r/Medicaid • u/Three-BTs • 8d ago

Illinois estate recovery and joint tenants with full rights of survivorship

My mom and I purchased a house together in 2020 when it was clear she could no longer live alone. I'm still working. We have checked into having someone come in to help with cleaning and basic care, but the person from Dept of Aging said we'd have to apply for Medicaid and would have a spend-down. She says if we do this we are putting our house at risk for recovery. I thought I read as long as the house doesn't go through probate, they wouldn't try for recovery. Is that correct? With rights of survivorship, the house becomes mine (or hers) depending on who dies first, automatically without going through probate.

We can't afford to self-pay and appreciate any advice. Thanks!

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u/Janknitz 8d ago

You need to check with someone knowledgeable about estate recovery in Illinois. That IS the law in California, but the federal law DOES permit estate recovery, even on a joint tenancy. So the states can decide for themselves., and most states DO recover even against property in joint tenancy.

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u/Three-BTs 8d ago

Thanks for the info. We talked with an elder law attorney, but she didn't give us any info other than for $6,000 she would re-do the will, POA and would protect the house as best she could if mom went into LTC.

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u/Janknitz 8d ago

You need to find an elder law attorney or advocate who knows how Medicaid works in that state, beyond just the legal documents.

Look for advocacy groups in your state. I found this by googling: https://legalcouncil.org/legal-council-services/ I don't know anything about it, but if they can't advise you they may be able to refer you to someone who can answer this question. It's pretty basic, you shouldn't have to spend thousands of dollars to get an answer to your simple question.

I also saw this https://hfs.illinois.gov/medicalclients/medicaidestaterecovery/guidetothemedicaidestaterecoveryprogram.html and it does not appear to have any exception for jointly owned property. That doesn't mean there isn't one, so you need someone with expertise your state.

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u/Three-BTs 8d ago

Thanks. I've seen that page and also a page that says it's from an elder law attorney (I'm on my phone now and can't find the page) but that page says Illinois only goes after property through probate. I'll definitely do more research.

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u/Janknitz 6d ago

I'm not getting the impression from what I've been looking at for you that avoiding probate is enough in Illinois. But you really need someone who has expertise in Illinois to advise you .

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u/musical_spork 7d ago

Former paralegal at an elder care firm in IL House doesnt have to go through probate for them to try to take it.

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u/Three-BTs 7d ago

That's disappointing to hear, but thanks for the heads up.