Would you want your home to be used to pay for your surviving spouses care home fees?

If you own your home on a joint tenancy basis your surviving spouse would inherit your share of the house under the rules of survivorship. Let’s say some years on your surviving spouse needs to go into a care home. If your spouse has assets including your family home over £23,500 the local authority would expect you to pay for the care yourself from your estate, this could leave your loved ones with very little or no inheritance. Typically care home fees can range from £30,000 to £50,000 a year.

A property will trust can protect your beneficiaries from sideways disinheritance. As an example, if you pass away your surviving spouse could meet someone new. If Your spouse gets married again any previous wills are void. Your surviving spouse then passes away under the rules of survivorship everything would pass to their new partner. The new partner could have other children or again meet someone else leaving your intended beneficiaries with nothing. With a property will trust your partner can still live in the house and enjoy your property as normal, but your share would be owned by the beneficiary that you nominated.