Can You Protect Your Home From Care Fees?

It’s a question I’m often asked, “If we need care in later life, is there a way to protect our home from being used to pay for care fees?”

Care fees in the UK can be significant, and for many people, their home is their biggest asset. Whilst there is no guaranteed way to fully protect your assets from care costs, careful planning can certainly aim to protect part of your estate so that it’s preserved for your loved ones.

Many couple choose to make Protective Trust Wills (sometimes known as a Property Protection Trusts) aiming to protect a share of property. In simple terms, this allows each person to leave their share of the family home into a trust on first death, instead of it passing it outright to the surviving spouse.

Provision can be made so that the surviving spouse can continue living in the property for the rest of their life, but the deceased’s share is ring-fenced. This means that, depending on future circumstances, that share may potentially not be used to fund the surviving spouse’s future care fees.

Whilst a Will of this nature aims to protect a share of property you should bear in mind that

• This type of planning does not guarantee protection from care fees, and
• The rules around means-testing and deprivation of assets are complex and can change.

However, for many families, it can offer greater flexibility and a degree of reassurance, particularly where preserving an inheritance for your loved ones is important.

As with all estate planning, the right approach will depend on your personal circumstances, so why not contact us for tailored advice.

You can contact JCP Solicitors by calling 03333 208644, emailing hello@jcpsolicitors.co.uk, or visiting your local office. Alternatively, you can complete our online enquiry form and a member of the team will be in touch.