Personal finance and affairs

It’s an indication of how much the outlook for HIV-positive people has improved since effective treatment became available that this website includes a section providing information on mortgages and pensions. Many people diagnosed with HIV in the UK today can expect to live a near-normal lifespan, so it is important to think about a long-term financial future.

Getting a mortgage is not actually any harder if you are HIV-positive. Mortgage lenders don’t usually ask any questions about your health or HIV status. All they’re interested in is seeing that you meet the financial criteria for the mortgage you are applying for.

However, there can still be problems. You may well be asked to take out life assurance to cover the mortgage in the event of your death. Even though the prognosis for many people with HIV has improved dramatically recently, there are still very few life assurance policies that will provide cover for people with HIV. Don’t lie about your health to get life assurance cover. A better plan might be to find a mortgage lender that doesn’t require life assurance.

It’s also likely to be impossible for you to obtain heath insurance to cover your mortgage payments in the event of you becoming too ill to work. Again, don’t lie. Your claim won’t be successful and you’ll just be wasting money on premiums.

Having HIV will not be a problem if you are thinking of joining a company pension scheme or starting a personal pension plan. However, you might ask, why bother? Well, improving treatment for HIV could well mean that you live to pension age and beyond. What’s more, if you were to become ill, or even die before retirement age, the terms of your pension could mean that you still get benefits from it, such as a medical retirement pension or, in the event of your death, a payment to your partner (husband or wife, registered civil partner or specifically nominated partner who you are not in a formal, legal relationship with) or next of kin.

It’s worth getting specialist financial advice, and some financial advisers have a lot of experience of working with HIV-positive clients. Similar advice might also be available from your local HIV support organisation.

Even if you’re in perfectly good health, it makes good sense to have a will. A will is the only way of making sure that your partner, family and friends inherit your property in the way you want. Make sure you get a solicitor’s advice when drawing up your will. This will ensure that your will is valid. Although it’s not advised, especially if you want or need to make more complicated bequests, you can write your will on forms bought from stationers. Just make sure you appoint an executor (someone to look after your affairs), and that it’s signed and witnessed in the presence of two people who won’t benefit from the will.

You can find more information on making a will here.

In the UK it is now possible for same-sex couples to form civil partnerships. These provide the same rights and responsibilities as heterosexual marriage, including inheritance and next-of-kin rights.