Will I Have to Sell My Home to Pay for Care?

By CareFinder Team · Published 2026-06-30 · Last reviewed 2026-09-18

Not if you receive care in your own home: in England the value of the home is ignored for care at home. After a permanent move into a care home, the home is ignored for the first 12 weeks, and indefinitely while a partner or qualifying relative still lives there. If it does count, a deferred payment agreement with the council lets you pay fees without selling during your lifetime.

Usually not straight away, and often not at all. In England, your home is ignored completely if you get care in your own home. It only comes into the means test after a permanent move into a care home, and even then there are important exceptions and a legal alternative to selling.

This guide explains the rules for England, with notes on the other UK nations. It is general information: before selling, gifting or signing anything, get advice from a solicitor or an FCA-regulated financial adviser, or free guidance from Age UK or MoneyHelper.

Does my home count if I get care at home?

No. When the council works out what you pay for care at home, day centres or other non-residential care, the value of the home you live in must be ignored, according to Annex B of the Care and Support Statutory Guidance. Your savings and income still count, but you will not be asked to sell the house you live in to pay for home care.

What happens if I move into a care home?

The council carries out a financial assessment. For 2026/27, the DHSC charging circular sets these limits for England:

• Capital above £23,250: you pay the full fee.
• Between £14,250 and £23,250: the council helps, and you contribute from income plus £1 a week for every £250 above the lower limit.
• Below £14,250: capital is ignored and you contribute from income.

For most homeowners, whether the house is counted decides which of these applies.

When is the home ignored?

For the first 12 weeks

When you first move permanently into a care home, the council must ignore your home's value for 12 weeks. If your other capital is below the upper limit, the council helps with fees during that time. This gives the family breathing space to decide what to do.

While certain people still live there

The home must be ignored for as long as it is lived in as their main home by:

• your husband, wife, civil partner or partner (unless you are estranged);
• a relative aged 60 or over;
• a relative who is incapacitated;
• your child aged under 18.

"Relative" is defined widely, including parents, children, siblings, grandparents, grandchildren, aunts, uncles, nephews and nieces, and in-laws. For this mandatory disregard, the person must have lived there as their home since before you moved into the care home.

At the council's discretion

Councils can also choose to ignore the home in other cases, such as where a carer who gave up their own home to look after you still lives there. Ask in writing and explain the circumstances.

During a temporary stay

If a care home stay is temporary, such as respite or a trial period, the home is ignored while you intend to return and it is still available to you.

If the home counts, do I have to sell?

No. You can choose to sell, but the law provides an alternative.

Deferred payment agreements

A deferred payment agreement is designed, in the words of the statutory guidance, to prevent people being forced to sell their home in their lifetime to pay for care. The council pays some or all of the fees and takes a legal charge over the property. The amount owed, plus interest, is repaid when the home is sold, or from your estate after death.

The council must offer one if you meet the criteria, which broadly are that:

• your care needs are to be met in a care home;
• your capital, not counting the home, is at or below the upper capital limit;
• your home is not already being ignored in the means test; and
• the council can secure a first legal charge on the property.

Interest is compounded and councils can charge administration fees, so ask for the terms and a projection in writing. Some people rent the home out while a deferred payment is in place, to help with costs; rental income is counted in the means test.

What if fees simply go unpaid?

The council cannot make you sell. But fees you owe become a debt, which the council can take steps to recover. A deferred payment agreement gives you a planned, protected way to use the home's value instead.

Could the NHS pay instead?

If your needs are mainly health needs, you may qualify for NHS Continuing Healthcare. It pays the full care home fee and is not means-tested, so the home and savings are not touched. Ask for an assessment if your relative has complex, intense or unpredictable health needs, especially before or soon after leaving hospital.

People in a nursing home who don't qualify may still get NHS-funded nursing care, a weekly payment towards the nursing part of the fee.

Can I give the house to my children?

Be very careful. If the council decides you gave away the home, or anything else, to avoid care charges, it can treat you as still owning it. This is called deprivation of assets. The council looks at why and when the gift was made, including whether you could reasonably have expected to need care. There is no seven-year limit for care fees; that rule belongs to inheritance tax.

Be cautious about schemes marketed to "protect your home from care fees", and take independent legal advice first.

Is it different in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland?

• Scotland: personal care is free for people assessed as needing it, but accommodation costs in a care home are means-tested under Scotland's own rules, and the home can count. Ask the council how its financial assessment treats property.
• Wales: the capital limit for residential care is higher, at £50,000 according to the Welsh Government, and property disregards are broadly similar.
• Northern Ireland: nidirect says the home can count as capital 12 weeks after a permanent move, unless a spouse, disabled relative, dependent child or, in some cases, a carer still lives there.

What about tax if the home is sold?

If you sell the house that was your main home, you usually pay no Capital Gains Tax because of Private Residence Relief, although there are exceptions. Any money from a sale becomes capital in the means test.

Frequently asked questions

Will I have to sell my home if I only need care at home?

No. The value of the home you live in is ignored when the council assesses what you pay for home care.

My husband still lives in our house. Will it be counted?

No. While your husband, wife, civil partner or partner lives there as their home, its value must be ignored, however long you stay in the care home.

Does the council help during the 12 weeks?

Yes, if your savings and other capital, not counting the home, are below the upper limit. The council assesses what you pay from income and capital during that time.

Can the council refuse a deferred payment agreement?

It must offer one if you meet the criteria, but it can refuse in some cases, for example if it cannot secure a first legal charge on the property or you won't agree to insure and maintain it.

Is the home counted if my daughter moved in to care for me?

Not automatically. If she is under 60 and not incapacitated, the mandatory disregard does not apply, but the council can use its discretion to ignore the home. Put the request in writing.

Key takeaways

• The home is ignored for care you receive at home.
• After a permanent care home move, it is ignored for 12 weeks, and indefinitely while a partner or qualifying relative lives there.
• If it counts, a deferred payment agreement lets you use its value without selling in your lifetime.
• Check for NHS Continuing Healthcare before assuming you must pay.
• Giving the house away to avoid fees can be treated as deprivation of assets.
• Get independent legal or financial advice before any decision about the home.