I had always felt disconnected from the bank I was working with; it was always a faceless and cold entity and I knew I meant nothing to them. However the care and attention I was given by Marco and First Republic Bank convinced me that it was possible to have a personal relationship with a bank – what a completely different concept! So I immediately moved all my accounts over to First Republic Bank and whenever I was able to send a client to Marco to secure a loan for a home purchase, I did so.

When I was having trouble getting organized for on-line banking, Marco brought lunch over to my house and proceeded to enter all the information for me. He helped me to set up Quicken on my computer. One day when I was about to leave on a trip he called to say the rates on loans had just reached a point where I should refinance my home. I put him in touch with my accountant and between them they put the whole process into action so by the time I returned from my travels the loan documents were ready for me to sign and I began to enjoy a $1000. reduction in monthly payments!

When I need more cheques I send an email to Marco and within a couple of days they are delivered to my door. Any question I have is responded to, acted upon within literally hours. When I married recently, my husband had such faith in him he moved all his accounts and investments over to Marco, as I have done, and so now everything is in one place being handled by Marco who is also a brilliant financial advisor.

Marco anticipates things that will make my life easier for me. He is totally accountable, he is bright, fun to work with and I love having an excuse to get together with him. He is also the consummate professional and never varies from his promise to take care of my financial concerns.

A relationship such as this one comes along a few times in ones lifetime. I never thought I would be so warmly singing the praises of a banker – but there it is. Believe me, everything you hear about First Republic Bank is absolutely true. From what others who deal with this bank have told me, their own personal bankers are as responsive as mine is – but I believe Marco is special and he makes me feel that way too.

While completing the designation for S.R.E.S. Senior Real Estate Specialist I was reminded of the differences between the generations. Today’s seniors experienced the Depression, World War II and the Korean War. They saw more changes during their lifetimes than any other generation has done; meanwhile the world moved headlong into the age of the computer.

For some people this has been exhilarating, offering new options and possibilities for communication and learning. For others it is threatening and foreign. The speed at which we live now is frightening to many older people and they resist that speed, resist change they find threatening. When we forget this, communication between the generations can break down.

When working with a senior couple, we must remember they may have trouble hearing us or can’t read the small print of documents we give them. Because they are proud they can’t admit this to us. They are not used to depending on younger people for important decisions; they may have lost their previous trusted advisors. They are now living in a new world and they no longer speak the language. What could be more terrifying than this?

When an older couple or an older person who has been widowed seeks to sell the family home and move into a different environment, care must be taken to proceed with caution and understanding. The home that has raised their children, holds their memories, may no longer serve them but they will still have trouble letting it go. Their possessions, the neighbourhood they belonged to will be lost and they feel fear. While a younger person might see this as an exciting, challenging opportunity to live more freely, make new friends, develop new skills, an older person might find the same transition frightening.As long as he remains in his old home he has a sense that things are still as they were, even though he truly knows otherwise.

Statistics suggest women tend to outlive their husbands so we have to consider the elderly widow now in a state of transition. Her generation of wives always deferred to the husband as the planner, the decision maker, the bread winner. She raised the children and she ran the house. But the husband is gone now, the children have families and concerns of their own and probably live a great distance away. She has had to learn about investments, annuities, insurance policies, social security, taxes, bank accounts. Now she has to figure out how to sell her home, most of her possessions and secure new housing while making sure she has enough money to live on to the end of her life. She might suffer from some disabling illness, she might feel depression or loneliness; she certainly feels fear and desperation when faced with the huge tasks ahead of her.

This is when she needs a network of trust and love around her to guide her through the morass. Sometimes in seeking someone to trust she mistakes the motives of people who offer help and advice. She can be very badly hurt, financially or otherwise. This unthinkable circumstance is so prevalent now that a whole new category of specialists has been developed around Elder Abuse. New law has been written and in California there are very harsh penalties for people found guilty of misguiding older people for their own profit. Nothing could be more reprehensible or frightening. This is one of the reasons S.R.E.S. was created.

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