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Talking to an old boy, friend of the family. His wife went downhill rapidly with dementia and (for reasons I struggle to comprehend) is in a home over an hour or more from where they stay in Aberdeenshire. The poor chap is not in a good way himself, reduced to a mobility scooter and an adapted car after back surgery went wrong. Attempting to travel there and back to see her most days is killing him.
He'd like to move from the modest bungalow they've jointly owned for half a lifetime, to similar closer to where she is in a home. He's adamant however he's received letters warning him that if he were to sell the property whilst she was still alive, he would have to forego her share of the money to pay for her care.
Can that be right, in that situation? Seems more than harsh if it is. Half the money he'd get would buy him an awesome bike collection (or a sizable stash of C&H), but not a roof over his head. And it's not liquidating assets or a second home. As ever when dealing with that generation it's a challenge to get the full facts and get him to seek advice.
TIA
I think it is correct
If you move into a care home permanently, your home won't be counted in the financial assessment if any of the following people still live there:
your partner, spouse or civil partner
your estranged or divorced partner if they're also a lone parent
a relative who is 60 or over
a relative who is under 60 who has a disability
a child of yours aged under 18.
Local councils can also choose to leave the value of your home out of the financial assessment, even if someone living there doesn’t fit into one of the categories above. They don’t have to – but they should consider any requests.
Much as I hate quoting from PlagiaristicI
AI Overview
+8
If a partner remains in the home while another moves into a care home, the home is typically disregarded from care fee assessments for as long as they live there. If the property is sold, however, the sale proceeds (after any remaining mortgage or sale-related expenses) will be counted, although a portion can be used to buy a new home for the partner if it's considered necessary. Selling the property is often necessary to fund care, but you must consult with the local authority and a legal professional to ensure the partner's financial situation is protected and to avoid accusations of deprivation of assets.
.....
I'm sure you've already seen the below info, as you'll have googled this for sure right
Doesn't look good does it. I can see how someone might try and game the system to extract money from the estate- but his situation feels genuine. I don't think he could even rent it out and rent somewhere closer....officially.
I thought (sadly based on my parents) the law was different in Scotland relative to England.
Google / AI may not be your friend on this one unless you can restrict it to Scotland.
Might be worth checking.
I thought (sadly based on my parents) the law was different in Scotland relative to England.
Google / AI may not be your friend on this one unless you can restrict it to Scotland.
Might be worth checking.
correct the rules in Scotland are different from E&W. The simple answer is probably that technically the position outlined in the opening post is correct,
there is more detail here: https://www.careinfoscotland.scot/topics/care-homes/paying-care-home-fees/ but you probably need to follow the rabbit warren of links to get to the answer.
The next bit is less definitive - and that is he should go talk to the people at the council who enforce such things. I don’t have experience of a directly analogous situation but I do know of a case where technically the Council could have enforced the law (and the “family” solicitor said he assume they would) but the Council staff quite quickly (less than two weeks) came back with a conclusion which seemed to apply common sense discretion. I only heard the information second hand but I think they are quite used to dealing with genuine elderly people with a practical need and differentiating them from people sitting on an asset they want to protect from the governments clutches.
i obviously don’t know the guy involved, but it may make sense to take someone else with him to those discussions - older people aren’t always the best with detail or understanding nuance. IMHO it would be better if that person was not a family member likely to inherit and thus was perceived by the council as being a genuine help than a vested interest!
difficult situation but attempting to move house to be closer to a dementia patient who has gone downhill rapidly seems like a permanent solution to a temporary problem, to put it bluntly.
Sounds like it might be more practical to move which care home the wife is in, rather then the other way round? Obv can present its own issues.
difficult situation but attempting to move house to be closer to a dementia patient who has gone downhill rapidly seems like a permanent solution to a temporary problem, to put it bluntly.
the problem is nobody can predict with any meaningful accuracy how short or long term such need might be. It could be weeks, months or years. My wife’s grandmother enterred care with I think everyone involved expecting months rather than multiple years. Three times she had sudden deteriorations which meant family were gathered because it seemed like days or perhaps weeks left. She rallied. This continued for over a decade. If you want to visit daily, then even if it only lasts a year, 2 hrs a day of commuting will quickly take its toll.
If available a community car scheme could help
https://www.aberdeenshire.gov.uk/roads-and-travel/public-transport/community-transport/advice/
Don't forget the stress involved in moving. Not great for anyone, let alone someone with the extra stress of a loved one not very well. As above, I think I'd be looking at a care home closer, but I'm sure that has been looked at.
Speak to the local team. There is massive difference between moving to be nearer to your partner, and disappearing off to Spain to start a new life...