My situation is I moved in with mom 1yr ago to help her out. I transferred with my job and sold/gave away most of my belongings to fit into moms house. I moved 400 miles to help her and renting my house to a friend cheap just so I have someone I know to watch over it. I plan to go back when mom is gone. But I'm scared I could get thrown out if she ended up in a nursing home and we have to sell her house to pay for it. I don't want to go back home til she is gone. The stress is already bad enough that I don't have a home (it's hers not mine) It's been a year now, It would have been a ton easier if she came to my home. But I didn't want to take her from her home. I don't have much of my own stuff around to help feel like home or the things that would make things more convenient especially in the kitchen. Doesn't help I've never liked her house, laid out terrible and no room in kitchen she never really cooked so it didn't bother her, and bathroom is too narrow as well. But until she is gone this is where I need to be. Adding to the stress of not being home is the fear of getting thrown out if we have to sell it to pay for a nursing home and forced to pack and move in the middle of dealing with her decline or even shortly after her death before I'm ready. I know this sounds petty to most who are going thru more now, but if someone who has gone thru this can let me know and I can relax about this one thing. I came up here Dec '12 when she fractured her pelvis then this Nov '13 she had kidney failure. But she she doing very good now, Which makes me feel like I'm away from home for nothing. But I need to be here in case something happens again. Sorry this turned into a whining poor me. I know most are going thru more. Which there again makes me feel guilty.
Live in the moment! - people blithely advise. Riiiiiiiiight...
1. plan on staying at the house and caregiving for a full 2 years & 6 months with mom. You have to run this full period to benefit from the caregiver exemption to Medicaid MERP's program. The 6 months is just extra so that you cover all bases…& be able to use some of mom's money towards house costs. If you can do longer than that, then it's more $$.
Also to get the exemption, the state may require a letter from mom's doc that states that she needed the level of care you provided that kept her from a NH. So ask about that at the next doctor visit.
2. get all the information on the house that was paid for last year. Everythinbg from the mortgage, taxes, utilities, insurance, maintenance etc. As JeannieGibbs said, under Medicaid rules by & large you are allowed a house & a car. But having a house & a car is great if someone else in the family can now afford to pay for everything on the house from now to forever. Realize that Medicaid will require mom to pay all her monthly income to the NH less her personal needs allowance (from $ 30 -90 a month). This is their co-pay, or SOC (share of cost) and is required. So there will NOT be any of mom's $ to pay for anything realistically.
Now once you figure out the "nut" on the house, look hard at your finances to see if you can afford to pay all this for possibly many months or years that mom would be in a NH. Since you have another home, in many ways mom's house is like having a second (or third) home and that for most folks is not feasible financially. But if you can, then you can just continue to stay in the home, mom continues to own it (probably at lower taxes too), but you pay the nut till she dies. The mortgage stays under mom's name (I'm assuming this is a traditional mortgage - really they don't care who pay the note each month as long as it's paid, BUT if this is a reverse mortgage you can't do this under RM FHA compliance rules).
Now if you cannot afford to pay for what is required on the house, then you likely will have to sell the house eventually. To put that off as long as possible you can in the months before mom goes into a NH: use her income to pay down the mortgage as much as possible and get it cancelled asap. Utilites, maintenance you can control. but the mortgage you cannot and they will foreclose if you don't pay. If mom still has income each month, use it to do whatever you can to prepay in advance for things for the house. Medicaid is OK on mom spending her income before she goes into a NH on herself, her care or her property, so you should have no problems if mom wants to take $ to pay for roof repair, or prepay a water bill.
Some states will allow the Medicaid applicant to get a diversion of their monthly income to pay for a mortgage, etc but this seems to be done only if the house is being sold with an active listing by a Realtor (so no for-sale-by owner stuff) and for a limited period of time.
Whatever path you choose, please keep all receipts and details on all the expenses you pay on the house. Good luck and keep a sense of humor.
Thank you, karen for the info and thank you country mouse for the support.
If her only asset is the house, then she might be able to qualify, as long as her total assets (excluding the house) is less than $2,000. And as gladimhere has stated, medicaid will not impose a penalty if the house is gifted to you but you should have been residing there with her for two years providing care. Medicaid will help you pay for your mom's long term care needs.
Here is a list of government program that will help you pay for your mom's ltc expenses.This might help you: www.infolongtermcare.org/ltci-learning-center/what-is-long-term-care-insurance/government-long-term-care/
The issue will be ... someone has to pay the taxes, insurance, and mortgage (if there is one), as Mom will not have income to do that. Can you take on this financial responsibility? If so, you should not have a problem.