Putting home into family trust to avoid nursing home fees

aloiseb wrote: »

I've heard of some people in my home town whose children have rented out the family home to pay for the costs of their parents' care in a residential home. They both live locally and can keep an eye and also the house is big and had to be gutted to make it fit to let out, but maybe this could be a possible solution for some?

When a parent has to go into care, it's worth doing the sums. Look at all the income, any capital, any benefits that are being claimed/could be claimed and any income possible from renting the house.

For some people, that will cover the fees and the property can be retained.

John_Pierpoint wrote: »

My experience of three elderly relatives is that these folks on the public payroll will not tell you of the help available - if you don't know how to claim it you won't get it. It is up to you to find out what is possible.
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This is so true - and why websites like this are so useful.

John_Pierpoint wrote: »

On a slightly different topic - it is commonly said that the local authority is liable for the first 12 weeks of care fees ?!?
Has anyone got practical experience of how this can be claimed?

My experience with my mother (who was already receiving attendance allowance so had been financially assessed) was that when she had to go into a care home was that the financial summary was updated. Meant she had to pay about £25 towards car home fees but with the proviso that this would be reassessed after 13 weeks. After about 8 months council did a new financial review advising that attendance allowance would be stopped and that she should apply for pension credits. Pension credit form looked a nightmare but sought help from relevant department and very helpful lady assisted me in completing the application. She also advised that she would ensure that all necessary action was completed to stop the attendance allowance. Pension credit duly arrived - but attendance allowance continued to also be paid. Bit of a nightmare trying to stop the payment of the AA but eventually everything sorted out.

Best advise I can give anyone is when dealing with local authority is to obtain as much relevant information as possible (beware some info on this forum is incorrect) such as CRAG regulations so that you know exactly what the legal requirements are.
Have previously completed AA forms etc on my own but after my experience would use the agency who helped me to complete it again. It would seem that the difficult bit is getting agreement from the authority for the funding.

Obviously each persons experience will be different and the above is only part of my dealing with mothers and fathers care requirements but hope it may be of assistance.

Ken

twokcc wrote: »

My experience with my mother (who was already receiving attendance allowance so had been financially assessed) was that when she had to go into a care home was that the financial summary was updated. Meant she had to pay about £25 towards car home fees but with the proviso that this would be reassessed after 13 weeks. After about 8 months council did a new financial review advising that attendance allowance would be stopped and that she should apply for pension credits. Pension credit form looked a nightmare but sought help from relevant department and very helpful lady assisted me in completing the application. She also advised that she would ensure that all necessary action was completed to stop the attendance allowance. Pension credit duly arrived - but attendance allowance continued to also be paid. Bit of a nightmare trying to stop the payment of the AA but eventually everything sorted out.

Best advise I can give anyone is when dealing with local authority is to obtain as much relevant information as possible (beware some info on this forum is incorrect) such as CRAG regulations so that you know exactly what the legal requirements are.
Have previously completed AA forms etc on my own but after my experience would use the agency who helped me to complete it again. It would seem that the difficult bit is getting agreement from the authority for the funding.

Obviously each persons experience will be different and the above is only part of my dealing with mothers and fathers care requirements but hope it may be of assistance.

Ken

As far as I know, attendance allowance is a national benefit and not means tested. It is based on need not wealth.
I got my late uncle, in his 90's, to fill in the forms. He had got to the stage where failing eyesight and loss of balance meant giving up his car and he was trapped in his house something like half a mile from the nearest bus stop.
I was telephoned by someone who insisted on giving him the 24 hour rate, even though I explained that over night he could still climb the stair and bounce along the corridor to get to the loo.

Perhaps the assessor was psychic, as it later emerged that his failing brain function was caused by a tumour growing inside his skull, and not just "old age".

The real discussion on here is about the local authority funding of "care" homes (Here in Essex, when the County Council discovered they would become liable for the fees, all the homes controlled by the authority were closed promptly.).

The advice on minimising the cost seems to be: Force the NHS if in hospital to do the assessment. Then if "nursing" care is not what is needed, the elderly person can force the local authority to make an assessment. The authority then has to find a placing and pay for it for the first 12 weeks, while they assess the future needs of the client and check the wealth of the elderly person..

When under pressure not all next of kin can be that hard nosed and many would feel guilty if the elderly person had the means to pay for something "nice"
.
How long the elderly person is able to appreciate their more salubrious expensive surroundings, is a matter of conjecture.

Getting back on thread, I have never seen a posting from someone who has had a legal charge put on their family home if it is owned by a trust. Perhaps someone else can quote chapter and verse of a court case.?

Very interesting thread.
My knowledge is limited but I am under the impression if your parent signed their house over by deed of gift to you, if they survive for seven years then they then go in a home and the local authority cannot come after the new house holder.
If my mum was to sign her house over to me if in the event she ended up in a home before the seven years could I just rent the house out and use the proceeds to go towards funding a private care home and then add to the rest out of my own pocket?
How about if after the seven years, could I not just use the rental income to top up the fees that she would get from for state funded care home to place her in a perhaps better quality care?
Over simplistic, I know, but would that be workable?