My father died last October and my family and I have since moved in to care for my mother who has alzheimers disease. She put her house in my name on 1/30/03. We would like to sell this house in the next 6 months and move into a bigger place. How long am I accountable for the money from the sale of the home? I am hoping to care for my mother until she passes away. What will happen if I have to put her in a nursing home in the future? She can not afford one and neither can we. Will I have to come up with the money from the sale of the home?
I live in Ohio

Thanks for your help!
Marie

Marie your question is a great one and one that many of my clients have but, unfortunately I can't answer it because you are in Ohio. The law in Florida and Ohio may and very probably does, differ signifcantlty, especially in regards to how the home is dealt with. My advice is to contact an Ohio elder law attorney and pose your question to him or her. Getting good adivce on your questions in relation to your local law is critical. If your situation was in Florida I could be much more helpful.

Thanks for participating in our support group. If you are not participating in a "live" group in your area I strongly encourage you to do so. Call your local Alzheimer's Assoc. chapter for some referrals.

Sean.

Does Florida law allow the primary residence to be passed to the children as part of the deceased parents estate? (this is my understanding) Or does Medicaid force the house to be sold and the proceeds used to 'repay' Medicaid? A friend in Tennessee told me they were forced to sell the residence under Tennessee law.

Regards,

gatortc

TC

Gatortc, Florida's constitution says that the home of the person who dies will go to the blood related heirs WITHOUT any creditor's claim sticking to it. Medicaid is a creditor at the time of death, any claim they try to assert against the house will fail. This is called Constitutional Homestead Protection from Creditor Claims. This protection is unique to Florida and all but one or two other states. That is why the situation in Tennessee is so different as reported by your friend.

The home can not be forced to be sold to pay creditors in Florida.

Hope this helps.

Sean.

Sean,
Thanks for your reply back in March. One more question for you. I have heard there may be a way the house can be passed directly to the heirs and bypassing the usual probate process. If so, what can we
do to set it up that way?

Regards,

Gatortc

There is a way to situate the home to pass to the heirs without going through probate and without Medicaid asserting a lien. It will require a special kind of life estate deed. Be VERY careful here...this deed MUST be done by an attorney familiar with Medicaid and its transfer prohibitions.

Sean: Does your above March 25, 2004 post still apply? Is it still true, after recent legistation, that "Florida's constitution says that the home of the person who dies will go to the blood related heirs WITHOUT any creditor's claim sticking to it. Medicaid is a creditor at the time of death, any claim they try to assert against the house will fail. This is called Constitutional Homestead Protection from Creditor Claims. This protection is unique to Florida.".

Thanks for your help,
Matt

Hi Matt. Yes, even in the face of the new law, the protection still stands. The new rules regarding the valuation of the home, limiting its value to $500,000 may have some influence, this however remains to be seen. Generally speaking, the home still cannot be touched.

By the way...I see that you signed on as a guest. Please take a moment and sign up as a member. It helps us to track the number of people who are participating in the group. Thanks.