Don’t take a wrong
turn with your finances
problems and mild dementia which meant
that she needed full-time residential care.
Grace owned a house and after it was
sold that gave her assets of £210,000.
We estimated that if Grace did nothing her
money would run down and she would
need her care to be paid for by the local
authority after seven years. The funding
from the council would be lower than
the care home fees, so a family member
would need to pay the difference or Grace
would have to move elsewhere.
After looking at Grace’s situation we
considered a number of options. One
option was to arrange an immediate care
plan for a premium of £138,000. It would
pay her care provider £2,100 a month,
which would increase each April by 5%
and be payable for her lifetime. However,
this option would only leave £72,000 of
her estate and Grace and her family were
uncomfortable with the idea that such a
large sum could be lost if Grace died soon
after buying the plan.
Long-term care could be one of the most expensive purchases
you make after buying a house. In West Sussex it can cost around
£50,000 or more per year for care in a residential home, so
good financial planning is vital. Most people wouldn’t take out a
mortgage without financial advice, yet many do not take financial
advice about paying for care.
There are a variety of different options
available to pay for care including
deferred payment agreements, renting
out your property, care fees annuities
and equity release. It may be difficult to
know which is right for you, but a scheme
called Carewise can guide you through
the choices.
Carewise was set up by West Sussex
County Council, Age UK West Sussex,
West Sussex Partners in Care and the
Society of Later Life Advisers (SOLLA)
to provide trustworthy, independent
advice about care and support options
and the most cost-effective ways of
paying for care.
Carewise includes a panel of care fees
specialists, who are independent financial
advisers specialising in financial planning
for later life. They can advise you on
what type of care and support at home
or residential care you can afford and
help to preserve your savings and assets
for as long as possible. Here’s how
financial advice from a Carewise care fees
specialist helped one West Sussex family.
In a recent example, Grace (name
changed) was 84 when her daughter and
lawyer asked for advice on covering her
care costs. Grace suffered some physical
Instead we agreed that Grace should buy
a five-year deferred care plan at a cost of
£26,100. This plan has the same long-term
benefit as the immediate plan, but will only
pay out if Grace still needs care in five
years’ time. In the meantime she funds the
care from her assets. Overall the long-term
cost of this option is greater but Grace and
the family were happier with this solution
as they would feel that the extra money
had been spent on Grace’s care.
Once paid, the premium can never be
returned, but Grace and her family found
the plan gave them great peace of mind.
Grace knew that the income from the plan
would be there no matter how long she
lived. She didn’t have to worry about her
money running out and she would still
have money to leave an inheritance for her
family. On Graces death she will leave an
estate between £184,000 and £67,000,
depending upon how long she lives.
This is just one example of how Carewise
can help. To find out more about Carewise,
go to www.westsussexconnecttosupport.
org/carewise or phone West Sussex
County Council’s Adults’ CarePoint on
01243 642121.
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