How to manage mums funds

kkgree1 · 13 October 2017 at 10:09AM

I (along with 2 other attorneys) manage my mother-in-law's finances who has lived in care for almost 3 years.

Her house was sold before she moved (400k) and I spent a lot of time researching where to invest the proceeds.

Some tips from us:
- We took out an immediate needs annuity for her a year after she moved. This has been the best thing we have done as it pays half her care fees each month. It is worth getting a quote as there is no obligation to take it out. Please PM me if you want information on who we used.

- We used a combination of fixed term bonds, fixed savers, easy access savings and premium bonds for the rest of her savings. Remember the 85k limit per institution.

- One thing not mentioned but we struggled to open accounts with banks she hadn't previously used. Once you live in care it is more difficult to prove residence (you fail the electronic checks) and if you don't have a passport/driving licence you don't meet any of the ID checks. Not easy to get around!

Take your time and research thoroughly. It would have been easier to use an IFA but if you are happy to do yourself, go ahead.

Best of luck!

Heedtheadvice · 13 October 2017 at 11:35AM

Boston...

There is more than enough money in the OP's mum's estate to cover the expenses given in the original post, even with inflation. I don't see any reason to risk the capital.

I was not suggesting that capital should be risked just that the decisions taken should be appropriate and take into account all circumstances.
You say there is more than enough capital to cover expenses. It is true a net return of 4% would meet the 2k a months current needs. However that is not easy to do without a potential risk to the capital and the possibility of cost and needs increases (not just inflation) ought to be considered. Costs could easily rise to say double that currently experienced if specialist care or medical support were deemed necessary or a move to a different or better home necessary. Only this week another provider of care has announced they are quiting owing to inability to provide care cost effectively.
Add to that the real need for the POAs to get professional advice and you soon start to erode capital.

I.e. keep an open mind and money langushing in low interest paying areas could be problematic!

Dansmam · 13 October 2017 at 11:53PM

kkgree1 wrote: »

I (along with 2 other attorneys) manage my mother-in-law's finances who has lived in care for almost 3 years.

Her house was sold before she moved (400k) and I spent a lot of time researching where to invest the proceeds.

Some tips from us:
- We took out an immediate needs annuity for her a year after she moved. This has been the best thing we have done as it pays half her care fees each month. It is worth getting a quote as there is no obligation to take it out. Please PM me if you want information on who we used.

- We used a combination of fixed term bonds, fixed savers, easy access savings and premium bonds for the rest of her savings. Remember the 85k limit per institution.

- One thing not mentioned but we struggled to open accounts with banks she hadn't previously used. Once you live in care it is more difficult to prove residence (you fail the electronic checks) and if you don't have a passport/driving licence you don't meet any of the ID checks. Not easy to get around!

Take your time and research thoroughly. It would have been easier to use an IFA but if you are happy to do yourself, go ahead.

Best of luck!

Thanks so much for the info and good wishes. I’ve sent a PM. We’ve already encountered the address issue as mum was living with one of us for a while and we changed her address for most of her routine letters. So no bills to show the P.O. to set up a redirection. If I was doing all this again I’d pay for the P.O. to redirect all post from day 1 but hindsight is a marvellous thing...
Thank you ALL for the stream of useful thoughts. It’s much appreciated. To answer a couple of questions I am one of the attorneys and we’ve been reading up on our responsibilities. Mightily relieved to find the routine £20 birthday cheques to children and grandchildren are ok. We’ve just continued what Mum used to always send.
Any tips on best risk free interest rates? Need to distribute funds across at least 5 more institutions pretty soon.

How to manage mums funds

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