Protect your home and assets from care fees
At Albany Wills, we help individuals and families ensure that the wealth they’ve worked hard to build—particularly their home and savings—are safeguarded from potential long-term care costs.
Why you need to act now
- Without proper planning, you could risk:
- Having to sell your home to pay for care.
- Losing lifetime savings and investments.
- Having your income used to cover care expenses.
- Leaving little or nothing behind for your loved ones.
Give us a call today on 01482 298543 or use the form on our contact page to discuss your needs or make an appointment.
Savings and investments
Assets like savings, ISAs, and stocks can also be used to cover care costs if not structured properly. However, there are legal and compliant ways to structure financial products that reduce exposure:
- Investment Bonds with life insurance components may be disregarded in financial assessments.
- Certain trust-based investments can also help ring-fence wealth for your family.
- Proper financial planning can ensure these liquid assets are less vulnerable.
Our expert advisers at Albany Wills provide bespoke strategies to protect all your assets—not just your home.
When Do You Start Paying for Care?
Each UK nation has its own capital thresholds:
| Location | Full Cost Threshold | Partial Support Threshold |
| England | Over £23,250 | £14,250 – £23,250 |
| Wales | Over £50,000 | N/A (Same for both) |
| Scotland | Over £26,500 | £16,500 – £26,500 |
| Northern Ireland | Over £23,250 | £14,250 – £23,250 |
Our approach
Guiding you through a complex and emotional process
At Albany Wills, we combine professional expertise with empathy to guide you through the complexities of care funding. Our experience includes resolving disputes during Financial Assessments, handling lengthy appeals and formal complaints to the Local Government Ombudsman, and managing cases involving various types of trusts.
We understand that care funding issues can be emotionally charged and time-consuming—often taking many months or even years due to delays within the Local Authority system. That’s why we work pragmatically and compassionately, always keeping your loved one’s best interests in focus.
From the outset, we aim to set clear expectations, offer transparent advice, and keep you informed every step of the way. Our team is committed to providing respectful, prompt, and professional service throughout the entire process.
Your care costs
How care costs can affect your estate
Entering a care home typically triggers a financial assessment (or means test). If your assets—such as property, cash, and investments—exceed certain thresholds, you will be expected to cover the full cost of your care.
For example, in England:
- If your assets exceed £23,250, you must fund care in full.
- If your assets fall between £14,250 and £23,250, you may receive partial assistance.
- If you have less than £14,250, only your income will be considered in the assessment.
This means your home, often your most valuable asset, can be at risk unless action is taken early.
What about savings and investments?
Assets like savings, ISAs, and stocks can also be used to cover care costs if not structured properly. However, there are legal and compliant ways to structure financial products that reduce exposure:
- Investment Bonds with life insurance components may be disregarded in financial assessments.
- Certain trust-based investments can also help ring-fence wealth for your family.
- Proper financial planning can ensure these liquid assets are less vulnerable.
Our expert advisers at Albany Wills provide bespoke strategies to protect all your assets—not just your home.
How to protect your property
Most couples jointly own their home. While this seems convenient, it poses a risk if one partner dies and the other later requires care—the full property value will be assessed.
To prevent this:
- Change ownership to Tenants in Common so each person owns a specific share.
- Create Mirror Wills that place each share into a Property Trust or Family Trust.
- This strategy allows the surviving partner to continue living in the property, while ensuring that the deceased partner’s share is protected from future care assessments.
A portion of the property held in trust becomes extremely difficult to value for resale by a third party, often resulting in the council assessing it as having negligible value.
