Medicaid allows for this, and that's great news because I have health issues and I only have a part-time job. But do I become owner of the house? And if not, who helps pay for the house's upkeep and the taxes? I'm just wondering if this is going to become more of a burden on me than a blessing because I can't afford a $4,000 annual tax bill. Also, mom didn't make timely repairs on the house so there's tons of work that needs to be done. Am I getting myself more into a money pit than anything else?
You might start by calling the assessors office in your county and ask if you are entitled to any discount on the taxes.
If I owned the house by myself, I might sell it and move, but so far I have chosen to stay b/c I have enjoyed being "the keeper" of the family home and I enjoy my involvement in the community. I live on a low level of Social Security payments, so paying to stay in this home leaves me nothing extra, but as my husband used to say, "You have to live somewhere."
In my life I have lived many "somwhere's" including many years being homeless or living in a van or motor home. Maybe my willingness to spend most of my resources to live in this house is because this is b/c this is a satisfying new stage for me.
Excuse my digression into my own life. You get me started when you wondered if taking on a house was expensive. Yes, it is!
You say that your Mom is on medicaid. How she can then afford 4,000 in taxes is beyond me. She cannot due to spend down. So there is also that. If you cannot afford the taxes it is difficult to imagine how you can inherit the house also.
I would use this time to save like mad. Just save like crazy. There are ways to live VERY INEXPENSIVELY. My bro lived in a trailer home he bought for 30,000 end of his life (it appreciated to 100,000 at sale due to his improvements. His monthly space and utilities were 600 a month in So. Cal, so I would be the first to tell you you can live in a wonderful space inexpensively still with a lot of research on that on your part. Meanwhile, it is imperative you SAVE like crazy and become as informed as you are able. Sure wish you good luck. Right now you are a caretaker of the property and somehow family, the POA, is going to have to come up with a way to pay taxes if Mom cannot. As she is on Medicaid I assume she cannot.
You and your siblings need to use some of mom's money to consult an eldercare attorney to set up a caregiver contract for you (if that's what you want to do) or decide how to ease mom into a facility and get the house sold.
I hope that you have applied for low cost/Section 8 housing in your area and consulted with a caseworker about food stamps, job training programs and the like.
If you ENJOY caregiving, look into getting CNA training and you will be able to choose your job; there is a huge shortage right now.
"...medically necessary care..."
If it isn't NH type care needed and/or provided during the 2 years, they can deny.
It doesn't appear that mom has been approved yet - no indication application for Medicaid has even been made.
Since mom has both a pension AND SS, she may be disqualified just on income alone. Need isn't the only deciding factor.
There are sticking points on the NEED for NH as well. Would mom qualify? We don't know (nor does OP) yet.
Consult is highly recommended. The atty may be able to work some "magic", but we certainly can't.
A lot of confusing/conflicting information has been provided by others, including me, but until everything is laid out legally, none of what we post, other than consulting expertise, is of a lot of use.
I would say that even IF mom qualifies and all other pieces fall into place, trying to own this home, low taxes or not, is going to be a huge challenge on $1k/month income. IF all repairs could be done by family or at the lowest cost possible, that will likely raise the taxes too, so damned if you do, damned if you don't! Repairs done before resolving ownership are also dicey. IF no transfer of ownership or guarantee Medicaid isn't going to step in and require repayment of NH costs after mom's passing, those repair costs will most likely be eaten by whoever pays them.
Too many IFs in this whole scenario.
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