A Life Interest or Asset Protection trust works as follows:-
You will need to own your property as tenants in common so that the first to die’s share passes under the terms of the Will rather than automatically t the surviving owner. On the death of the first, that one’s share of the property passes into the ownership of the trustees (of which the survivor can be one) for the benefit of that survivor for his or her life, subject to certain ‘trigger’ events which will bring the trust to an end. The ultimate trigger event is the death of the survivor but they also include a failure to maintain the property and insure it as appropriate, permanently leaving the property and cohabitation & remarriage can be added as required.
Each individual names ultimate beneficiaries to benefit from their share of the property when the trust comes to an end.
Meanwhile the survivor of you can continue to live in the property as they always have for as long as they wish to do so (subject to the trigger events set out above) and if that person then needs nursing home care, the first to die’s share of the property will not be taken into consideration in any nursing home fee assessment because it does not actually belong legally to that survivor. The asset is therefore protected from nursing home fees in respect of the survivor.
The trust can be confined to your own share of the property or, it can be extended to all assets in your sole name at the date of your death.