‘I sold my home for 80% of its value to stop Labour getting hold of my | UK | News

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Furious homeowners have spoken out against a Labour decision to quietly scrap a measure to cap care costs. The brutal axe eradicates a scheme that prevented people losing their property to pay huge care home fees.

Rachel Reeves is already under huge pressure this week to reverse a controversial decision to do away with the winter fuel payment for millions of pensioners. It was for pensioners not on benefits but who will still struggle to meet their energy bill costs this winter.

Now another decision by Reeves and Labour to quietly shelve a cap on social care costs has also sparked fury from the public and older person’s charities.

Ms Reeves will no longer now set a limit to the amount people need to shell out on care costs to £86,000, a move that was due to come in next year. This means that there are some who face losing their home to pay for their place in a care home.

The average cost for a care home resident is £3,200 a month and £4,312 for one with nursing care.

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Currently, if individuals have no other savings or assets they can keep £23k of their house’s value. That’s if they don’t have a spouse or dependent living in it. Above that an unlimited amount can be taken up by care or a care home place

Express.co.uk readers have been venting their fury in response to an opinion piece – with one man saying he’s already sold his home to prevent the value being gobbled up by soaring care home costs.

He said this also eliminates the potential for Labour to increase taxes in the upcoming October budget. He said: “I retired last year after 52 years at work my wife retired after 50 years at work.

“We have been married for 33 years and lived in our house for over 29 years. The mortgage was paid off nearly 10 years ago and the house/home was ours.

“When Labour were voted in recently and everything about pensioners, pensions, taxes and care costs, we decided to sell our house to an insurance company for 80 percent of the current market value while living here rent free for the rest of our lives.

“This is to be paid in five instalments, the first to myself, second to my wife and then the three children.”

He added: “They won’t get any care costs from this house as it is now owned by the insurance company. Labour can go whistle dixie…”

Others agreed with his tactic saying that they too would be running down their assets so that they aren’t hit with eye-popping costs in a residential care home in later life.

One said: “I will take out a lifetime mortgage [equity release] and give my kids a free thousand every year and make sure I only has [sic] “23,000 left then if I was to go into a care home I would get it for free. Play them at their own game I say.”

Another told of their upset of their mother’s situation, who had been careful with money her entire life, only to see it quickly eaten up.

They said: “My mother worked all her life in the healthcare system as a nurse, she bought her own home and had savings but it all went bar the 24k on a nursing home.

“She had the smallest room with the smallest window overlooking a busy road and she paid over 1k a week (in Wales).

They added: “It’s an unfair system, not working or saving quite obviously pays in the end.”

Another fumed about the “unfairness” of those who hadn’t saved getting the same level of care as those who have.

They said: “What many people don’t realise or understand is if you haven’t worked a single day, you’re newly arrived or have no money/assets then you get exactly the same care provision as some who is losing their house, savings or pension to fund their care costs.

“The people who have to pay for their care costs are the ones who have paid into the system all their lives, the ones who get it for free haven’t!!!”

But not everyone agrees that there should be a cap to care costs, with many saying that if you can afford them you should pay them.

One commenter said: “I am definitely not a Labour supporter BUT I am not a supporter of limiting how much can be paid in care home fees.

“Years ago the elderly were supported by their children. What has happened to their support now? If you want to inherit your parent’s wealth, why not contribute to looking after them.”

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