So Much at Stake

Older adults make up 15% of the US, performing millions of financial transactions worth hundreds of millions of dollars each day. These older adults are at-risk of exploitation and fraud. One in 20 feel they have been financially mistreated in the recent past. As scams and fraud skyrocket, we must aid the vulnerable.

But we must also protect the rights of the capable. Our interview tools help professionals, caregivers and older adults look at the quality of a financial decision and determine how vulnerable a person might be to financial exploitation. If you want to do something about the rising problem of elders vulnerable to scams and fraud, we can help. Our tools can give you peace of mind about finances and how to protect them. Our SAFE program also provides financial coaching and post-scam assistance. Get help for older adults at-risk of exploitation.

Hand of an older man writing

Mission

Forty-eight million US adults are 65 or older and worth billions of dollars in income and assets. The pursuit of these “nest eggs” is one of the fastest growing consumer fraud issues today. Older Adult Nest Egg seeks to protect these elders vulnerable to scams and fraud through education, research and risk assessments. Our validated tools and trainings allow professionals, caregivers and older adults to assess and document financial decision-making ability. We will help you determine the risk level of elders vulnerable to scams and fraud.

 

For older adults & the people who serve them

You could be Marion, 84-years-old and living on your own. Or a professional working with older adults as an attorney, banker, estate planner, social worker, insurance agent, law enforcement official, or an employee of Adult Protective Services. Maybe you are an adult son or daughter charged with handling your parent’s checking account. Or you’re the neighbor who looks in on Marion and helps her pay her bills. No matter who you are, if you care about elders vulnerable to scams and fraud, you’re at the right place. Learn how to protect their finances and their independence Older Adult Nest Egg offers you education, training, assessments and resources — all at no cost and with the backing of more than 10 years of research.

 

The older adult nest egg team

Dr. Peter Lichtenberg, one of the country’s leading experts in the prevention of financial exploitation in older adults, leads our multidisciplinary team. He has written seven books including the two-volume APA Handbook of Clinical Geropsychology (2015) and more than 200 peer-reviewed articles in areas such as mental health in long-term care, geriatric depression, and the detection and management of Alzheimer’s. He has also researched and written extensively on financial decision making in older adults. In 2013, he became one of the nation’s first Diplomates in Clinical Geropsychology (ABPP). As director of Wayne State University’s Institute of Gerontology, he has won record levels of funding and created programs to benefit more than 10,000 older adults and professionals each year.

The team includes a social worker, a financial expert, and a clinical psychologist who interview clients and analyze data as the Nest Egg interview tools launch coast-to-coast. The associated SAFE program provides one-on-one counseling (in-person, by phone or video conference) to victims of scams and identity theft, as well as workshops to educate older adults and caregivers about managing finances.