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Join The Nature Con- servancy on a canyon hike at the Dye Creek Preserve on one of three dates this spring — March 25, April 15 and May 6. See evidence of volcanic mudflows, Native American settlements and wildlife ac- tivity, as well as many bud- ding wildflowers. Participants should be prepared to traverse a run- ning creek and navigate ar- eas of steep, rocky terrain. Hikes, which start at 9 a.m. and last until 1 p.m., are led by The Nature Con- servancy's knowledgeable docents and are free to all. Bring supportive footwear, water, a snack and binocu- lars. Pets are not allowed. Space is limited. To re- serve your space or for more information, write to Scott Hardage at shardage@tnc. org or call 727-5751. NATURECONSERVANCY DyeCreekPreserve canyon hike offered CONTRIBUTEDPHOTO Dye Creek Preserve will be the site of three hikes this spring. DEAR MARY One of our friends suggested that we look into a life estate plan, which would en- sure that our home goes to our children no matter what. We own our home and have no debt, but we have no long-term care insurance. Of course, we hope to stay well until we die, but we understand that in the event we have to go to a nursing home and our money runs out, this plan would not per- mit the nursing home to take our home. What are your thoughts? —TomandJackie DEAR TOM AND JACKIE I am not an attorney, but I do have experience as a real estate broker. Generally, I can tell you that "life estate" is a term used to designate the way legal ownership or title is held on real property. To do this, you would deed your property to your children. In doing so, they become the "re- maindermen" and you be- come the "life tenants." As the life tenants, you retain possession of the property, including full costs of maintain- ing it. The life tenants cannot sell the property without the consent of the remaindermen. Fur- thermore, your children would receive full own- ership (fee simple) imme- diately upon the death of the last life tenant with- out the property going through probate. There are advantages and a few disadvantages of conveying your prop- erty now to a life estate that you need to fully un- derstand. I suggest that you meet with a qual- ified real estate attor- ney. Then, if you wish to deed your property to a life estate, it should be as simple as completing forms and having them properly recorded in the county where the prop- erty is located. DEAR MARY I have been reading your books, newsletters and daily col- umn for years. You have really helped me a lot. Thanks! I have passed along everything that I could to my parents, but evidently, they haven't read a thing. A year ago, my brother bailed them out of fore- closure, and they are still so far in debt they can't see even a glimmer of light. Now they want to come for a visit, and I want to tell them not to come be- cause I know they can't afford it. If you ask them whether they can afford it, they will laugh and tell you they can't afford any- thing. But that doesn't change anything. They have nothing in savings, and they spend money (using credit cards) like they have all the money in the world because they're trying to keep up appearances. Should I tell them that they can't come visit un- til they get back on their feet again, or just let them come and continue to flounder and get more in debt than they already are? I've been able to put them off for a couple of months, but I don't know how much longer I can. I feel like I'm caught be- tween a rock and a hard place. — Debbie DEAR DEBBIE There is a reason I haven't writ- ten a book called "How to Manage Your Parents' Money." That's because you can't control your parents or make any use- ful demands of them. My advice is to back off. Call and invite them to come and visit at the earliest possible time. Do everything you can to make their visit enjoy- able, including not talk- ing about their financial situation. Let the way you live and manage your fi- nances speak louder than anything you could say. Should they die broke with all kinds of debt, you will not be liable for any of it, provided you have not added your name to any of their ac- counts. Please, just love them and allow them to have a warm and loving rela- tionship with you despite your differences. Would you like to send a tip to Mary? You can email her at mary@ everydaycheapskate.com, or write to Everyday Cheapskate, 12340 Seal Beach Blvd., Ste. B-416, Seal Beach, CA 90740. EVERYDAY CHEAPSKATE Parents'financialdecisions and their adult children Mary Hunt Findusonline! As millions of people are filing their tax returns, the