Deprivation of Assets in Scotland re care home costs

eildon · 12 January 2013 at 7:15PM

Hi,

Not sure where to post this so please move to correct forum.

My mum who is 80, and in good health, has been listening to friends who have said if she needs at some stage to go into a care home she may have to sell the family home.

If possible she would like this to go to one of the grandchildren. Could this be transferred to grandchild's name now and should it be necessary for mum on medical grounds have to go into a care home in the future, the family pay for the costs. Either that or grandchild move into house when she eventually moves in with us..

We are not grasping, mum is very worried and the only reason I am posting this is so that I can reassure her .

Know position in Scotland is different from England, but any advice would be appreciated. IHT is not relevant as small estate. Has been family home for 50 years.

Question is more for mum's piece of mind, as we all know my father would have wanted grandchild to have house.

We could I suppose, try and get a mortgage and buy house from her, giving her the cash,would it be a good idea to put the house in trust for grandchild, and let her rent the house.

Any thoughts, advice appreciated as would like mum to stop worrying.

Many thanks

anselld · 12 January 2013 at 7:19PM

If there is no intention to rely on state support for care costs then deprivation of assets is not an issue.

Torry_Quine · 12 January 2013 at 7:26PM

^

This if her care would be funded by family members then it wouldn't be a problem. However I would urge caution and take professional advice first.

bitsandpieces · 12 January 2013 at 7:30PM

anselld wrote: »

If there is no intention to rely on state support for care costs then deprivation of assets is not an issue.

Yes - though if there's no intention to get state support for care costs then there's also no need to transfer home ownership for reasons related to care costs. The council won't seek to sell the home to recover money spent on your mum's care if it hasn't spent any money on your mum's care! Transferring ownership would also carry risks (e.g. if grandchild ran into financial problems).

A chat with Age Concern might help to reassure your mum, and make sure the family have the info they need to make the right decisions.

It might be worth mentioning - if family is planning to bear the cost of care, if needed, they do know how expensive this can be? Hopefully, of course, your mum will stay in good health so this won't be needed, but best to be prepared.

eildon · 12 January 2013 at 7:42PM

Thanks for this, assume if she moved in with us and eventually needed 'care in the home' we would be able to claim attendance allowance and get some help with costs. Nursing home would only be last resort if we could not cope.

Feel quite depressed even thinking these thoughts as mum is so lively!!

May give Age Concern in Scotland a ring and see if they have some leaflets etc we could give her, as she is stressing about this.

many thanks

Torry_Quine · 12 January 2013 at 7:44PM

eildon wrote: »

Thanks for this, assume if she moved in with us and eventually needed 'care in the home' we would be able to claim attendance allowance and get some help with costs. Nursing home would only be last resort if we could not cope.

Feel quite depressed even thinking these thoughts as mum is so lively!!

May give Age Concern in Scotland a ring and see if they have some leaflets etc we could give her, as she is stressing about this.

many thanks

Yes AA could be payable whether in her own home or yours if she develops care needs.

Windsorcastle · 6 March 2013 at 3:51PM

My Mum is in care in Northern Ireland and we went through this whole rigmarole. I think what you are asking is whether your mother can transfer her property to another family member as a 'gift' now, so that when she needs residential care, this asset will not be taken into account, and she will not therefore be over the 24k (or thereabouts) threshold, which renders her liable to fully fund her care? In other words, you want to protect her potential estate.

You will need to check what rules apply in Scotland, but certainly in NI, the rule is that if any such transfer of a big asset like a house, is done within 6 years of the elderly person requiring care, then it can be deemed as deliberate deprivation of assets, and that means the health trust could still take the asset into account.

In other words, you need to act fast - the authorities are wise to families who quickly sign over houses shortly before someone goes into care, in order to avoid the extortionate care trusts.

I srongly recommend you contact Age UK who will be able to advise you about all of this. Good luck with everything, and let's hope your Mum continues to stay in robust health for a long time yet!

LEJC · 6 March 2013 at 4:32PM

Are you aware of the costs involved for care homes....whilst I admire your sentiment about the family paying for the cre should it become necessary,I do worry that perhaps you do noy know the costs involved..

My mother not in scotland but in england had care in the home for a a few years at a reasonable cost ofabout £600 per month for 2 hours a day..but once she went into residential care this time lasy year the cost of that was £700 per week...not an easy amount for any family to find....

BigAunty · 6 March 2013 at 5:03PM

eildon wrote: »

...
Know position in Scotland is different from England, but any advice would be appreciated.

I'm not aware that the position on deprivation of capital for transfers of property ownership to avoid care home fees is any different in Scotland than England, despite the fact that some elements of healthcare/social care are free in Scotland (such as prescriptions, eye tests, personal care at home).

Happy to be contradicted on this but believe the basic deprivation of capital rules for means tested benefits and care homes are UK wide.

PLEASE READ BEFORE POSTING

Deprivation of Assets in Scotland re care home costs

Comments

Categories

Get our FREE Weekly email full of deals & guides - and it’s spam-free