Less Than A Quarter Of High-Net-Worth Individuals Have A Long-Term Care Plan In Place, Key Private Bank Poll Finds

More than half of advisors say convincing clients to put a plan in place is the biggest challenge

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Jun 21, 2018, 09:00 ET

CLEVELAND, June 21, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Key Private Bank, the wealth management arm of KeyCorp (NYSE: KEY), released the results of its latest advisor poll, which surveyed nearly 150 of its client-facing advisors about their experiences working with high-net-worth (HNW) individuals on long-term care planning. The survey explored when individuals should start planning for long-term care; clients' long-term care preferences and whether those desires are being communicated to family members; and strategies advisors are using to coach individuals through the complexities of long-term care planning.

Six in ten (58%) advisors say fewer than a quarter of their clients have a long-term care plan in place, the poll revealed. In fact, convincing clients to put a long-term care plan in place is the biggest long-term care challenge, cited by over half of advisors (52%), followed by helping clients increase savings for long-term care costs without substantially impacting other financial goals (e.g., retirement, children's education, etc.) (44%), and forecasting caregiving needs and addressing coordination of care (38%).

Communicating Long-term Care Wishes

When asked about long-term care preferences, the vast majority of advisors (96%) say their clients' first choice is to stay at home and remain completely independent. However, moving into an assisted living facility is a close second, according to 93% of advisors. The least appealing options are receiving help from family members or personal aids (11%) and moving into a nursing home (1%).

Despite these strong long-term care preferences, most advisors say clients are not communicating enough with children and family members about their wishes and future plans. Over half (55%) of advisors say only "some" clients are discussing long-term plans with children and other family members. Two in ten (22%) say "hardly any" are doing so.

While nine in ten advisors (88%) say it is "somewhat" or "very" likely that clients who wish to remain at home will be able to do so, remaining independent will rely on sharing plans with children and family members.

"We encourage all of our clients to take a proactive approach to long term care planning to navigate the costs and complexities of long-term care," said Chad Stevens, vice president and senior financial planner at Key Private Bank. "With forecasting caregiving needs and addressing coordination of care named a top-three challenge by advisors, talking through long-term care desires early-on with family members will be crucial to setting expectations, delegating responsibilities and avoiding misunderstandings or surprises. It's never too soon to start having these conversations."

Covering Long-term Care Costs

While putting a plan in place and communicating needs is critical, advisors and clients differ in what they view as the best approach to manage the cost of long-term care, the poll found. The key to bridging this divide and developing the best possible plan for the future is collaboration, according to advisors—half of whom indicate conversations about long-term care should occur at the outset of the client relationship (50%). Most advisors say more robust planning sessions should occur between the ages of 40 and 50 (46%) or 50 and 60 (37%). Only 2% of advisors would recommend holding off on long-term care discussions until clients raise the issue on their own.

About Key Private Bank
Key Private Bank is a leading provider of wealth management solutions and advice for high-net worth and ultra-high-net worth clients, including wealth advisory, investment management, trust administration, customized credit, family office and private banking services. Key's wealth management platform combines the market insights of local advisors with a national team of wealth and investment strategists to deliver proactive and personalized advice and expertise to clients. Advisors also leverage partnerships with Key's business banking and capital markets teams to build wealth plans tailored to meet each client's specific need. Key Private Bank's wealth management platform is delivered across 15 of the United States; Key Private Bank has $39.0 billion in AUM and $38.7 billion in AUA at March 31, 2018.

About KeyCorp
KeyCorp's roots trace back 190 years to Albany, New York. Headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, Key is one of the nation's largest bank-based financial services companies, with assets of approximately $137.0 billion at March 31, 2018. Key provides deposit, lending, cash management, insurance, and investment services to individuals and businesses in 15 states under the name KeyBank National Association through a network of approximately 1,200 branches and more than 1,500 ATMs. Key also provides a broad range of sophisticated corporate and investment banking products, such as merger and acquisition advice, public and private debt and equity, syndications and derivatives to middle market companies in selected industries throughout the United States under the KeyBanc Capital Markets trade name. For more information, visit https://www.key.com/. KeyBank is Member FDIC.

SOURCE KeyCorp