Family Trust

JanLe

Does anyone have any advice on whether there are any risks with a Family Trust?
I live in England, married, Tennants in Common for our property, blended family, Mother had dementia and need care. As I understand it, it costs £3000 to lodge property with Land Registry, as owned by the Family Trust of (whomever you wish to have in the Trust). This ensures assets are kept in the blood line, skips probate, eliminates inheritance tax, and prevents care homes from chasing debt from the property when sold.
Are there any disadvantages? Is there a 7yr life? Thank you in advance for any advice- Jan

Keep_pedalling

Who fed you that BS? A family trust might be useful for a handful of very rich people, but not for us ordinary folk. For a start putting you home in trust does not avoid IHT if you continue to live there (look up gift with reservation of benefit) and taxation of trust assets could see more tax being paid not less. It will be classed as deliberate deprivation of assets where care costs are concerned, and anyway would you really want to risk ending up in over my dead body grange funded by a cash strapped LA? 

Being a beneficiary of a trust will not allow your estate to skip probate or having to do an IHT return it just make life more difficult for your executors.

As a blended family the thing you should be looking at is having appropriate wills in place. These should have immediate post death interest trust (IPDIT) clauses in place both to protect the surviving spouse and your eventual beneficiaries. 

poseidon1

Keep_pedalling said:

Who fed you that BS? A family trust might be useful for a handful of very rich people, but not for us ordinary folk. For a start putting you home in trust does not avoid IHT if you continue to live there (look up gift with reservation of benefit) and taxation of trust assets could see more tax being paid not less. It will be classed as deliberate deprivation of assets where care costs are concerned, and anyway would you really want to risk ending up in over my dead body grange funded by a cash strapped LA? 

Being a beneficiary of a trust will not allow your estate to skip probate or having to do an IHT return it just make life more difficult for your executors.

As a blended family the thing you should be looking at is having appropriate wills in place. These should have immediate post death interest trust (IPDIT) clauses in place both to protect the surviving spouse and your eventual beneficiaries. 

Further point, mother has/had dementia?

 If she has dementia this may well put paid to any kind of sophiscated estate planning ( including updating/ amending her will - assuming she has one ) if there is now a question over her mental competency.

Agree, the OP seems to have wandered into shark infested waters with this 'Family Trust', with little or no understanding of the relevant trust law, applicable tax regime or local authority regulations.

Completely ignoring the Family Trust query, the OP would be best advised to look into what Mother can do with regard to her will given there maybe a medical issue with her understanding any rational provisions that maybe needed to reflect the blended Family dynamics. That discussion should be had with a suitably qualified solicitor, and not a purveyor of care home fees avoidance schemes, who seem to have caught the OP's attention.