This will be quite complicated and your Ils etc will need to take specialist advice.
As I understand it, and I am in the process of sorting out my mothers affairs and my dads estate, both enthusiastic Building Society carpet baggers, seekers of the best ISA rates and Buy-to-Let purchasers, so lots of capital, but all over the place, and with my mother having no knowledge of what she has:
- Your MIL can make regular gifts from income, or gifts from capital on special occasions (birthdays, weddings, Christmas etc) without recipients attracting tax. However other gifts are taxable.
- The POA accounting has very clear guidelines about transparency and need to be kept quite separate for any Attorney's own finance. (My own nightmare as we ended up paying for a huge amount in the middle of our elderly parent crisis so she could move directly into a sheltered flat from convalescent care and before POA came through - my reward when the crisis is over will be to spend a couple of weeks trying to sort it all out so my accountant has a good record in case anyone ever asks, and so we can do her tax return.)
- The requirements in terms of capability for being able to sign a POA are lower than that for signing a contract to sell a house etc. It would be the duty of a good solicitor to ensure that your MIL does understand what she is doing, and that any sale is in her best interests. Otherwise I assume they could be sued by anyone, eg an heir, disadvantaged by the transaction.
- There may be potential Capital Gains and Inheritance Tax advantages in looking at her gifting the property within three years of it ceasing to be her main residence, but probably in trust, eg probably only worth faffing around with if the property is worth well in excess of IHT limits. I dont know what the impact on capital gains will be of the fact it has also been your ILs main residence. Also I think there is some requirement that it needs to be in your MILs interest, and she must be capable of making the decision, and for IHT purposes she may need to live for a further 7 years for such a gift to be valid. There may also be scope to reduce her assets so they are not swallowed up in means tested care costs, but any Local Authority worth their salt might then look at recent transactions and may well have the right to challenge them.
A few disclaimers to the above, eg I am not a lawyer and what I know or don't know is based on what I have come across in the last three months. The message is that it is complicated. If there are major transactions involving capital not income the Inland Revenue or Local Authority could well be interested. If transactions have taken place which are not in your MILs best interests Courts can get involved. However if the property is worth a lot then looking at keeping Capital Gains and and IHT liabilities to a minimum is worth looking at.
My advice would be for joint Attorneys to sit down and work out a future care plan for your MIL. Buying a flat in a good extra sheltered housing scheme might be an option. Research the costs of top up care and a good quality nursing home. (Two hours of a carer coming in each day to help with medications etc is £800 a month, private nursing care can be well over £1000 a week, my mother's service charges for extra sheltered housing are £500 a month, fine as they include 24 hour warden cover, a handyman, a reception etc, but quite a lot when meal and laundry costs are also added on.) Make sure there is enough to see her through before even talking about any gifts. Then discuss future roles and responsibilities and acknowledge that the sibling who is closest may be expected to pick up the lions share of the burden, and that it is a burden. The POA document can make provision for payment, eg if your ILs retain some of the care duties. Then buy some solicitor time and check that everything is kosher both from a POA responsibility and tax wise, with your MIL as far as she is able confirming she is content.
In short, focus on securing your MILs needs, but do acknowledge if some siblings are picking up more of the burden.
Sorry it is a long post. I could have written a much longer one about my own sibling issues, but am too frustrated. All I can say is that caring is really hard work, both physically and emotionally and it would be much easier if my own sibling would acknowledge this, rather than simply fret about the estate.