Protecting the Home Property When You Enter a Nursing Home

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When someone enters a nursing home, it is likely that they own both exempt assets and countable resources. The countable resources must be consumed down to a certain limit ($2,000 for a single person) prior to Louisiana Long Term Care Medicaid eligibility. Exempt assets are not counted for purposes of initial Medicaid eligibility. The home is an exempt asset. So, it's important to understand the Medicaid definition of the home, under what circumstances you can transfer the home out of your name, and whether Medicaid will have Estate Recovery rights when you die.

In general, the home is described as property in which someone has an ownership interest and that serves as his or her principal
place of residence. Home property includes: the house or lot which is the usual residence, all contiguous property, and any other buildings on the home property. Property is contiguous to the residence if it is touching the residential property (even corner to corner) and is not separated by property owned by others. Property separated by a public right of way, such as a road, is considered contiguous.

If a person, in 2018, has more than $572,000 of equity in their home, then the excess in not exempt. If they own a home out of state, then, generally, it is not exempt. And if you list your home for sale, then it is no longer an exempt asset.

In certain circumstances, one can transfer their home to another person prior to applying for Medicaid, without incurring penalties. This is important because if you take the home out of your estate, then Medicaid will not have estate recovery rights when you die.

You can transfer your home to a child who is blind or permanently and totally disabled as defined by SSI at the time of the transfer. You can also transfer your home to a child, without penalty, if the child is age 21 or over, is not blind or permanently and totally disabled, was residing in the home for at least two years
immediately before the date the individual became institutionalized, and provided care to the individual allowing the individual to reside at home, rather than in an institution.

A note exists to the above exception that provides:
The exception must be documented by written statement
from physician indicating his/her knowledge that during the
preceding two years, the individual’s child was present in the
home as the primary care giver and if not for the care
provided by the child the individual would have required care in an institution (nursing home).

Finally, if the home is in your name when you die, it will be part of your Louisiana Succession and thus, subject to Louisiana Estate Recovery rights. People often thing the home is "home-free" because it is an exempt asset. However, after a Medicaid recipient dies, if the home is in the recipient's Louisiana Succession, then Medicaid can seek reimbursement from the Succession, forcing the Succession to sell the home to pay the Succession debt.

This post is for informational purposes only and does not provide legal advice. Please do not act or refrain from acting based on anything you read on this site. Using this site or communicating with Rabalais Estate Planning, LLC, through this site does not form an attorney/client relationship.

Paul Rabalais
Louisiana Estate Planning Attorney
www.RabalaisEstatePlanning.com
Phone: (225) 329-2450

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