Saving Your Property Or Your Parents Property From Being Sold To Pay For Care Home Fees
Family members often worry that they will need to sell their parents home to pay for care.
If social services have told you this, then you need to seek urgent expert legal advice because, in many cases, this simply isn’t true!
There are many ways we can lawfully protect your parent’s home and savings – effectively ring-fencing them from care home fees.
David Steene from Steene Law explains more about this and how it isn’t fair that you should have to sell your own or your parents home to pay for care fees and that in most cases you do not have to:
Steene Law specialise only in elderly care law and we will fight on your behalf to protect what is rightfully yours.
We have a whole toolkit of legal solutions that we can use to help you – including many you may not even have heard about.
If you are considering selling a property to pay for care home fees you must speak with us first. In most cases you do not have to do this, whatever you might have already been told.
For immediate assistance please call us now on 0203 653 0623 or complete a Free Online Enquiry and we will be delighted to help you.
At Steene Law ‘we get it’ and we’re on your side.
“After having our world turned upside down by the NHS, we found and made contact with David and his team. For the first time in a fortnight I stopped crying. I stopped being stressed and I could concentrate on nursing and caring for my father as our time together was so precious.
We could not have been better supported and informed. Communication and patience were very much appreciated. Thank you so much.”
Ms L
How can a property disregard help me?
A property disregard is a legal term which, put simply, means the local authority cannot take the value of your relative’s property into account when working out if they should pay for residential care.
When completing a financial assessment – sometimes known as means testing – social services will normally include the value of all your relative’s assets – their savings and any property they own – when deciding if they need to pay for residential home care fees.
However, if a ‘qualifying relative’ also lives in the property or it is classed as their ‘main home’ even if they don’t live there all the time, then the value of the property cannot be included in the financial assessment and it cannot be sold to pay for care home fees.
As you might imagine the rules governing property disregards are complicated. Only certain relatives have protected rights to live in the property and there is also a discretionary property disregard – which, as the name suggests, means the local authority have some leeway when deciding if the property disregard rule applies.
If you would like to know if the property disregard applies to you or your relative, call our expert team now for a FREE conversation on 0203 653 0623, email reception@steenelaw.co.uk or complete a Free Online Enquiry and we will be delighted to help you.
“Whilst grappling with unfamiliar issues concerning care arrangements for an elderly relative, I discovered Steene Law during an internet search. From the outset, David Steene was able to offer sound advice and his knowledge of the complexities involved in dealing with the local authority care and assessment protocols proved invaluable.
The satisfactory outcome eventually achieved would not, in my opinion, have happened without the support and intervention provided by Steene Law. The professional expertise offered, facilitated matters throughout a tortuous process.
It should be noted that the circumstances surrounding the financial affairs of my elderly and severely infirm relative turned out to be more complex than originally anticipated. Legal advice was definitely required and in this respect, David Steene’s in-depth knowledge was a much appreciated asset.”
K.M.
Is the Nil Valuation Argument an option for me?
The Nil Valuation Argument is another legal term which relates to how a property’s value is taken into consideration for the purpose of care home fees.
This is another tool in our legal armoury to lawfully reduce or remove care home fees.
Two important cases tend to be quoted by lawyers like us. We won’t bore you with the fine details but in a case known as ‘Palfrey’, the court decided a nil valuation should apply because the joint owner shared the property.
In simple terms, this means social services cannot include the value of the property when assessing whether a person should pay for care home fees.
The second important case is referred to as ‘Wilkinson’. The circumstances were different because the joint owner had inherited their share of the property and did not live there. On this occasion, the court decided that for the purposes of care fees, 50 per cent of the property’s market value could be included in the financial assessment.
If this all sounds complicated, it is – but don’t worry, it’s all part of what we do. Read our recent blog to find out how we successfully revalued a £280,000 house so that it was worth only £28,950.
