how to protect a home from carer costs?

[flownthecoopkiwi]

We are trying to support my PIL through a pretty terrible situation and need to be able to give them some advice.
MIL has two (!) terminal illnesses and has been cared for at home by her husband and local authority carers. FIL has terminal cancer which has just come back after chemo. They currently have a local authority live in carer to help.
They are desperate to protect the house when he dies rather than it go on carer fees. We suggested tenants in common for the house, with anything beyond that to be spent on care costs.

FIL seems to think that we can sell their house after his death and then MIL can give us the money to extend our house and pay towards the mortgage, therefore keeping all the house money from the sale away being spent on care costs.

I don't think this would work? What are their options?

From what I understand it all depends on how long they have left to live.

My parents have just put their house into trust with my sister and I becoming the owners. The solicitor explained that if one of our parents dies and the other needs to go into care or they both go into care within 4 years of us signing the trust the local council will try to recuperate the money. He said the exact amount of time depends on the council and our council is not interested in anything more than 4 years and hardly ever does anything after two years.

Where would your MIL live?

Can your MIL manage ar home with carers or will she need to go into care?

Do you know how long they are expected to have left?

This sounds like a very difficult situation with them both so ill. (Flowers)

FIL won't make 4 years, he might make 6 months.

Well, FIL apparently thinks MIL will come and live with us. He told SIL that we can extend our new house and he'll give us all their money to do that. This was all news to us.
We would have to have live in carer as well as we both work. we have two small children as well.

MIL doesn't want to stay in her house, but would that even be an option?

anyone done tenants in common as an option?

If they split the property to tenants in common then he can leave his share to his children so I think that may protect his half of it from care costs. I'm not convinced that they can force you to sell but they'd recoup the cost when the property was sold.

Not a legal specialist though - check out the age concern/help the aged sites they're really helpful for stuff like this

How do you feel about MIL moving in?

Ring a local solicitor and speak to them about the financial issue.

FIL has consulted a solictor but seems to ignoring any advice and reality

I have told DH that if he wants her to live with his then i will support him. It would be pretty hard work and hard for our children to see

It's likely too late. Given how long he sadly has left to live and the circumstances it seems a pretty clearcut case of deliberate deprivation of assets. If you receive the assets transferred the Local Authority can come after you to fund the care. Age UK have a good fact sheet on this - deprivation of assets in the means test for care home provision.

You shouldn't proceed without getting specialist legal advice.

I believe the council would be able to refuse to fund the carers if she sold the house and gave you the money as it would be obvious you were doing it to avoid care costs.

What would you do if the money has been spent in the extension and you need to pay for carers?

we wouldn't be able to fund the care ourselves

FIL needs to hear the reality and not ignore expert advice.

Thanks all for coming back so quickly and expertly!