Does power of attorney affect Lifetime ISA?

money_saver30

 Hi if I have power of attorney ( shared between myself and my brother ) over a house, can that affect the government bonus on a Lifetime isa ? 
On this page Lifetime ISAs: free £33,000 towards your first home or retirement (moneysavingexpert.com) its states :
"If you've owned before – whether inside or outside the UK – you can't use a LISA towards a home purchase. This includes owning a property (or a share of one) that you inherited, even if it was sold straightaway and you didn't live there. If you owned a company or had a trust that owned residential property that you are (or were) able to live in, you're also not considered a first-time buyer."
So if I dont own any share of the property but have power of attorney does that affect my LISA bonus ( to buy my first home )? I have read power of attorney cannot affect credit score but couldn't find anything on this specific question, I'm just about to add money to a LISA.   

davidmcn

Power of attorney means the right to act on behalf of somebody else. I'm not sure whether that's what you mean, as you wouldn't really have "power of attorney over a house". You don't own the house at all, you just have the ability to sign things etc in place of the owner.

Keep_pedalling

Attorneys  are in place to manage any of the donor’s assets on behalf of and in the best interests of the donor, ownership is not effected.

money_saver30

yeh to be accurate thats what I meant. I understand I wouldn't own the house, I just wanted to be sure from someone who has experience with these matters, (as i have no knowledge of this) before I buy a house myself and also setup a new house for my disabled sister. So just wanted to make sure I'm doing the right thing. 
The page states:  
"If you owned a company or had a trust that owned residential property that you are (or were) able to live in, you're also not considered a first-time buyer."  
basically can someone tell me for sure if I add money to a Lisa , power of attorney will not affect the gov bonus ? 

Keep_pedalling

money_saver30 said:u

yeh to be accurate thats what I meant. I understand I wouldn't own the house, I just wanted to be sure from someone who has experience with these matters, (as i have no knowledge of this) before I buy a house myself and also setup a new house for my disabled sister. So just wanted to make sure I'm doing the right thing. 
The page states:  
"If you owned a company or had a trust that owned residential property that you are (or were) able to live in, you're also not considered a first-time buyer."  
basically can someone tell me for sure if I add money to a Lisa , power of attorney will not affect the gov bonus ? 

Yes, POA has no effect on your personal finances.

AdrianC

Is the owner of this house still alive...?

frogglet

Are you treating this house like its your own e.g renting it out or moved in rent free after the owner moved into care?
Are you a beneficiary after they die?
As said above are they still alive?

greatcrested

frogglet said:

Are you treating this house like its your own e.g renting it out or moved in rent free after the owner moved into care?
Are you a beneficiary after they die?
As said above are they still alive?

I don't really understand the questions:

1) if OP has let the property, any rental income belongs to the owner/donor.

If the OP has moved in rent free they are almost certainly abusing their responsibilites as POA

But neither of the above affect the OP's Lifetime ISA

2) Completely irrelevant to the OP's current LISA

3) They must be alive. Otherwise OP could not have POA, as POA ends on death of the donor.

frogglet

greatcrested said:

frogglet said:

Are you treating this house like its your own e.g renting it out or moved in rent free after the owner moved into care?
Are you a beneficiary after they die?
As said above are they still alive?

I don't really understand the questions:

1) if OP has let the property, any rental income belongs to the owner/donor.

If the OP has moved in rent free they are almost certainly abusing their responsibilites as POA

But neither of the above affect the OP's Lifetime ISA

2) Completely irrelevant to the OP's current LISA

3) They must be alive. Otherwise OP could not have POA, as POA ends on death of the donor.

In an ideal world what you are saying happens. 
I would say they don't understand their responsibilities if they have to ask the question they have.

elsien

Is the power of attorney for your sister, and does she have capacity to grant it? 

If she does, does she have capacity around finances and is there a reason she can’t buy the house herself? 

You are obliged to act in her best interests, but your finances and hers should be completely separate.