in ok, my home was deeded to me 3 1/2 wks before grmom appld for medcaid, i am the cosigner will i lose it?

Question

my family has been living in house for the seven years since mortgage was taken out and paying the mortgage as I am the cosigner; never meant to be fraud, just didnt need ex husband causing problems as he is a major mental case and a worm when it comes to anything legal

Answer 1

At the very best, a home given away three weeks before the owner applies for medicaid looks fishy.

I wouldn't be surprised if you and your grandmother are audited. Sounds like fraud to me.

Answer 2

First a mortgage doesn't have a "co-signer". You are a co-borrower with your grandmother, meaning both of you owe the mortgage company, both of you own the house, both of you are on the deed at the recorders office. Therefore, the house can't be "deeded to you" you all ready own it. I think what you may be refering to is a "Quit Claim Deed", which is not ANYTHING THAT WILL TRANSFER OWNERSHIP, IF THERE IS A MORTGAGE, OR LEIN ON THE PROPERTY. A Quit Claim is a document that states, "I no longer have a financial or vested interest in... " (address, legal description, or some other identifing factor" It does not "give away", or even sell the "ownership factor". You can put down a $1.00 as the "selling price", but UNLESS THE PROPERTY IS ONLY WORTH A 1.00, NO WHERE IS THAT GOING TO BE CONSIDERED A "VALID CONSIDERATION". Consideration is the amount of "money" that something was bought or sold for.
With regard to Medicad, the rules are pretty simple accross the nation: Your assets can't be worth more than XX amount. This amount varies from state to state, so you have to review the guidlines on the forms/application for your GMother.
What will happen is also very clear cut: If the value of the home, your GMother portion, (if title is not held as "tenents by the entirities", or "joint tenancy") will be viewed as her "assets" and if she is under that states limit then she will be approved, or they will request prior to approval that she "liquidate" her share to help pay for her portion of the states expenses. If you and her are joint tenents, then the value of the home to her is the same to you, 100% and if that value exceeds their guidlines then she wont be approved. Because you are already on the title and the quit claim deed was created to avoid the assets requirements within a 6month period (most states) then she will simply be denied coverage. This includes selling the home to anyone within a 6month period. The calculations are pretty square:
loan balance 100,000
sales price 100,000
0 profit, wont fly, real estate does not depreciate even in depressed economies.
If you even attempt to try this, do not be surprised that the SServices will petition the courts to assess this properties "real market value", and then you may have to prove that a certain percentage of the "capital gain" is yours, not your GMother's. This will have to be done with "proof" that your money paid a portion of every payment, if not all of them.
You are not going to lose the home, but you had better not attempt to push the issue if GMother is denied Medicaid. If you do, then it is possible not only will you lose the home, but you could be prosecuted for fraud... GMother too...

Answer 3

You very well may lose it. They have the right to go back up to 2 years in reviewing assets previously owned by the individual applying for state aid. If it shows that you paid fair market value for the home, then it won't be a problem. However, your grandmother would need to show that she has the money from the sale. Or, she will need to show that that money was used for some purpose. The state may have the home appraised and determine a fair market value for you to pay if you want to keep the house.

Answer 4

The lookback period is for 5 years, and the government will look at any transfers of property during the 5 year period before Grandmother applied for medicaid.

Since the transfer happened 3 1/2 weeks before she applied for medicaid, the state will be legally entitled to the house.

Why should our tax dollars go to pay for your grandmother's care when she had assets that should have been used to pay for her care? That money should be used for her care. It doesn't matter that she wanted the house to go to you.

It is fraud, and you risk being prosecuted for your role in the fraud.

Edited to add:
Was your name on the deed at all prior to just before Grandmother went to the nursing home?

Answer 5

Possibly. Rule is 12 months, meaning you can apply after 13 months. They check only back for 12 months.

Answer 6

Grasp the idea of putting a sentence together. It looks like it was a scam to beet the system.

Answer 7

yes! they can go back up to 5 years! i dont like it but it happens!