Advice please on gifting money

pinkshoes

Agree with Lunar - if the money is a gift for something specific i.e. paying off a chunk of your mortgage so you are not struggling financially, then you could argue that it is not deprivation of assets, as the money was spent in good faith.

pmlindyloo

Mojisola wrote: »

It would be worth your father either transferring half of his savings into your mother's name or putting the bulk of the money in joint accounts.

If one of them needs to go into residential care, only the assets of the one going into care will be assessed. Any assets in joint accounts with be considered to be owned 50/50. As long as that person has under £23,250, they will be funded by the LA but only in homes that charge the LA rate. The homes in our area that charge this rate are not places I would like to spend my last years.

Worth reading -
www.ageuk.org.uk/Documents/EN-GB/Factsheets/FS10_Paying_for_permanent_residential_care_fcs.pdf?dtrk=true
If the person wants to go into a home that costs more, someone else has to pay a top-up fee.

In the circumstances this is the very best idea - split the savings into two separate accounts.

Buying pre paid funeral plans is also an excellent idea as they are 'inflation proof' and are not seen as deprivation of assets.

fluffymuffy

Very often older people have built up a nest egg through a lifetime of scrimping and saving. It must be galling to find this means they must pay for their care "because they can afford it" compared with others in the same circumstances but who enjoyed a slightly more luxurious lifestyle.

Pee

The money should be divided between them, unless you Dad is a saver and Mum has always liked a flutter they surely belong to both of them? Whatever you do do not use a power of attorney to gift money to yourself or your children. As an attorney you are entitled to use their money for their benefit and anyone who they should reasonably be expected to support i.e. one another but not an adult child or grandchildren.

fluffymuffy

"It is expected Mr Hunt will announce a new means-testing threshold of about £110,000"

donashford

Thanks for all your advice.
I will look at getting POA in the near future "just in case".
I'm hoping to persuade my dad to buy a funeral plan, get some work done on his home or even to replace his car to reduce his savings.

fluffymuffy

My FIL put the house in "tennants in common" rather than the joint ownership he had with MIL. This way he was able to leave his half to his children in trust so that MIL can still live there.

I guess he knew he was on his way out when he organised this.

Now MIL is very frail and might need more help. But the house cannot be sold to pay for it.

Yes, it's "Deprivation of Assets" in effect - but not in law.

tyllwyd

donashford wrote: »

Thanks for all your advice.
I will look at getting POA in the near future "just in case".
I'm hoping to persuade my dad to buy a funeral plan, get some work done on his home or even to replace his car to reduce his savings.

I would definitely get a lasting power of attorney (LPA) sorted out asap for your mum and dad - they dont come into effect until he/she loses mental capacity, but we did this for my mil and we couldnt believe how slow the process was, and it was quite stressful for an elderly and frail person. Much better to get all the forms etc signed while the person is strong enough to cope.