Possible care fees – protecting assets

If you are in this position you may be particularly concerned that your home may at some point need to be sold in order to meet the costs. There are however steps you can take to preserve the value in your home.

If your home is your main asset, and you are worried about leaving it to a spouse, who could go into expensive care, funded by the value of the home, leaving your children with nothing. Similarly, if you are concerned that your spouse is not financially capable or may remarry and leave the home to their new spouse at the expense of your children then there is an answer.

Home Protection Will

Wellers has designed a range of trust-based Wills that can help clients address a wide spectrum of issues, whether it is mitigating Inheritance Tax, safeguarding a vulnerable child or spouse or addressing the complications that come with multiple marriages.

One of the Wills, our Home Protection Will, puts your share of the home into trust on your death, giving your spouse the right to occupy your half of the family home, whilst ring fencing the capital value of the property for your children. If your spouse subsequently remarries or goes into care, the capital value of the home is protected and your children will inherit it on your spouse’s subsequent death.

It is possible to put all sorts of conditions and additional addendums on the right to occupy and this can be discussed with us, but can include such things as the ability to sell the property and the purchase of a substitute property (again owned by the trust). You can also give your spouse the right to any rental income generated from the property or interest income from the proceeds of sale, after you have died, still ring fencing the capital for your children.

For more information you contact our Will writing team in Sevenoaks on 01732 457575 or for Surrey call 01483 284567. For our Bromley office please call 020 8464 4242.