Iowa woman’s mother-in-law, 73, lost $150K to a scam. They froze her credit, moved her into their home and set rules — now she’s angry. Is that fair?

However, this move has received backlash.

“She has become very angry, very demanding and, I hate to say, even almost entitled about the new home and it has just been giving me all sorts of red flags,” Kelly said, during a phone interview. “She admitted that part of why she is recently very angry with us is because we have had to take over her finances because she continually was making poor choices.”

Co-hosts Rachel Cruze and Jon Delony suggested Kelly may have overstepped a boundary in her well-intentioned effort to help. Here’s why.

Financially reckless, but not mentally unstable

Kelly’s mother-in-law has displayed a level of financial recklessness that the family can no longer ignore. Unbeknownst to them, she managed to apply for eight credit cards, all of which now carry fraudulent charges.

“The home that we downsized her to is in our name, and thank goodness because we are pretty confident that the person scamming her would have convinced her to get a second mortgage on the property,” Kelly said.

Seniors are frequent targets of scams because fraudsters believe they are more trusting and tend to have larger retirement accounts that can be easily accessed, according to the National Council on Aging. However, many are also targeted because of their cognitive decline.

Research from Columbia University shows that at least 10% of U.S. adults over 65 have dementia, while another 22% have mild cognitive impairment. Under these circumstances, families often establish a legal power of attorney (LPA) to manage finances when a senior’s cognitive abilities decline, according to the Alzheimer's Association.

Despite her financial missteps, Kelly’s mother-in-law has shown no signs of mental incapacity.

Gently parenting your parents

Bad decisions aside, Cruze and Delony said Kelly’s mother-in-law is entitled to maintain control over her own finances.