400 hundred homes are sold EVERY WEEK to Pay for Elderly Peoples Social Care

James Hadley of KingsGuard Legal would like to highlight the issue raised in the DailyMail recently.

At least 400 pensioners sell their homes each week to pay for social care, a new study says today.

 

It reveals that 21,120 owners took the desperate step last year, compared with just 11,880 in 2000.

 

The figures lay bare the scale of a crisis in which anyone with more than £23,250 in savings, including their property value, is denied state help.

 

With the aging population that this country has these figures are only expected to increase. With the correct planning these issues can be mitigated or even eliminated. Contact one of our experts at KingsGuard Legal on 01384 918898

...particularly for dementia sufferers  make up two thirds of those in care. 

 

Published by the charity Independent Age, the report also found that only some councils offer ‘deferred payment agreements’ that save people having to sell up before their death. 

 

Dementia is something we see more and more here at our practice. On many occassion it is too late due to "A LACK of CAPACITY". However, if Powers of Attorney are completed prior to the "LOSS of CAPACITY" the issues that arise for those who care with people with dementia can be significantly reduced. We offer a full estate planning review which we'd be happy to discuss further with you, simply call our offices 01384 918898

The latest report reveals that since 1999, when a royal commission proposed making personal care free at the point of use, more than 330,000 elderly people have had to sell their homes to pay their bills.

 

And the scale of the problem has got worse as care costs have soared and the elderly population has grown.

 

Independent Age estimates that 11,880 owners had to sell up in 2000. Since then the annual total has almost doubled, with 21,120 selling their homes in 2018.

 

The charity’s researchers based their calculations on Department of Health data that suggests 30 per cent of those who self-fund residential care have to sell their homes to do so.

 

The totals were produced by then comparing the numbers for self-funders in care provided by Laing Buisson, a healthcare analysis firm.

 

The research assumes that the average stay in social care is two and a half years. 

 

KingsGuard Legal can assist you in protecting your home for future generations, via relevant estate planning dependent upon your circumstances.

Sally Copley, director of policy at the Alzheimer’s Society, said: ‘No one should have to sell their home to pay for care, but the overwhelming cost of dementia care, which can be at least 15 per cent more expensive than standard social care, means it’s something that happens far too often.

 

Source: DailyMail https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7479305/Four-homes-sold-WEEK-fund-elderly-social-care-UKs-dementia-crisis-deepens.html

 

If you are concerned about anything mentioned in the above in terms of yourself or your loved ones, please do not hestitate to contact us either on the form to the side or on the phone 01384 918898