Quote Originally Posted by BLUETIT View Post
I think you may be wide of the mark here.

This is what "Tenants in Common", actually stops happening.

Say one party goes into a care home, then the oyher party can still reside in the house, with no worries.

This is what it protects
Not the case. It's not the act of Tenants in Common that will potentially protect the home, it's who the other owner is and the terms upon which they own it. Having said that, a property can only be forcibly sold against the wishes of the other party with a court order.

If one partner of a couple needs to go into a home, then regardless of how it's owned (or even who it's owned by) the other partner can continue living in the home without worries (assuming they are over 60).

The problem is if one partner dies, and the surviving partner then owns the house solely (which will always happen if the home is owner jointly, or even if t-in-c and the Will directs it to the surviving partner).

This is game over if the surviving partner then needs to go into a care home as they then own the home solely, and don't have the protection of someone over 60 still living there (which means that the local authority must ignore the value of the home).

The most common solution (and one I usually put in place for my clients) is to set up a Trust within the Will. This means that on the death of Partner 1, their share goes in Trust for the children but there is clear wording that the partner can continue benefiting from the house (ie living there rent free). This means that if the surviving partner needs to go into care, then they only own half a house and the other half has a legal Trust deed that confirms that the only person who can benefit from it, is themselves.

In this situation, as there is a Trust deed, then the home cannot be forcibly sold (unless the courts over-ruled the Trust, which would be incredibly unusual), and the home is ring-fenced and protected for the family unless they can find someone who's willing to buy half a house!