We can tell you whether the nil valuation argument applies to you or your relative. To find out more, call our expert team now for a FREE conversation on 0203 653 0623, email reception@steenelaw.co.uk or complete a Free Online Enquiry and we will be delighted to help you.
“Everything my parents saved hard for, their family home – and all my inheritance – will be swallowed up in care home fees. It’s so unfair.”
Do you know how you own your home?
When the local authority conducts a financial assessment for the purpose of care home fees, they will ask whether your relative owns their property as a joint tenant or as a tenant in common.
Most people have no idea – and why should they?
Why is this important?
In a joint tenancy, the right of survivorship allows the remaining tenants to take over a tenant’s property share if they die.
In a tenancy in common, the deceased person’s share of the property passed to their heirs through a will or through the probate process rather than to the surviving tenant.
In one scenario, the person who dies might unintentionally be making a gift of 50 per cent of their home to the local authority. Who would want that?
Simply put, if your relative is widowed, how the property was passed onto them could make a difference to the nil valuation argument and the property disregard.
In one scenario, the person who dies might unintentionally be making a gift of 50 per cent of their home to the local authority. Who would want that?
We can help you with property ownership concerns and will explain whether the nil valuation argument and property disregard applies to you or your relative.
To find out more, call our expert team now for a FREE conversation on 0203 653 0623 email reception@steenelaw.co.uk or complete a Free Online Enquiry and we will be delighted to help you.
What is a Deferred Payment Agreement and is it an option
A deferred payment agreement (DPA) is an arrangement with a local authority which delays the sale of your relative’s property if they need to pay for their care home fees.
A DPA is a legally binding agreement and means the local authority will pay your relative’s care home bills on their behalf. Depending on the terms of the DPA, the local authority will continue to pay care home fees until your relative’s chooses to sell their home, or until their death.
Be aware that a DPA will mean that your relative will still be paying for the higher self-funder’s rate, together with interest.
At this point, the home will be sold and the care costs will be paid back to the local authority.
DPAs can be complex and the decision to enter into a legally binding agreement with your relative’s local authority should not be taken lightly.
To find out whether it is the right option for your relative, call our expert team now for a FREE conversation on 0203 653 0623, email reception@steenelaw.co.uk or complete a Free Online Enquiry and we will be delighted to help you.
“First class service. Prompt courteous replies to all questions. Excellent advice given with great patience. I would, without hesitation, recommend Steene Law Ltd. They have helped me and my family through a very difficult time.”
M.S.
What do I need to know about a Valuation of Joint Assets?
There are special rules that apply when social services consider a valuation of joint assets.
The assets belonging to your relative’s spouse cannot be included in any financial assessment when means testing care home fees.
If a couple have joint savings it is assumed that they each own an equal share. However, there are certain exceptions to this – for example if evidence can be provided that one person owns an unequal share.
If this is the case, it is important to divide the capital into the proportion owned by each person before social services conduct their financial assessment.
If you are considering this, it is important to seek expert advice. If assets are not divided correctly, the local authority could decide that there has been a deliberate deprivation of assets.
To find out more about the valuation of join assets and the right option for your relative, contact us now.
Call The Care Fees Specialists Now
Steene Law specialise in Care Home Fees, especially protecting you from having to sell a property to pay for care home fees.
Please do not delay, please call us now 0203 653 0623, email reception@steenelaw.co.uk or complete a Free Online Enquiry and we will be delighted to help you.
We are available from 8am to 7pm, Monday to Friday and will explain your options.
“I cannot thank David and Dianne enough for the effort and knowledge they displayed helping me deal with my Grandfather’s care and the subsequent legal battle that came with it.
I had a complicated and, to me, bizarre yet worrying situation that David and Dianne both worked tirelessly on.
My Grandfather was a WWII veteran and was neglected and treated as a statistic by a care home and a rather unforgiving council.
I’m grateful that David and Dianne not only got the result I needed, but made it simple to understand and took away a lot of stress. I have recommended them to many others and will continue to do so. Forever grateful!”
C.W