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Mental Capacity Assessment
Mental Capacity Assessment to Buy, Sell or Transfer Property
Court-ready, decision-specific property capacity assessments for families, solicitors and professionals across England and Wales.
A property capacity assessment is a decision-specific assessment of whether a person can make a particular property decision at the time it needs to be made, applying the Mental Capacity Act 2005. It is not a general opinion about capacity overall. It is focused on the exact transaction, such as selling a home, buying property, transferring ownership or gifting an interest, and the information relevant to that decision. Because property decisions are often high in value and largely irreversible, the threshold is typically higher than for everyday financial decisions. Nellie Supports provides these assessments across England and Wales, in a form solicitors, the Court of Protection and the Land Registry can rely on.
£600 + VAT
Standard fee, stated before instruction
5 working days
Typical turnaround
England and Wales
Nationwide coverage
Higher threshold
Property decisions assessed to the right standard
Nellie Supports is England and Wales' largest identified specialist private social work and mental capacity assessment practice, delivered by a permanent full-time team. Services are provided by employed, multidisciplinary professionals, not an ad hoc associate, contractor or referral-panel model. We have completed over 11,000 formal assessments and reports. This service sits alongside our full range of mental capacity assessment services.
When you may need a property capacity assessment
A property capacity assessment is usually needed where a transaction is being considered and there is doubt about whether the person can make that decision independently. This commonly arises where a person has a diagnosis affecting cognition, where their presentation has changed over time, or where others involved are unsure whether the decision is fully understood.
It is frequently required where solicitors, the Court of Protection or other professionals need formal evidence before progressing a transaction or determining the appropriate legal route. Concerns often arise where an older person is selling to fund care, where someone is disposing of inherited property, or where a transfer or gift is being made within a family and there are worries about pressure, vulnerability or exploitation.
The legal test for a property capacity assessment
All property capacity assessments apply the Mental Capacity Act 2005 to the specific decision being made. The question is whether, at the time the decision needs to be made, the person can:
Understand the information relevant to the property transaction, including its value, costs and long-term consequences
Retain that information long enough to make the decision
Use or weigh that information, including where they will live and how proceeds will be used
Communicate their decision by any means
If they cannot do one or more of these, the assessment considers whether that inability is because of an impairment of, or disturbance in, the functioning of the mind or brain. Because selling a home is often irreversible and carries significant long-term consequences, the threshold for capacity is typically higher than for everyday financial decisions, and the assessment must test understanding of those longer-term consequences carefully. A valid decision must also be made freely, so undue influence is considered where relevant.
Framework: Mental Capacity Act 2005 ss 1 to 3 and the Code of Practice. Reports are structured for use by solicitors, the Court of Protection and the Land Registry, and can be converted into COP3 Part B where a deputy is in place.
For the framework in full, read our guide: what is capacity to buy, sell or transfer property.
Our property capacity assessment process
Initial enquiry and triage
Contact us by phone, email or website form. We gather the key details, explain how the assessment works, and confirm the specific property decision that needs to be assessed.
Quotation and booking
Once we understand the scope, we provide a clear quotation including VAT and any applicable travel costs, and arrange an appointment as quickly as possible.
Assessment appointment
A qualified assessor meets the person face to face, or remotely where appropriate, and carries out a decision-specific capacity assessment focused on the property transaction.
Report preparation and peer review
The findings are written up in a clear, structured report and reviewed by a second qualified professional for quality, consistency and legal robustness.
Secure delivery
Your completed report is delivered securely, usually within your stated turnaround period, with reasonable minor amendments or clarification available after delivery.
What the assessor evaluates
A well-reasoned assessment explains how the conclusion has been reached, rather than simply stating an outcome, tied to the actual transaction in issue.
The exact property decision being assessed, whether sale, purchase, transfer or gift
Whether the person was given the relevant information in a way they can understand
Whether they understand the nature of the transaction and its value
Whether they can retain the key information long enough to decide
Whether they can use or weigh the financial implications and long-term consequences
Whether they can communicate a clear and consistent decision
Whether there is an impairment or disturbance affecting this specific decision
The support provided, the person's views, and any concerns about pressure or influence
Property capacity fees and timescales
£600 + VAT
VAT at 20% and travel costs are not included. Enhanced: £3,500 + VAT.
A home visit or video assessment, whichever suits the person and circumstances
A calm, gentle, professional assessment
A decision-specific property focus on the exact transaction, not a general view of capacity
Assessment completed in line with the Mental Capacity Act 2005
Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) where appropriate, at no extra cost
A clear, court-ready report suitable for solicitors, the Court of Protection and the Land Registry
Travel charged at £40.00per hour
Standard or Enhanced, which does your transaction need?
A standard assessment is right for most transactions where the decision is clear and undisputed. Where the transaction is complex, high in value or contested, or where undue influence is a live concern, an enhanced assessment provides a deeper, more defensible evidential foundation.
Standard Assessment
£600 + VAT
- Decision-specific assessment of the exact property transaction
- Completed in line with the Mental Capacity Act 2005
- MoCA where appropriate
- Court-ready report suitable for solicitors and the Land Registry
For most property decisions where the transaction is clear and undisputed.
Enhanced Assessment
£3,500 + VAT
- Extended, multi-layered assessment
- Structured analysis of vulnerability and undue influence
- Broader evidential framework for likely challenge
- Robust reporting for high-value, contested or gifted transactions
For complex, high-value or contested transactions, or where undue influence is a concern.
