Selling a house to pay care home fees

Why families end up selling a home to pay for care

A move into residential care rarely comes with much warning. One week a parent is managing at home, the next there has been a fall, a hospital stay, or a dementia diagnosis, and the local authority has completed a financial assessment that says the family must fund the care themselves. In England, that assessment looks at capital, and the person's own home is usually counted once they are no longer living in it and no qualifying relative remains there. Above the upper capital limit of 23,250 pounds, a person is treated as a self-funder and pays the full cost of their care. Care home fees run to hundreds of pounds a week, so savings that looked comfortable can drain quickly, and the house becomes the obvious source of funds. This is a stressful place to be. You are making decisions on behalf of someone you love, often while they are frightened or confused, and the paperwork feels relentless. This page sets out the legal authority you need to sell, the option to defer payment rather than sell in a rush, and how a fast cash sale fits in when time and certainty matter more than squeezing out the last few thousand pounds. There is no pressure here. Read it at your own pace.

The legal authority you need before you can sell

You cannot sell someone else's house simply because you are their child, spouse, or next of kin. You need formal legal authority, and which one applies depends on what was put in place before the person lost capacity. A lasting power of attorney for property and financial affairs is the document most families rely on. If your relative signed one while they still had capacity, and it has been registered with the Office of the Public Guardian, the named attorneys can manage their property and money, including selling the home, always acting in the person's best interests under the Mental Capacity Act 2005. An older enduring power of attorney, signed before October 2007, can still be valid and must be registered with the Office of the Public Guardian once the person begins to lose capacity. If no power of attorney exists and the person can no longer make the decision themselves, someone has to apply to the Court of Protection to become a property and financial affairs deputy. This takes longer, often several months, and the deputy may need specific court authority before selling a property, so it is worth checking the order carefully. Where the person still has mental capacity and simply needs help, they can sell in the normal way and instruct solicitors themselves. The single most important step is to confirm your authority in writing at the outset, because a buyer's solicitor will ask to see the registered LPA or the deputyship order before completion.

Deferred payment agreements: an alternative to selling in a hurry

Selling is not the only route, and in many cases it should not be the first one. Under the Care Act 2014, English councils run a deferred payment agreement scheme. In simple terms, the council pays the care home fees and places a legal charge against the person's home, and the debt (plus any interest and admin fees the council is allowed to charge) is repaid later, usually when the house is eventually sold or from the estate after death. The point of a deferred payment agreement is that nobody has to sell the family home in a distressed rush just to keep the care fees paid week to week. To qualify, a person generally needs to have savings and other assets below the upper capital threshold, apart from the value of the home itself, and the property has to have enough equity to cover the deferred fees. There is also a 12-week property disregard at the start of a permanent care placement, during which the value of the home is ignored in the means test, which buys a little breathing space to make decisions calmly. A deferred payment agreement can be the right answer when the family wants to keep options open, or when a fast sale would crystallise a loss. It can be the wrong answer when interest and charges are mounting, when the property is deteriorating while empty, or when the family simply wants the matter settled. Ask the local authority for the details in writing, and weigh the deferral cost against the cost of holding an empty house.

The real cost of leaving the house empty while you decide

Whatever route you choose, an empty house is not a neutral asset sitting quietly in the background. It carries cost. Buildings insurance for an unoccupied property is a specialist policy at a higher premium, and most insurers want to be told within weeks of the property becoming empty or cover can lapse. Council tax moves from any single-person discount to full charge, and after 12 months empty the council can add an empty-homes premium of up to 100 percent, so 200 percent of the standard bill, which Sheffield, Doncaster and Barnsley apply at the 12-month mark and Rotherham began applying from April 2026. There are standing charges on utilities, garden and security upkeep, and the slow deterioration that comes with any home nobody is living in. On top of that, care fees keep running every single week the sale is unresolved. This is why the honest comparison is never just the headline sale price. It is the price the person, or the estate, actually keeps after fees, carrying costs, and the care bill that accrues during a long sale. A route that looks 20,000 pounds better on the sticker can be worse once five or six months of empty-house costs and care fees are added in.

Three ways to sell, and what each really nets

Once you have the authority to act, there are three legitimate ways to turn the house into cash for care fees. The estate agent open-market route gives the highest headline price, but the realistic timeline from listing to completion in England runs to around 22 weeks, and across that period you pay agent commission (typically 1 to 1.5 percent plus VAT), conveyancing, an EPC, unoccupied-property insurance, council tax, and any repairs a buyer's survey throws up. There is also chain risk: a meaningful share of open-market sales fall through and restart the clock, and every extra month is another month of care fees. The auction route sits in the middle on price and is faster on completion, but reserve prices are usually set below open-market expectation and there are entry and commission costs. The cash buyer route has the lowest headline price, our typical offer sits at 80 to 85 percent of market value, but the highest net per week of holding, because completion happens in 2 to 4 weeks rather than five or six months, with no agent fees, no survey down-valuation, no mortgage-dependent buyer, and no chain. For a family funding care, the value of the cash route is certainty and speed: the fees are covered, the empty-house costs stop, and there is a fixed date to plan around. The right route depends on the circumstances. If the person has plenty of savings to cover fees for many months, the property is in good order, and there is no rush, the open-market route usually wins on net. If care fees are outrunning savings, the property needs work, or the family wants certainty, the cash route can win on net once everything is counted.

