Property Protection Trust

Need help with Property Protection Trust?

The Property Protection Trust, also known as a Protective Property Trust, is an excellent tool that can be used as an Estate Planning tool to protect property. When used in a Will a person passes their interest to the Property Protection Trust. Most commonly this is used as a mechanism to ensure that a surviving spouse cannot remarry and give an entire property away to a new spouse or partner otherwise as a method of protecting property in the event that a surviving spouse needs residential nursing care.

Property Trust in a Will

A protective property trust added to a will is a way to ensure that at a major part of your family home is safeguarded in the event that you or your spouse need residential care. Care home fees can cost anything from £20,000-£50,000 a year and if your assets total £22,250 or more you will have to cover the entire cost yourself.

Adding a Property Protection Trust

As specialists in estate planning and management, we can offer you a complete service, with advice and assistance throughout the process. We offer the following services;

• Will Writing
• Property trust wills
• Lasting power of attorney
• Inheritance tax planning
• Discretionary trusts
• Asset protection trusts
• Property protection trusts
• Converting to tenants in common

We can visit you at home to discuss your options; considering your assets and family situation, we can devise a plan that’ll protect your home and capital no matter what happens. Call us for your free consultation.

Care Home Fees

Between 40,000 and 70,000 family homes are sold every year to cover the owner’s care fees.

If you`re assets total £22,250 no contribution will be made by the local authority.

For those with assets between £13,500 and £22,250, there is a partial contribution made.

Means tests include; savings, state/private pension, benefits, investments, any property that you own including the family home.

The home is disregarded during the first 12 weeks of care or temporary or respite care. It is also not applicable in means-testing if it is occupied by a husband, wife or unmarried partner, a close relative over the age of 60 (or under the age of 16) or a disabled relative. Therefore, many problems occur after the death of the first spouse.

There are extremely strict rules on deliberate deprivation. If the authorities believe that assets have been gifted deliberately to avoid care fees, your home can still be at risk.

Why Use a Protective Property Trust?

By transferring your property into a trust the trustees are in effect the owners, whilst you`ll have a lifetime interest. If your share in a property goes into one it is not classed as yours and thus disregarded in any means test. You’ll have a guaranteed right of residence in the property for the remainder of your life. Upon your death, the beneficiaries will become the owners.

Married couples must register as tenants in common so each spouse’s share becomes a separate entity. When the first spouse dies, their interest goes directly into the trust. It is written into the deed that the surviving spouse has the right to live in the property for life, or will receive proceeds of any rent. If the surviving spouse decides to sell, they can do as they wish with the proceeds but the other half is safely in trust for the beneficiaries. It is therefore a good solution for anyone worried their children may be disinherited after their death.

Call IWC for more information about creating a protective property trust, or for help and advice with your estate planning.