It's commonly believed that individuals suffering serious injuries can only recover money damages if they lose wages from a job held outside the home. But what about those whose main responsibility is taking care of the home?

Many are under the wrong impression that homemakers services can't be valued, or if they can they don't amount to much. That's simply not true. If homemakers are seriously injured and unable to perform normal activities, a dollar value can be placed on their services by comparing their skills with those performing similar duties such as nurses, social workers, office managers, teachers and others.

The average hourly rate earned in those jobs establishes the value for the services, and helps determine the money damages to which a homemaker might be entitled.

And a homemaker's value doesn't diminish with age. According to the Bureau of Labor statistics, it actually increases.