A shared expense log for families caring for an aging parent
Was that pharmacy run paid with Mom's money or yours? One record the whole family can see, so nobody has to ask and nobody has to wonder.
Free download, no account. We'll email you a copy — and nothing else unless you tick the box.
What's inside
Two kinds of money, never mixed
Every expense says whose money paid for it: your parent's own (pension, savings, their card) or a family member's own pocket.
Missing receipts flagged
Mark whether you kept the receipt. Anything without one is flagged, so a cash withdrawal never sits there unexplained.
Who owes whom
Set each person's share of the costs — equal thirds or anything else — and see what each of you paid and what is owed.
A monthly summary to send
Pick a month: spending from your parent's money by category, out-of-pocket by person, missing receipts. Send it before anyone asks.
Paybacks
When one of you pays another back, log it once and the balances update.
Care hours (optional)
If a family member is paid for caregiving time, log the hours next to the money.
Why write it down
- It adds up. In AARP's 2021 study, 78% of family caregivers had regular out-of-pocket costs, averaging $7,242 a year.
- The person with power of attorney is often expected to keep records. Many states require the agent to record what was received and spent on the parent's behalf.
- Questions come later. If your parent ever applies for Medicaid to pay for a nursing home, most states look back five years at where the money went. A log kept as you go is far easier than rebuilding it from bank statements.
The full how-to — what to record, how to split costs fairly, and how to share it without a fight — is in our guide to keeping a caregiver expense log.
Questions
- Is it really free?
- Yes. It is a spreadsheet file you keep. There is no account, no trial and nothing to cancel. We email you a copy, and that is the only email unless you tick the box asking to hear about an app.
- Does it work in Google Sheets?
- Yes. It is an Excel file that opens in Excel, Google Sheets and Numbers. In Google Sheets, use File → Import, or upload it to Drive and open it. To share it with your siblings, keep it in a shared folder or send the Monthly Summary tab each month.
- Is this legal or Medicaid advice?
- No. It is a way to keep records. What a power-of-attorney agent must record, and how Medicaid looks back at a parent's spending, varies by state. An elder-law attorney in your state can tell you what applies to your family.
- Why is this on a co-parenting site?
- We make CoParentSplit, an expense tracker for separated parents. Brothers and sisters caring for a parent run into the same question — who paid for what, and from whose money — so we built a free log for them too.
Start with this month
Put in the last few things you paid for and send the summary to your brothers and sisters. It takes about ten minutes.
Free download, no account. We'll email you a copy — and nothing else unless you tick the box.