Paying for care at home or elsewhere
For many years this has been the subject of media headlines across the UK. And it’s no wonder since we have an ageing population. Advances in medicine mean we are likely to live longer, and there’s a limited amount of welfare money available to fund our care in our later years. It’s a sad fact of life that most people will spend at least part of their retirement needing some form of care.
Whether this affects you or a relative, paying for long term care at home or in a residential care home is expensive and the cause of a great deal of worry and stress. If you’re currently facing the prospect of needing care for yourself or a loved one, it might be a great source of upset, especially if your primary concern is to be able to leave a financial legacy behind when you die. There may be some help available to meet the cost, but the care system can be complicated and difficult to find your way through.
Can I avoid care home fees?
That depends, but in our experience, NO. Eligibility for local authority funding for care fees is based on an assessment of your financial circumstances. The cost of care will vary depending on where you live, and the kind of care required. Funding for care fees is means tested, and if you own your own home and/or have savings above the current threshold, then you will be responsible for the full cost until your assets and income drop below the thresholds. It’s unavoidable.
But there may be options that will help you generate the required guaranteed income, which is why we encourage you to contact us to explore them. These options include maximising your tax breaks, trusts, Equity Release and Immediate Needs Annuities. We would also suggest that you have Lasting Powers of Attorney in place too, and we can discuss this with you.
At Talis we understand that funding for care fees is a difficult discussion to have at any time of life, let alone with a loved one who is faced with the prospect of needing long term care. However the earlier that decisions are made about what to do in those circumstances, the easier it is to put those plans into place when they are needed.
If however you are currently looking at the immediate probability of needing to fund care for yourself or a relative, then you should be talking to us urgently.
Talis’s Veronica Mann is a member of SOLLA, the Society of Later Life Advisers, an organisation with older clients in mind. This means that she is accredited to a level that goes beyond what is usually required of a regulated financial adviser. So you can be sure that we will handle your concerns and questions with sensitivity and with the benefit of our years of experience helping people plan for care funding.
So contact us today for an initial chat to find out how we can help you.