To apply for the DPA you must -
- Have capital (excluding the property) of less than £23,250
- Be professionally assessed as requiring and be entering permanent residential / nursing care / extra care in a registered care home or extra care facility
- Own or have part legal ownership of a property which is not benefiting from a property disregard and ensure your property is registered with the land registry); if the property is not, you must arrange for it to be registered at your own expense
- Have the mental capacity to agree to a DPA or have a legally appointed agent willing to agree this.
If your partner lives in your house
Provided your partner lives in your home as their main or only home, and that you are not estranged or divorced, the local authority should exclude the value of your home when it assesses your finances to work out how much you will have to pay towards the costs of your care. This means that you should not face having to sell your home to pay for care and will not need a deferred payment agreement.
If you and another person part-own your property (and it isn’t disregarded) and you would otherwise be eligible for a deferred payment, you should still be entitled to a deferred payment
Whilst in the agreement
You will need to -
- Have a responsible person able to ensure that necessary maintenance is carried out on the property to retain its value
- Insure your property (copy of buildings insurance must be provided)
- Pay your contributions in a timely and regular manner. If you fail to pay your contributions on a regular basis the councils reserves the right to add this debt to the loan amount.