reverse mortgage, senior nursing care
Hi Terry We are trying to get my mother-in-law into a Chgo nursing home. She is 94, has alzheimer's, legally blind, deaf, chronic pain. She has no life insurance, no savings. Gets only SSI and a small VA pensions based on my father-in-laws military service. We have been paying caregivers 24/7 for the last 12 years and took a reverse mortgage on her home to help with these costs. The mortgage owed is 202m. I estimate the current value of the home, in its present condition, to be around 150m. She will need to be a medicaid patient and the nursing home is telling us we have to list the home with a realtor prior for them to qualify her as a medicaid patient. She has lived in the home for over 60 yrs and it is in no way ready for listing. There are many repairs to do and alot of sorting out. My question, is it necessary to list the home for medicaid to approve her?
Terry Says
OK, you need an elder law attorney and I will recommend one in a minute. But let me give you this overall view. You are in a "catch 22" situation. You can't move her out of the home and into a Medicaid funded nursing home until the home is "sold" and she is impoverished. And as long as she stays in the home (despite how much she owes compared to the value), the house is in her name and she can't be considered impoverished! That's the real problem. So let me ask you this: Can you afford to pay for her care in a nursing home for at least three months? (It seems that if you have been paying for round-the-clock care, you should be able to find the roughly $7,000 per month to get her into a traditional nursing facility. Let them know that Medicaid will be taking over after that. When she moves out of the house, get the RM lender to "foreclose" immediately. The minute that is done, she will be totally impoverished -- except for her SS and VA pension, which will go to the nursing home. (You know the RM lender cannot ask for anything additional as reimbursement when she moves out -- no matter how large the loan.) You will be in an awkward spot for about three months -- the time between the foreclosure on the RM loan and when Medicaid starts paying. And given the mess in Illinois, I hope it isn't longer than that! But once the notice of foreclosure is given by the RM lender, the state should be able to start its process. There is probably some additional legal work you should take care of -- including a healthcare power of attorney and a living will. You might want to consult my favorite elder law attorney in Chicago --Janna Dutton at 312-899-0950.
