Wednesday, June 2, 2021

Medicaid Liens in New Jersey

We are the New Jersey title insurance agent that does it all for you. For your next commercial real estate transaction, house purchase, mortgage refinance, reverse mortgage, or home equity loan, contact us, Vested Land Services LLC. We can help!

Medicaid liens in New Jersey

If your parent owns a home in New Jersey and is a Medicaid recipient, you may be surprised to learn that the State of New Jersey has a lien on the home after your parent passes.

Per the state's information page:

Under federal and New Jersey law, the Division of Medical Assistance and Health Services (DMAHS) is required to recover funds from the estates of certain deceased Medicaid beneficiaries, or former Medicaid beneficiaries, for all payments provided through the Medicaid program for services received on or after age 55.

This is done via a lien that comes into being after the death of the recipient.

An interesting discussion can be found on the website of elder law attorney Donald D. Vanarelli, Esq. You can read it here.

We recommend that an attorney be consulted as a parent ages in order to take advantage of estate planning that may reduce the impact of the Medicaid lien, and, if your parent may have been receiving Medicaid, that you consult an attorney before you probate a Will or apply for administration.

For your real estate purchase or mortgage refinance or

if you have questions about what you see here, contact

Stephen M. Flatow, Esq.

Vested Land Services LLC

165 Passaic Avenue, Suite 101

Fairfield, NJ 07004

Tel 973-808-6130 - Fax 973-227-0645

E-mail sflatow@vested.com

@vestedland

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Monday, November 18, 2019

Medicaid and a reverse mortgage

Reverse mortgages are a popular lending vehicle that allows seniors to alleviate financial strains. Reverse mortgages take different forms, tailored to each borrower's specific needs.

But the question arises on the pages of NJMoneyHelp.com:

What happens to a reverse mortgage with Medicaid?

Q. Does recovery of a Medicaid lien on a home take precedence over a reverse mortgage? Or even a regular mortgage? I could foresee a situation where someone would take out a reverse mortgage to cash out, figuring they would be losing their home to Medicaid anyway.
— Curious

A. You’re right that people try all kinds of strategies to protect their assets from Medicaid.

But the rules surrounding Medicaid eligibility are strict, and the scenario you pose isn’t a simple one.

Regular mortgages and reverse mortgages take precedence over a Medicaid lien, said Shirley Whitenack, an estate planning attorney with Schenck, Price, Smith & King in Florham Park.

But, she said, there is a limit to the amount of equity that a person can take from a reverse mortgage.

“Moreover, reverse mortgage payments may affect a person’s eligibility for Medicaid benefits,” Whitenack said. “Mortgage payments are not counted as income as long as they are spent in the same month that they are received.”

Whitnack said the unspent balance from a lump-sum reverse mortgage, however, can result in excess resources over the Medicaid limit.

In addition, she said, if a person moves out of their home, for example, to a nursing home, the mortgage will likely come due.

You can read the above, and other columns of financial interest at NJMoneyHelp.com.