Internal Revenue Service reminds taxpayers about some basic tips to keep in mind about refunds. During the early parts of the tax season, taxpay- ers are anxious to get de- tails about their refunds. In some social media, this can lead to misunderstandings and speculation about re- funds. The IRS offers these tips to keep in mind. MYTH 1: ALL REFUNDS ARE DELAYED While the IRS is- sues more than 90 percent of federal tax refunds in less than 21 days, some refunds take longer. Recent legislation re- quires the IRS to hold re- funds for tax returns claim- ing the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) or the Ad- ditional Child Tax Credit (ACTC) until mid-February. Other returns may require additional review for a vari- ety of reasons and take lon- ger. For example, the IRS, along with its partners in the states and the nation's tax industry, continue to strengthen security reviews to help protect against iden- tity theft and refund fraud. The IRS encourages tax- payers to file as they nor- mally would. MYTH 2: CALLING THE IRS OR MY TAX PROFESSIONAL WILL PROVIDE A BETTER REFUND DATE Many people mis- takenly think that talking to the IRS or calling their tax professional is the best way to find out when they will get their refund. In reality, the best way to check the status of a re- fund is online through the "Where's My Refund?" tool at IRS.gov or via the IRS2Go mobile app. Taxpayers eager to know when their refund will be arriving should use the "Where's My Refund?" tool rather than calling and waiting on hold or order- ing a tax transcript. The IRS updates the status of refunds once a day, usu- ally overnight, so checking more than once a day will not produce new informa- tion. "Where's My Refund?" has the same information available to IRS telephone assistors so there is no need to call unless requested to do so by the refund tool. MYTH 3: ORDERING A TAX TRANSCRIPT A "SECRET WAY" TO GET A REFUND DATE Ordering a tax transcript will not help taxpayers find out when they will get their refund. The IRS notes that the information on a tran- script does not necessar- ily reflect the amount or timing of a refund. While taxpayers can use a tran- script to validate past in- come and tax filing status for mortgage, student and small business loan applica- tions and to help with tax preparation, they should use "Where's My Refund?" to check the status of their refund. MYTH 4: "WHERE'S MY RE- FUND?" MUST BE WRONG BECAUSE THERE'S NO DE- POSIT DATE YET The IRS will update "Where's My Refund?" on both IRS.gov and the IRS2Go mobile app with projected deposit dates for early EITC and ACTC refund filers a few days after Feb. 15. Taxpay- ers claiming EITC or ACTC will not see a refund date on "Where's My Refund?" or through their software package until then. The IRS, tax preparers and tax software will not have ad- ditional information on re- fund dates. The IRS cautions tax- payers that these refunds likely will not start arriv- ing in bank accounts or on debit cards until the week of Feb. 27 — if there are no processing issues with the tax return and the taxpayer chose direct deposit. This additional period is due to several factors, including banking and financial sys- tems needing time to pro- cess deposits. Taxpayers who have filed early in the filing season, but are claim- ing EITC or ACTC, should not expect their refund un- til the week of Feb. 27. MYTH 5: DELAYED REFUNDS, THOSE CLAIMING EITC AND/ ORACTC,WILLBEDELIVERED ON FEB. 15 By law, the IRS cannot issue refunds be- fore Feb. 15 for any tax re- turn claiming the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) or Additional Child Tax Credit (ACTC). The IRS must hold the entire refund, not just the part related to the EITC or ACTC. The IRS will begin to release these refunds starting Feb. 15. These refunds likely won't arrive in bank ac- counts or on debit cards un- til the week of Feb. 27. This is true as long as there is no additional review of the tax return required and the taxpayer chose direct deposit. TAX TIP IRS debunks myths surrounding tax refunds redbluff.mercy.org Fibromyalgia/LupusSupportGroup 6:00pm-8:00pm 3/21 3rd Tuesday Columba Jackie Kitchell 529-3029 Living Well with Better Nutrition 1:00pm-3:00pm 3/29 Wednesday Columba 888-628-1948 Living Well with Diabetes 3:00pm-5:00pm 3/29 Wednesday Columba 888-628-1948 Overeater's Anonymous 7:00pm-8:00pm Wednesdays Russell 528-8937 TheRedBluff Triton Swim Team islookingfora summer swim coach in Red Bluff. $15.00/hr Mid- May-End of July. Contact Dani @736-5701 or email redblufftritons@yahoo.com. 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