luxury real estate marketing is the growing technology IQ of the affluent consumer. The affluent consumer has become tech savvy, and understands the value of the internet as a source of original knowledge and up to date information.

One of the most effective ways of marketing yourself on line as a luxury real estate marketing professional is to blog. The old paradigm for blogging was to write posts that are laden with keywords interspersed with some relevant content, all for the purpose of extracting “Google Juice”. It also encouraged reposting the same post and changing a few words here and there. This type of blog (beloved by the Google robots) could definitely get that for you and may even catapult you to the coveted #1 position. It will not build an audience of raving fans, which is the primary purpose of blogging. In fact it is a turn off, and it works against you. No one wants to be treated like a robot.

What today’s luxury consumer is looking for in blog posts is consistent, original valuable information, making them savvier about your marketplace. They are looking for “insiders” insights, the newest and latest information. A post that reviews a book written by a local resident as well as an invitation to a reading by the author would be an example of content marketing (pull marketing). This type of engagement creates subscribers, grows audiences, referrals and a call to you from a potential buyer/seller.

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Luxury Real Estate Marketing: The Difference between a Trademark and a “Trustmark”

Ron & Alexandra Seigel — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 22:01:24 +0000

From a branding standpoint, there is a huge difference between a trademark and a “Trustmark”. If market leadership is your quest, this distinction is of paramount importance.

Trust is the expectation that promises will be kept. Trust is earned by the demonstration of kept promises. In the context of market leadership trust is the consistent delivery of an extraordinary promise of value that results in achieving top-of-mind status in a given product or service category (or a niche within a category).

Obtaining a trademark is relatively easy. But, it takes the constant, steady, unswerving delivery of your unique value proposition to build a dependable, reliable name for yourself or your company, a brand that your target market can trust over time. Only when your reputation becomes highly regarded on a consistent basis does your trademark transform into a “Trustmark”.

In the realm of luxury brands there is a full spectrum of highly regarded Trustmarks that range in categories from small indulgences to extravagant products and services. See’s Candies, an example of a small indulgence, is a market leading company that has consistently earned the trust of millions of people for over 90 years. Every time you purchase candy at See’s you get a free sample and the quality is always a constant.

Hermès has been a trusted name in high-fashion, perfume and lifestyle accessories since 1837 and enjoys an impeccable reputation for standing behind their products. A young woman recently brought in a saddle to a local Hermès store that needed its stitching repaired. Although, the saddle was purchased decades ago by her grandmother, Hermès repaired it at no charge. Stories like this one exemplify the level of legendary service that can always be expected at Hermès. And, that is what makes the difference between a trademark and a Trustmark.

As a luxury real estate marketing professional in pursuit of gaining or sustaining market leadership, building a personal or company brand that becomes a Trustmark vs. a trademark should be one of your primary goals. How can you develop a reputation for legendary service and consistently deliver on your extraordinary promise of value?

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