Will Medicaid claim the home that my family is living in after my grandparents pass?

Modernbaloney asked...

i am hoping to find an answer for this rather mundane issue, though i have looked everywhere, none of the resolutions pertain to my situation.

So i am living in a household of 5 people including myself (my mother, cousin and both grandparents) in california. the house is under both my grandparent's names and they are not done paying off the mortgage yet. Both of them have medi-cal and medicaid.

My question is, when both of them pass away, will medicaid claim the home and leave my mother, cousin and myself out of a place to live?

Expert Answer

Barbara Steinberg is the CEO and founder of BLS Eldercare Financial Solutions, which specializes in helping families pay for long-term care for their loved ones. A registered financial gerontologist, she speaks regularly on the topic of paying for long-term care and is a financial expert for Caring.com.

First, let's look at the situation from a Medicaid point-of-view. If your mother has lived in her parents' house and taken care of them for at least 2 years, your mother may retain ownership of the house. There must be documentation proving that your mother's permanent address is the house and that she cared for her parents.

The stickler is that your grandparents have a mortgage. If the title to the house is transferred to your mother, the existing mortgage will become due (unless it can be assigned). If your mother cannot pay off the mortgage, she will need to get a new mortgage in her name.

Medicaid doesn't take anyone's home. They put a lien on the property so that when it is sold, the government gets reimbursed for the money spent for your granparents' care.