Acting in the person's best interests: keeping the decision defensible

As an attorney or deputy, you have a legal duty to act in the person's best interests, not your own and not the beneficiaries' of any future estate. That does not mean you must chase the single highest theoretical price regardless of cost, risk, or time. It means making a decision you can justify and evidence. The principle mirrors what the courts expect of executors selling estate property in Buttle v Saunders [1950]: the duty is to obtain the best price reasonably obtainable, weighing certainty, condition, carrying costs, and the ongoing care bill, not to gamble on a slow sale that might net more but might also collapse. In practice a defensible cash sale looks like this: a market valuation from an RICS surveyor or an estate agent establishing the open-market figure; a written cash offer showing a transparent discount; a written note of why accepting it serves the person, for example that it stops care fees eroding their capital and removes the risk of a failed chain; and, where the person can still express a view, a record of their wishes and feelings. Attorneys should also be aware that some larger gifts or below-value transfers can require Court of Protection approval, so a sale at a genuine market-based discount to a cash buyer is very different from giving the property away. If in any doubt, a solicitor experienced in Court of Protection work can confirm the position for your specific situation, and we are happy for you to take that advice before you commit to anything.

How we work with families funding care across South Yorkshire

We buy houses across Sheffield, Doncaster, Rotherham and Barnsley, and also in Chesterfield, Worksop, Retford, Mansfield and Gainsborough. When a family is selling to fund care, we keep the process simple and calm. Tell us about the property and your situation, and we give you a straightforward written cash offer within 24 hours, valid for 14 days. We buy in any condition, so there is no need to clear, clean, or repair anything, and we deal directly with your solicitor throughout, whether that is your own solicitor or one from our panel. We cover the legal fees, and there are no estate agent fees, so the amount agreed is the amount that goes toward the care bill. On timing, we can complete in as little as 7 days, or hold to a date that suits, for example once a deferred payment agreement is wound down, the Court of Protection has confirmed authority, or the family has had time to clear personal belongings. We buy the property, not its contents. Photographs, furniture, and the things that need going through are entirely your decision and your timeline. If a cash sale is not the right answer for your relative, for example if a deferred payment agreement clearly serves them better, we will tell you so.

Frequently asked questions

Can I sell my parent's house to pay for their care?

Only if you have the legal authority to act for them. If your parent has mental capacity, they sell in the normal way and you can help. If they have lost capacity, you need either a registered lasting power of attorney (or valid registered enduring power of attorney) for property and financial affairs, or a property and financial affairs deputyship granted by the Court of Protection. A buyer's solicitor will ask to see that authority before completion, so confirm it is registered and in place before you market the property.

Do we have to sell the house at all to pay care fees?

Not necessarily. Under the Care Act 2014, English councils offer deferred payment agreements, where the council funds the care fees and secures the debt with a charge on the home, to be repaid when the property is sold or from the estate later. There is also a 12-week property disregard at the start of a permanent care placement, during which the home's value is ignored in the means test. Selling makes sense when carrying costs and interest are mounting, or when the family wants the matter settled, but it is worth asking the local authority about deferral first.

How much of the sale will go to care fees rather than fees and costs?

With a cash sale to us there are no estate agent fees and we cover the legal costs, so the agreed price is what goes toward care. On the open market you would typically pay agent commission of 1 to 1.5 percent plus VAT, conveyancing, an EPC, and unoccupied-property insurance and council tax across a sale that can take around 22 weeks. Our offer is lower on the headline, usually 80 to 85 percent of market value, but there is nothing deducted from it and it lands in weeks, not months.

What if the person did not set up a power of attorney before losing capacity?

Then no attorney authority exists, and you cannot simply act as next of kin. Someone will need to apply to the Court of Protection to be appointed as a property and financial affairs deputy. This usually takes several months, and the deputy may need specific authority within the order to sell a property, so read the order carefully or ask a solicitor to check it. We can put an offer in writing and discuss the property while the application is in progress, but we would not complete until the authority to sell is confirmed.

Will selling the house affect the care means test?

The home is generally counted as capital once the person is in permanent care and no qualifying relative remains living there, subject to the 12-week property disregard at the start of a placement. Above the upper capital limit of 23,250 pounds in England, the person is a self-funder and pays their full care costs. Selling turns the property into cash that is then used to fund care until the capital falls. A local authority financial assessment, and ideally independent advice, is the right way to confirm how your relative's specific position is treated.

How quickly can you complete so care fees stop draining savings?

A cash sale with us typically completes in 2 to 4 weeks once we have agreed a price and your legal authority to sell is in place, and we can complete in as little as 7 days where everything is ready. There is no mortgage lender, no survey down-valuation, and no chain, so there is no offer expiry on our side. If you need a later date, for example to wind down a deferred payment agreement or clear belongings, we hold to whatever date suits the family.

Can we still sell if the house is empty, run down, or needs a lot of work?

Yes. We buy in any condition, including homes that have been empty for years, need full modernisation, or have issues like damp, an outdated layout, or title quirks. You do not need to clear, clean, or repair anything before selling. Because we are not relying on a mortgage survey, the condition does not put the sale at risk the way it can on the open market.

As an attorney, am I allowed to accept a below-market cash offer?

You can, provided you are acting in the person's best interests and can evidence why. The legal test, mirroring what the courts expect of executors in Buttle v Saunders [1950], is the best price reasonably obtainable, weighing certainty, condition, carrying costs, and the ongoing care bill, not the highest theoretical figure. Keep a valuation, the written offer, and a short note of your reasons. A genuine market-based discount to a cash buyer is very different from giving the property away, which can require Court of Protection approval, so take advice if you are unsure.

What happens to the money after the house sells?

The proceeds belong to the person whose home it was, held and used for their benefit, typically to fund their care fees and their other needs. As an attorney or deputy you manage that money on their behalf and keep clear records, and you may need to report to the Office of the Public Guardian or the Court of Protection depending on your role. If a deferred payment agreement or a local authority charge is in place, the amount owed to the council is repaid from the sale proceeds first.