A new report by the healthcare agency ‘Prestige Nursing and Care’ states that the average cost of a single room in a care home has soared by 5.2% in the past year to £30926pa.This is an average throughout the country. In London for example the costs have rocketed by 19.1% to £38896pa whilst in the North East the costs are £22048pa.
Anyone with assets of more than £23250 have to meet these costs in full and often means they have to take a Loan from the local Council based on the value of their home to meet the fees . Such loans then have to be repaid after death from the sales proceeds of the home leaving the children and loved ones much the poorer.
The Government was to introduce a cap on total fees payable from 2016 but this has been postponed until 2020.
between now and then many more houses will have to be sold to meet the fees now being charged.
David Dexter of Lincoln Wills states ” that home owners who have worked hard to buy their homes to bequeath to children, and who have paid taxes and national health contributions throughout their working lives find it very hard to see all their efforts have been in vain should they have to go into care in later life”.” Proper will planning ,he said, can however overcome much of this concern”.