How much flexibility should I keep when helping adult children or aging parents financially?

For the long term plan, when helping parents, use appropriate authority such as a power of attorney instead of sharing passwords or informally taking over accounts. When cash flow and priorities are reviewed together, a major life event is a good reason to pause large irreversible decisions until taxes, insurance, and cash needs are clear. When the options are compared, family support should begin with the giver's own financial security.