Elder Law Answers
Are My Mother's Payments for Repairs on Our House a Medicaid Gift If She Lives in the House with Us?
- April 9th, 2019
Q
My mother deeded her house to my sister and me more than seven years ago, meaning that the transfer is no longer within Medicaid’s look-back period. My family moved into her home approximately four years ago to help her and try to keep her in the home as long as possible (she has dementia). My question is: the home has needed repairs over the years, and we have always used her money for the repairs. Will this be considered a gift since we own the home and are living in it with her?
A
Yes, you can probably expect your mother’s payments for repairs to your house to be treated as a gift. You might argue that she made these payments in lieu of paying for her room and board. A written agreement in this regard would have been helpful (don’t write one up after the fact now since that would look self-serving), but you could make the argument in any case. Of course, this is assuming that these were minor repairs, not replacing a kitchen or adding a room or a pool out back.
For more information about Medicaid's asset transfer rules, click here.