Mums house, Help?

alm721

Hi I wonder if anyone can offer any advice. If this is in the wrong place please move. I am asking on behalf of a friend so I hope this makes sense. Basically my mums friend is elderly and in residential care. She has dementia. My friend has never gone for power of atorney. My mums friend has a house currently worth about 300k. She also has her state pension and a small pension from her husband (he died a few years ago). The care home fees are about £400 per week. As she has her house and pensions she has no help from the council and the fees are paid partly from renting her house out and her pensions and my friend subsidises the remaining fees. The coucnil won't help so this is not about trying to get the fees paid.
The issue is the renting out of her house. As it is my friend can just about afford the difference but the mum has not as yet paid any tax on the rent as its only just been rented out, but we assume she will have to do this. If so it will mean yet more for my friend to find. My friend was wondering if there is any way she can reduce the amout of money she is having to find each week. I really don't know what to suggest so if anyone has any ideas/suggestions or has been in a similar situation I'd be gratful for any advice/help.
Thanks

Tuesday_Tenor

1. I can't comment on the taxing of the rented property. I know that in normal circumstances, yes, income from rent would need to be declared and I guess that with the two pensions and rent Mum would be over the income tax threshold. Hope someone with more knowledge can comment.

However

2. The Council may have asked your friend to top up the fees, but she is under NO obligation to do so!

See this thread on the same topic
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/2600031

If your friend can't afford or just doesn't want to top up the fees then I believe what should happen is that

(a) the Council should pay the 'top-up' fees to the care home at the moment, but will also
(b) put a charge on Mum's house in order to reclaim their funds when the house is eventually sold.

Of course, with funding so tight, councils don't like to be having to do this, but they are legally obliged to.

Your friend should go back to the council and explain that she can no longer afford to contribute to the fees as she has been doing.

I suppose that there might be issues about the standard of care for the price paid. If your friend has been paying the 'top-up' to ensure a better care home, which has come at a premium, then if she backs out the council might move Mum to a basic home with the 'standard' level of care.

However, your friend should still contact the council to discuss all the options.
HTH

Tuesday_Tenor

The situation may be more complex than I have assumed.

However, the bottom line is that no one can be made financially responsible to fund care home fees for someone who is not their spouse.

Your friend should

(a) find out what the tax implications of the rented property are going to be
and
(b) check out the guidance from AgeUK and CounselandCare, as given in the other thread

Armed with a bit more understanding she should then discuss it with the Council, stating both that the tax implication of the rented proporty hadn't been properly built into the financial calculations and that she personally cannot contribute any more to the care (or if relevant, cannot continue the funding she has been doing so far).

Mojisola

Depending on how bad the mother's dementia is, she may be entitled to paid care.

See https://www.alzheimers.org.uk/site/scripts/download_info.php?fileID=75

If she continues to pay for her own care, does she claim Attendance Allowance? https://www.direct.gov.uk/en/DisabledPeople/FinancialSupport/AttendanceAllowance/DG_10012442

Amanda65

Tell your friend to contact the Relatives and Residents Association

http://www.relres.org/

I work for an occupational benevolent fund and often refer people to them and their helpline staff are great at giving advice.

pelirocco

Tuesday_Tenor wrote: »

The situation may be more complex than I have assumed.

However, the bottom line is that no one can be made financially responsible to fund care home fees for someone who is not their spouse.

Your friend should

(a) find out what the tax implications of the rented property are going to be
and
(b) check out the guidance from AgeUK and CounselandCare, as given in the other thread

Armed with a bit more understanding she should then discuss it with the Council, stating both that the tax implication of the rented proporty hadn't been properly built into the financial calculations and that she personally cannot contribute any more to the care (or if relevant, cannot continue the funding she has been doing so far).

The OPs friends mother has a house which could be sold to pay for care

My MIl had dementia , and needed full time care ( sadly died before it was arranged ) We were told as she had assetts the council would fund the first 12 weeks , then it was up to us to raise the funds through her estate , they did tell us that the fees could be deferred until the house was sold . The best thing about having the assetts to raise the funds was we had the freedom to chose the best care for her