Property protection trusts are a widely used estate planning tool that allows you to protect your share of a property for your chosen beneficiaries while still allowing a surviving spouse to live there. They're particularly important for couples who want to prevent sideways disinheritance.
How Property Protection Trusts Work
When one partner dies, their share of the property is held in trust for their chosen beneficiaries (typically children). The surviving partner retains the right to live in the property for life. When the surviving partner dies, the trust share passes to the beneficiaries — regardless of whether the surviving partner remarried or required care.
When You Need One
- • You have children from a previous relationship
- • You want to protect against sideways disinheritance
- • You're concerned about care home fee assessments
- • You want certainty about where your property share goes