Jointly Owned Property and Care Home Fees

Topic cluster: Care Home Costs & Funding | Reading time: 5 min

If your parent's property is jointly owned — with a sibling, a child, or a former spouse — the way care fees are assessed changes. Only your parent's share of the property is counted, not the whole property value. This guide explains how jointly owned property is treated in the financial assessment.

The Basic Rule

If your parent jointly owns a property, only their share of the property value is included in the financial assessment for care home fees — not the full property value.

This matters significantly in practice. A property valued at £300,000 jointly owned by two people is assessed as £150,000 per person — not £300,000 — for care funding purposes.

Types of Joint Ownership

The way the property is owned affects both the care fee assessment and inheritance:

Joint tenants Both owners own the whole property together. On death, the deceased's share automatically passes to the surviving owner (right of survivorship). You cannot separately leave your share in a will.

Most married couples own property as joint tenants.

For care fee purposes, the council treats each person as owning half the property.

Tenants in common Each owner holds a specific share of the property (which may be equal or unequal). Each person can leave their share in their will independently.

For care fee purposes, the council includes each person's specific share in their financial assessment.

Can the Council Force a Sale of Jointly Owned Property?

No — the council cannot force the sale of jointly owned property. They can only assess the value of your parent's share.

However, if no one else is living in the property and there are no protected occupants (spouse, disabled relative, elderly relative etc.), the council can include your parent's share of the property value in the means test — which may make your parent a self-funder based on that share.

What Happens If the Other Owner Won't Sell?

If your parent's share needs to be realised but the co-owner refuses to sell, the council may seek advice from a district valuer about the realistic value of your parent's share in the open market.

In reality, a partial share in a property is often difficult to sell — and the council must use a realistic market value, not the theoretical full value pro-rated. This may reduce the assessed value of the share.

Married Couples and Jointly Owned Homes

For married couples where one spouse moves into a care home:

If the other spouse continues to live in the property, the property is fully excluded from the financial assessment — regardless of how it is owned
The property is only included if no protected person remains in it

This is one of the most important property protections in the care funding system.

Protecting Remaining Occupants

Beyond a spouse, the following also trigger a property disregard (the property is excluded from the means test):

A civil partner or cohabiting partner
A relative aged 60 or over
A disabled relative
A divorced or estranged partner who is a lone parent of a child under 16

What Is a 'Beneficial Interest' in a Property?

Sometimes a person has a financial interest in a property even if they are not named on the title deeds — through contributions to purchase or mortgage payments, or through a formal trust arrangement. These beneficial interests are counted in the financial assessment.

If this situation applies to your parent, specialist legal advice is important.

Understand your care funding position before choosing a care home — homeformum.com