What should be done in the following situation?

Question

My girlfriend's mother is elderly, disabled and in poor health. She is concerned that if she ever needs to go into a nursing home that her house will be taken to pay for it. She would like to place my girlfriend on the deed now in order to prevent that as she is already in the will to get the home. Will this help just adding her to the deed? This is something that is bothering her greatly and I would like to help them get this settled so she can relax.

Answer 1

She needs to see an attorney for complete estate planning advice. The best way to handle this situation would be a trust. If she just wanted to place the daughter on the deed you probably would want to give the mother a life estate with the remainder to the daughter. There are possible tax ramifications and creditor issues that must be dealt with so you really should see an attorney to ensure it is done properly.

Best of luck to you.

Answer 2

If the mother's name is on the house, and the girlfriend is not living in the house, then they will still be able to require that the house be sold or half of the proceeds will be able to go to the care of the mother.

A couple of things you need to know. The mother can sell the house to the GF or transfer ownership, but if she needs medical care/assistance in the next 3 years (I am not sure but I think it is 3) then they can STILL go after part of the house as the mother was "attempting to hide her assets"

The good news is that after several years, then this threat would pass. Keep in mind as a citizen who pays taxes that what happens if the house is not sold to pay for the mother's care -- all of us citizens pay more taxes to pay for that care.

The best thing that the mother could do would be to sell the house now to the daughter for a reasonable amount (close to the actual value) She could then invest the money to help care for her when she does need care. If the mother ever gets "stuck" with medicaid level care -- it is very uncomfortable for them -- better to pay for better care. She may want to purchase nursing home insurance or something like that -- depending on the level of her house.

No matter what you do, one of the first things you need to do is go to your local Area Agency on Aging to find the materials they have. They have materials that address these specific issues and can be of great assistance to you, your girlfriend and her mother.

Answer 3

She can do a quit claim deed and give the house to her daughter. She will no longer own it at that point and it will not be considered her asset. However, if her mother owns jewelry, antiques, a car, or anything of real value, then Social Security will consider those assets as well.

A will may tell the court that her mother wants all property given to family, but depending on what the laws of your state are, a will may not avoid what is called probate. Probate is when the court gets involved to take care of how a person's estate is distributed after they die. In probate the court will take the will into consideration, but it the will be one factor in addition to the laws of the state.

If someone comes along to contest the will, they can fight it in court.

The best way to assure that all property passes to whomever the deceased wants without her heirs having to pay court costs is to create a living trust. After that is created the living person transfers everything---house, checking account, and other assets, to the living trust. The living person specifies WHO is part of the trust. If she wants her daughter to be part of it and be able to sign checks for her mom, she can add that.

Likewise, if the living person wants to delete someone from the trust, she can do that too.

If the home is owned by a living trust then when your girlfriend's mom dies the house is still owned by the trust, to which your girlfriend is a part. The trust hasn't "died" when the mom dies, therefore the house doesn't have to get involved with the court system at all.

The only thing your girlfriend has to worry about at that point is paying the mortgage and taxes.

However, if the mom doesn't want that house called her asset she still has to quit claim it over to her daughter.

I am only stating here what I had read about the process. I'm not a lawyer.

For more information call Social Security. They can tell you and give you a brochure on exactly what they consider assets.

To find out how to create a living trust go to the links below.

Please consult with a lawyer. You can do it yourself at www.legalzoom.com, but you need to find out what the laws are in your state first.

I had a cousin who didn't want to go into a nursing home because Social Security said they would have to take his house. It does happen. I wish I had known about all of this back then. He could have quit claimed the house to a relative who was living there in his area and then he'd be free and clear. As it was, he decided to stay in his home and paid someone to come in and care for him everyday.

He died in his home without a will and I think the little house ended up being owned by the state. Many people are afraid to plan for death, but we all die. We all need to learn to face it with wisdom.

Answer 4

Adding your GF to the house title/deed will not solve the problem. Her Mother would still have part ownership. Bills will still need to be paid. Giving property away to avoid paying the bills will not work. Someone still has to pay them.

Answer 5

I think if she puts her name on the deed it should take care of it for her. Maybe she should get in touch with a lawyer. If the house is paid off then take the mothers name completly off the house

Answer 6

Yeah my parents are also signing the house over in my name. tell her mom she better hurry b/c it hink they house needs to be in her name for 5 or 10 years. she just cant do it and then go to the Nursing home.