Grandpa Moneybags: The Value of Outsourcing
The following story is part of the Grandpa Moneybags series. Created by Hurlow Wealth Management Group, Grandpa Moneybags is a fictional character who shares lessons that parents and grandparents can use to teach the next generation of wealth holders and in this case Grandpa Moneybags learns and important financial lesson himself.
Grandpa Moneybags: The Value of Outsourcing
by T. Claire Kest, CFP®, CAP®
A few weeks before his 70th birthday, Charlie "Grandpa Moneybags" Hill was out mowing his lawn early one summer morning before the heat of the day. Charlie, a retired lawyer, took great pride in his beautifully maintained property, and often received compliments from his neighbors as they passed by when he was weeding or planting.
After finishing the lawn, Charlie noticed some branches had fallen on the roof during the most recent storm. So he went to the garage to retrieve his ladder and set it up carefully. Once it was stable, he decided to give the gutter a thorough cleanout. He stretched to reach the corner when all of a sudden, he felt the ladder shift. He knew it was falling, so he made the quick decision to grab onto the gutter.
"Help!" Charlie yelled as he dangled from the second story. He attempted to kick the window in, but with the momentum, he felt the gutter detach from the roof, and his hands slipped. Down he fell twelve feet, and although the azalea bushes below cushioned most of his weight, he landed hard on his hip, and his head bounced upon impact with the grass.
His neighbor, Eddy, heard Charlie's initial cry for help and then witnessed the fall as he ran up the yard. He quickly called 911 for assistance.
Charlie awoke disoriented and in shock from the pain, with the EMTs placing a collar around his neck before moving him into the ambulance. After the initial triage, medical history, and scans, in the emergency room, they gave him a heavy dose of pain medication. The doctor came in sometime later to explain that he had broken his hip and would need surgery. "Good news, though, about your head. The scan shows no bleed or fracture to your head or neck. You have quite a hematoma on your scalp, but that should subside over the next week or two," Dr. Nash told him.
As Charlie's Health Care Power of Attorney, his daughter, Katie, received a call at approximately 10:00 a.m. She got in the car immediately and arrived at the hospital 3 1/2 hours later. Charlie was still in the ER, waiting for transfer to a room, when they arrived.
"Dad!" Katie exclaimed. "What happened?"
"Oh, hi! It's no big deal. I had a little fall." Charlie slurred through his drug-induced state. "I'll be dancing again before you know it!"
The nurse came in to check Charlie's vitals, and Katie asked, "When will he be moved to a room?"
"Likely within the hour," she replied.
The surgeon was the next visitor to stop by. "I'm Dr. Stevens. How are you feeling right now? He asked, putting the X-ray up on the screen.
"I've felt better," Charlie replied.
"Well, it's my job to fix that hip of yours. I've scheduled the surgery for 3:00 p.m." He went on to point out the break to Charlie on the screen and explain that the repair would involve metal screws, plates, and rods, but he did not think it was severe enough to require a full or partial replacement. He expected to release Charlie from the hospital in three days. He strongly recommended that Charlie consider going to an inpatient rehabilitation facility for a few weeks after the hospital stay to kickstart his physical rehab. When Charlie began to protest, Doctor Stevens said, "I'm sure you think you will be different. But when it hurts, and you don't have a medical professional standing in front of you forcing you to walk, you might not comply with the rehab program. The results I've seen are dramatically different for those who go to rehabilitation centers."
Five days later, Charlie was wrapping up his morning physical therapy session when Katie arrived. She sat in the waiting chairs, observing her father as he took tentative steps with the walker. A woman was next to him, walking in step. They chatted casually, and Katie noticed her father smile in a way that she had not seen in years.
"Do you two want ice?"
"I do!" Charlie exclaimed.
"Yes, please," replied the curly, white-haired woman.
Charlie slowly got on the table and lay on his left side, and the physical therapist placed a towel and an ice pack on his right hip. The woman mirrored Charlie's actions, lying on her right side facing Charlie.
"You'll be dancing in no time, Eleanor," Charlie said softly to the woman on the table next to him. "You're doing great!"
"You are helping me to stay motivated. I don't want you to get out of here before I do!" Eleanor replied.
"So you've got a competitive streak, I see. Would you be interested in a friendly wager?" Charlie asked.
"What are you thinking?" She asked.
"Well, I can think of a few options..."
Feeling as though she was watching her dad flirt with the woman, Katie got up and went for a walk outside, returning 10 minutes later as her dad was leaving the physical therapy room.
"Hi, Dad." Katie waved to get her father's attention.
Startled, Charlie turned to Eleanor and asked, "I'll see you at lunch?"
"I'll save you a seat," She replied with a warm smile, turning and shuffling slowly down the hall.
