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Help Needed On Avoiding Care Fees
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I do agree with some of what tanith says, you do get what you pay for & it would be nice to think that she could afford a nice home rather than the local council throwing her in the cheapest place.
The answer is if possible take her in or move in with her, I know this is not always possible.
Plus, if she has the means to pay for her own care then she can choose where she receives it. If she's not paying for it, Social Services will choose for her. Same as if you can afford to buy or rent your own home, you get a lot more choice about where you live than if you are being rehoused by the council.
Not to mention the fact that many older people never DO go into care. Why not talk to her about what would be needed now and in the longer term to enable her to stay where she is for a good long time? If a few adaptations would make the house easier to live in, get them done now.
And maybe someone can tell me: if the council assesses you as needing care at home, I know that is means-tested, but is the value of the home taken into account for that as well? Or is that just income-assessed. That's another thing to reassure Mum about.
Home care is means tested on income and savings, property isn't taken into account. The amount you pay will depend on where you live.
The problem arises if the OP's mother has a mortgage free house which isn't user friendly, but an income too small to live in it comfortably and make the necessary adaptations.
My first husband and I moved from a 3-storey Pennine cottage to a1930s bungalow near the north bank of the Thames, that was in 1990 and he died 18 months later. In the last 10 years my present husband and I have spent time, money, thought and effort in making the place as user-friendly as possible. We got rid of the bath in favour of a shower-unit, a planned programme of home improvements carried out over the years. There's very little remains to be done. This summer when I was on crutches from a fractured pelvis, I was soooooo glad we'd done all that.
Yes, there is means-testing for any care at home, based on your income and amount of savings, but not on value of your home. The only time value of your home comes into the equation is if/when you can no longer live at home and need to go and live somewhere else i.e. a care home.
While in A&E I was offered 'someone to come in and help you get up, washed, dressed etc' and I said 'thanks but no thanks'. I managed very well with my husband's help. Had I been alone, my income level meant that I'd have been better phoning one of the local care agencies and arranging this myself rather than having a social worker coming in to tell me what I needed. This is my outlook on life, and it will continue until I lose my marbles entirely.
This type of query about 'saving my inheritance' has come up time, and time, and time again.
Best wishes
Margaret
Before I found wisdom, I became old.
She could consider equity release (lifetime mortgage).These plans enable you to extract about half the value of the home in cash to do what you like with - including giving it away.
The interest on the loan rolls up and is only paid off when the house is sold when she dies or goes into care.She has complete security of tenure.
http://www.carersinherts.org.uk/articles/prop_care-act.htm
Margaret
Before I found wisdom, I became old.