Home Protection Plan

–.

Asset Protection — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 22:14:06 +0000

Asset Protection Seminars

Asset Protection Seminars are running all around the UK.

Some of the presentations have run into severe trouble with the BBC attending some of the asset protection seminars to point out that their marketing techniques were so badly designed that they would cause the scheme to fail if challenged.

We don’t have the time to run seminars, nor do we employ sales people who will pressure anyone into taking up unsuitable plans – not that we are implying this organisation would do such a thing. They were probably just naive. Which is a worry! It is pretty universal knowledge in the profession. If you want to keep it in the family, don’t flaunt your “cunning plans”!

Asset Protection plans have many advantages but it really is not prudent to offer any sort of guarantee that they offer protection against Long Term Care Fees. Such a guarantee is self defeating, Why?

It provides evidence of a deliberate attempt to avoid Long Term Care Fees.
No one can guarantee that the law won’t change.
It waves a red rag at the proverbial bull – the Local Authority.

There are so many other benefits to our Probate Protection Trust that it is worth having even without any potential Long Term Care savings.

Why not enquire now about our version of the Asset Protection Plan, the Probate Protection Plan. We’ll give you the facts and let you make up your own mind. Advice and recommendations are there as and when you want them, because the Probate Protection Plan is not right for everyone.

Asset Protection Seminars are bound to be interesting – but don’t get carried away and sign up without a great deal of thought.

Parents house has been given to me – is it safe?

Asset Protection — Sat, 14 Jan 2012 12:43:51 +0000

Parents House Question

My parents house was transferred to me to me 10 years ago, in order to avoid losing it to care fees. They are both still alive and in fair health at 90 and 85 respectively, father and mother. I now need to use the equity in the property to raise some funds with their knowledge and agreement.

My question is if any of them were to go into a nursing home, they have no real savings to speak of, would the council authority take into account that they transferred the house to me to alleviate them paying for the care?

At present they are quite capable of looking after themselves with help from myself and family. They live in Wales.

Parents House Problems I am afraid….

Hi Anon

The council can go back as far as they like to detect and rectify deliberate deprivation. It looks, by your own admission, pretty clear cut in this case!

So if there was no sound reason for the transfer of your parents house, other than avoiding Care Fees, they will attempt to claim back the full current value of your parents house from you, irrespective of any mortgage one it. Remember, local Councils have to pick up the tab for care fees if there are insufficient assets, and they are very short of cash. Inevitably, they are going to become far more confrontational in pursuing ”hidden” assets.

A properly organised transfer (ideally into a trust such as ours) can be effective after 6 months or so, sometimes even less.

I have attached details for your information.

Do bear in mind that if you went bankrupt, your parents would be made homeless whether or not you take out this mortgage. If you get divorced, your wife would probably get half the value of your parents house, and wish to sell it! If you died, Inheritance Tax would potentially have to be paid on the value of your parents house as it is part of your estate.

Good luck!

Steve
Stephen Pett 0800 298 5208 = 01323 741200
Allied Professional Will Writers Ltd

Parents House

Postcode lottery in care funding revealed by council research

Asset Protection — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 22:00:11 +0000

With the Government having cut £1.3bn from councils already tightly squeezed care budgets*, research from Prestige Nursing + Care among UK councils** reveals the extent of the postcode lottery when it comes to care. With no central system of care funding, the research found huge variations between funding, information and financial support across the country.Care Funding Levels: Cuts to council funding over the past year have forced many councils to raise the eligibility criteria for care funding, yet this has not been a uniform rise leaving different areas funding different levels of need. All councils surveyed gave funding to those with critical need, 94% give care funding to all levels of substantial need, but just 22% give funding to all levels of moderate need. Only two councils surveyed funds those with low needs.Additionally, 11% of councils surveyed broke these levels of need down further, into higher and lower need bands. Half of these provide funding for those with higher substantial needs and above, and the other half fund those with higher moderate needs and above, showing that even among frameworks designed to improve clarity, there is now increased levels of differentiation.

Level of Need***	Percentage of councils funding need level
Critical – where there are significant health problems, there is an inability to carry out vital personal care or domestic routines and vital social systems and relationships cannot be sustained	100%
Substantial - where there is an inability to carry out the majority of personal care or domestic routines and the majority of social systems and relationships cannot be sustained	94%
Moderate - where there is an inability to carry out several personal care or domestic routines and several social support systems and relationships cannot be sustained	22%
Low – where there is an inability to carry out one or two personal care or domestic routines and one or two social support systems and relationships cannot be sustained	6%

Care Funding

The research also found significant disparities between what people could have to contribute to their care even if their assets are below the £23,250 threshold for funding set by most councils,**** with a difference of as much as £352 per week in the amount that councils quoted for maximum possible care fees.

For example, the research found that one English council quoted £402 per week for non-residential care but a Welsh council placed a cap of £50 on weekly contributions – a difference of 700% or £18,000 per year.

Even in England where there is no cap on fees, there are large differences, with several councils quoting maximum possible care fees around £200 per week – half as much as the most expensive council. The average maximum weekly care cost quoted for domiciliary care was £238 in Great Britain, and £284 in England.Lack of Information Held Over half (54%) of councils could not record the number of queries that they receive about care. This lack of information is likely to hamper financial planning as they will be unaware of the number of people in their area who self-fund and thus may eventually need council assistance.Jonathan Bruce, managing director of Prestige Nursing + Care said, “Cuts to care funding are putting councils in an extremely difficult position. They are doing the best that they can, but reduced means are forcing them to juggle their resources and make tough decisions about the amount of care they can afford to provide. Each council prioritises their services differently and tailors their spending to balance their own needs, but the result is a system that is confusing and unfair for those requiring care as there is no uniformity between areas.”The differing levels of maximum potential care fees would be addressed by the implementation of the Dilnot Reports recommendations. We fully support this as it would really help to clarify exactly what people can expect – making life easier for councils and consumers alike. To remedy the problem of the postcode lottery as a whole, I would suggest we need to go further and introduce a nationwide system which would standardise the process.”Care funding is a provision that drastically affects the quality and even length of life for those that receive it, and therefore its structure cannot be treated as a political or economic issue by the government. While the focus on localism on some issues is to be welcomed, in the case of care funding, a more devolved system simply makes what can be a traumatic process for users even more confusing.”

The Home Protection Plan can leave control of your home and payments of care funding fees under the control of your family