Curious, Katie leaned in and asked, "New friend?"
"Maybe," Charlie replied. "Let's go sit in the dining room. Is John coming today?" Charlie asked, referring to his friend and long-time financial advisor, John Hurlow.
"Yes, he'll be here shortly," Katie confirmed. "I've calculated the expected additional expenses, and I want you to feel confident that you can afford to spend this money. I've hired a landscaper who will take care of mowing, trimming, fertilizing, leaf removal in the fall, cleanup after storms, and even snow removal in the winter. Plus, I went ahead and arranged for a contractor to fix your gutters. He is going to install gutter guards, so you won't have to worry about climbing that ladder to clean them out anymore."
Katie continued, "And I've also hired a woman to come over twice a week. She will do the laundry, change the sheets, tidy up the kitchen, vacuum, and clean the bathrooms for you."
As for your groceries," she added, "when you get home, I'll show you how to use the delivery app, so you won't have to carry them inside anymore. I'm heading back to Chicago today, but I'll be back in a couple of weeks."
Charlie hesitated, furrowing his brow. "Is that lawn service on a contract? I'll be better in a couple of months, so I don't need them long-term. Also, I can take care of the house. I've never had a housekeeper, and I don't want one now." Charlie resisted.
"Dad," Katie interjected, her eyes filled with concern. "I understand you like taking care of your property, but you need to rest and recover. These expenses are a wise use of your money. Think of it this way, you are providing jobs for people who probably need the money. You are not admitting weakness; you are helping someone else earn a living. Let's talk to John and see what he thinks."
Just then, Katie looked over at the front desk to see John Hurlow, Charlie's financial advisor, signing in at the reception desk.
"Hi, John," Katie waved from their table. She stood to shake hands.
Charlie, sitting nearby chuckled and said, "I hope you won't mind if I don't get up."
"It's good to see you didn't lose your sense of humor in the fall, Charlie," John said with a smile.
Over the next hour, the three discussed Charlie's financial plan. John began by reminding of their previous conversation about long-term care insurance when he was in his 50s. At that time, they had collectively agreed that Charlie could self-insure against that risk.
John explained that most of the stay in the rehabilitation center would be covered by Medicare, but anything beyond 100 days would be fully out of pocket. Charlie quickly reassured both John and Katie by saying confidently, "I will be out of here long before that point."
To further ease any lingering concerns, John pulled up Charlie's CFO Center on his tablet and displayed the comprehensive overview of Charlie's finances. He pointed out that despite the expected additional expenses from his rehabilitation and outsourcing the property maintenance, his overall financial plan remained secure. John's thorough analysis left Charlie feeling more confident about his financial future as he anticipated the extra spending.
On Charlie's last day at the rehabilitation center, Katie came to pick up her dad, accompanied by her two teenage sons, Keith and Bobby. As Katie took things to the car, Charlie decided it was the perfect time to pass on a Grandpa Moneybags lesson. "Your mother taught me something important I want to share with you," he said to the boys. "She encouraged me to spend money."
"That's not a lesson." Keith laughed. "Mom is always spending money."
"Yeah, she loves to go shopping," Bobby chimed in.
Charlie chuckled softly at their remarks but continued, his tone more serious. "This lesson is about knowing when to delegate. When you learn how to value your time and someone else can do the job better than you can for less than you, it's better to delegate."
"Does that mean I can hire someone to clean my room?" Bobby asked. I'm really bad at it.
"If you want to hire someone, you need to make money first, and more than you are going to pay the other person, or you can barter. For example, let's say Keith is really good at cleaning rooms, but hates washing dishes. You two could trade. If Keith agreed to clean your room, you could wash the dishes."
The two boys immediately began debating which chores they hated and which ones they could switch.
Katie came in and said, "The car's all packed. Ready to go?"
"Go on ahead, I'll be out in a minute." Katie peeked behind her as she and her sons headed out towards the front door. She observed her dad knocking on a door down the hall and saw a familiar woman's face appear.
"Sorry for keeping you waiting," Charlie said as he walked with a cane to the car, grinning from ear to ear.
The following week, Charlie sat on his porch sipping his coffee with his new friend Eleanor and watching the professional landscapers maintain his yard when the phone rang.
"How are you feeling today?" Katie asked checking up on him.
"I really want to thank you," he told her, "without your insistence, I would not have felt comfortable spending this money. Outsourcing isn't just about paying other people to do your work; it's about investing in quality of life. I've gained peace of mind and time to spend doing other things." He said, winking at Eleanor. "I couldn't calculate that return on investment on a spreadsheet."
Katie smiled, knowing her father had learned perhaps the most valuable financial lesson of all: sometimes true wealth means knowing when to let go of control and invest in what brings you joy.