A full-time, multidisciplinary team
Nellie Supports is built on an employed, permanent team: registered social workers, a Chartered Psychologist and specialist assessors working together to one standard, with every report peer reviewed by a second qualified professional. Your assessment is never passed to an associate bank or referral panel.
The right professional for the decision
Capacity questions range from care and residence to complex cognition and prognosis. A multidisciplinary team means the discipline is matched to the decision, not to whoever is available.
One consistent standard
The team works together full time, so every assessment follows the same methodology and peer review is built into every report rather than bolted on.
Accountability you can name
Your report is signed by an employed professional who answers for their work, and the practice stands behind it.
Continuity, not hand-offs
The people who take your enquiry, carry out the assessment and review the report all work in one practice, so nothing is lost between stages.
How this works in practice
The situation
An older woman needed to sell her home to fund her move into residential care. Her family and solicitor believed she wanted the move, but because selling a home is largely irreversible and there had been some memory difficulties, the solicitor wanted independent evidence that she had capacity to make the sale decision.
The assessment
We met her at home and focused only on the specific decision to sell: that she would no longer own the property, where she would live afterwards, roughly what the sale would raise, the costs involved, and how the proceeds would support her care. Because a sale carries a higher threshold than everyday money decisions, we tested her understanding of those longer-term consequences carefully, and recorded the support provided and any signs of pressure.
The outcome
The assessment concluded that she understood and could weigh the decision, and had capacity to sell the property. The report set out the reasoning clearly and in a form her solicitor and the conveyancer could rely on, so the sale could proceed without delay.
This is an illustrative example, drawn from the common features of the property capacity cases we assess. It does not describe any individual client.
Why families, solicitors and professionals choose Nellie Supports
Higher threshold understood
We understand that property decisions carry a higher threshold than everyday finances, and we assess the longer-term consequences properly.
Decision-specific, not generic
Focused on the exact transaction in issue and the information relevant to it, not a broad opinion about capacity overall.
Relied on by professionals
Reports structured for solicitors, the Court of Protection, conveyancers and the Land Registry.
COP3 conversion where needed
Where a deputy is in place, the report can be converted into COP3 Part B at no additional cost for a court application.
Alert to pressure and influence
Property transfers and gifts often raise concerns about influence, which we address carefully and keep distinct from capacity.
Employed, not outsourced
A permanent full-time team, peer reviewing every report, not an ad hoc panel of associates.
Common property capacity questions
What is the difference between capacity to manage finances and capacity to sell property?
These are separate decisions with different thresholds. Managing finances relates to general day-to-day financial decisions, whereas selling property involves understanding a specific transaction, its value, and its long-term consequences. Someone may have capacity for one but not the other.
Can someone with dementia still have capacity to sell property?
Yes. A diagnosis alone does not determine capacity. The key question is whether the person can make the specific property decision at the time it needs to be made.
What level of understanding is required for property decisions?
Property decisions generally require a higher level of understanding than day-to-day financial decisions. The person needs to understand the nature of the transaction, the financial implications, and the likely consequences of proceeding or not proceeding.
Will the assessment be accepted by solicitors and the Land Registry?
Our reports are structured in line with the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and prepared for legal and professional use. They are regularly relied upon by solicitors and other professionals involved in property transactions.
What happens if the report finds the person lacks capacity?
The report provides clear evidence to guide the next steps, which may involve an attorney, a deputy, or a Court of Protection application depending on the person's arrangements. Where a deputy is in place, we can convert the report into COP3 Part B at no additional cost.
What if there are concerns about pressure or undue influence?
Where concerns about vulnerability or possible influence are raised, these can be explored as part of the assessment. The focus remains on whether the person is able to make the decision freely, with a clear understanding of the situation.
What if the assessment does not reach the conclusion we hoped for?
Our assessments are independent, and that independence is what gives the report its value. We do not begin from a preferred answer. We assess the specific decision on its merits and record the reasoning, whatever the conclusion. A report that only ever confirmed what was hoped for would carry no weight with a solicitor, the Court of Protection or anyone else relying on it.
Property capacity assessment guides
What is capacity to buy, sell or transfer property?
The decision, the test and the higher threshold
What must someone understand in a property transaction?
The relevant information for the decision
Evidence needed for a property capacity report
What strengthens the assessment and the report
Capacity assessments for conveyancing transactions
How capacity fits the conveyancing process
Red flags in property capacity cases
What makes a property case more complex
Other assessment types
If the decision is about managing finances more broadly, granting a Lasting Power of Attorney, or a Court of Protection COP3, rather than a specific property transaction, our team can help with those too.
Capacity to Manage Finances
Independent, decision-specific assessment of capacity to manage money, property and financial affairs.
Capacity to grant a Lasting Power of Attorney
Where the question is making an LPA, not day-to-day finances.
COP3 mental capacity assessment
For Court of Protection deputyship applications.
Nellie Supports provides independent social work assessment, evidence and advocacy support. We do not provide regulated legal advice, and where a legal remedy is needed we will say so and support your solicitor's work.
Book a property capacity assessment
Tell us about the transaction, whether a sale, purchase, transfer or gift, and we will confirm whether a standard or enhanced assessment is right, the fee, and the earliest appointment.
Written by Ben Slater, Founder and Managing Director, Nellie Supports. Read our editorial policy.