Using POA to sell home

[LittlePollyP]

Hi

My mum is 93 and has been self funding in residential care since 2022. She was formally diagnosed as lacking capacity due to Vascular Dementia in January 2023. I have POA for finances.

My brother, (who lives outside the UK), and I now wish to sell her house and invest the money to continue funding her care. There is no immediate financial need to sell her home as she can probably continue to self fund for a further 18 months before she reaches the £23,250 threshold. However, I am struggling to keep up with the maintenance of her house (especially as my father in law recently died and we have his house to sort out), and the house is now starting to wear an air of neglect.

My question is, can we legally sell mum’s house given that there is no immediate financial reason to do so, and if so, what do I need legally other than my POA docs? (Mum would hate the fact that we are selling her home, but unfortunately she can’t never return safely both mentally and physically).

Thank you

 

[nitram]

Assuming no clause in the LPA restricting the sale all you need for authority to sell is the LPA plus IDs for you and your mum.
You might have to prove to solicitor/estate agent that she is in permanent residential care and therefore has no further need of the house.

 

[Tilly13]

Hello @LittlePollyP
I was in the same position as you with selling parents house.
I had POA and parents self funding for Care Home.
I emptied the house of personal items and made it 'sale ready ' about a year before their savings would run out.
Even with this timescale we had 2 months Care fees remaining before needing the house sale monies!!
The house was in generally good condition but a little dated and it took awhile to sell and I had to drop the price.

As @nitram says the Estate Agent and Solicitors wanted to see POA and also have an original letter from the Care Home stating that my parents were permanent residents.

 

[maggie6445]

Hi, in the next couple of weeks I will be putting OH house on the market. He has very little in savings so will need his house money should he go into residential care. Will the fact that he is living in my home ,not permanent residential care make selling difficult? He may well need full time care in the next twelve months as his needs become more difficult to manage.

 

[nitram]

Are you an LPA thinking you may have difficulty proving she has no further need of it?
If he is living in your house as OH it could be regarded as a surplus house.

Does he have capacity to sell it himself?

 

[maggie6445]

OH was permanent at my address on diagnosis. . Came to stay in lockdown ,let his niece live there I didn't want to sell until
I was sure he couldn't live independently. His niece has been in it ,house sitting , paying all bills as he didn't want to sell. It's now obvious that even if he has a care package he would be unsafe on his own . He will probably need full time care in the next year and his savings would fund a less than 6 months so the house needs to be sold. Niece is moving out on 12/7

No capacity tests or SS involved. O T assessment
last year said he needed 24)7 supervision. But we visited his niece at the weekend and he didn't know it was his house! I've told him we are selling it and he said it's ok. How much he really understands I'm not sure.

I signed for his colonoscopy last December as his consultant didn't think he had capacity to sign himself. Have both LPA

 

[nitram]

If you are sure you want to care for him in your house record his address as yours on the electoral roll , DWP, and driving licence if he has one and just sell.

 

[maggie6445]

The above already in place . Not driven since diagnosis in 2021. There's no way he can live independently. He has no concept of money ,can't make a hot drink needs help with personal care and doesn't know who I am most of the time. He'll be here until full time care home