Have you heard that the old ‘bonds’ – now called RADs – for entering an aged care home (nursing home) – averages $300,000 across the country and up to $2.5 million in Sydney?
And that if you are not on a full aged pension, there is a good chance you will have to pay this amount – or a percentage from around $300 each week?
How do you find the money? Most people will look to the family home, says aged care expert accountants StewartBrown.
And people are protected, they say, because real estate prices are going up faster than the price of RADs (refundable accommodation deposits). The national median house price is $660,000.
Some RADs still well below house prices
Is selling the family home the solution?
Hobart had the lowest median house price of $382,500 – still higher than the average RAD.
Of the 500,000 homes sold in 2016, only 33 per cent of houses and 40 per cent of apartments went for less than $400,000 – putting 60 per cent of the real estate market above the average RAD.
Just over 4,000 aged care beds – or 1.8 per cent – were priced over $550,000.
While home prices went up, most RADs did not. Just 16 per cent of beds went up in price, while 4 per cent dropped and 62 per cent didn’t change at all.
The reality is most people don’t want to sell the family home, either under pressure or because there could be better financial solutions.
Our advice is to get advice from an aged care qualified financial planner. We have a relationship with Affinity for instance – and there is always help for those who need a bed but don’t have the means.
You can find out more about paying for aged care here.
