First I’m 52, a triple amputee, blind in my left eye and live alone in rural Arizona. I have full Medicare and Medicaid benefits thankfully.
My mother was my caregiver until she had a stroke in 2011. She owns the house legally and put me in her will as sole beneficiary. She now lives in an assisted living place and I live in the home alone.
Recently I received a letter from the government that said they were putting a lien on the home, I had previously been told that this would not happen because of my disability.
Does my mother or myself have any rights regarding this issue? Is there anything I can do? I’d like to continue living here but unfortunately have nothing to offer an attorney other than a sad story..
Any helpful advice appreciated as if they take my mother's modified home from me I will no longer be able to live independently.
Sincerely,
Sebastian
TODDs transfer on death, but beneficiaries are subject to cure any Encumbrances on the property
Who is mom's POA?
citing BarbBrooklyn's post, TEFRA Lien stands for Tax Equity and Financial Responsibility Act, "or pre-death liens [which/can] occur when the recipient is permanently institutionalized. "
Since you're not institutionalized, I'm not sure I see the applicability of this. But I confess that I don't have a lot of time to research the entire issue, especially w/o more information on the wording of the lien document.
However, if you read the second paragraph of the above cite, it appears as though this may be a pre-emptory action to ensure that no assets are disposed of prior to your death.
Another "however", though, since you're not yet owner, I'm not sure why this lien has been filed against you. Or, was it against your mother? Who's named in the lien? You or her? This is key to interpretation and effect.
I have the impression this is a lien against the property for your mother's Medicaid assistance, not yours, and further since you're not owner, you have an anticipated, vs. actual interest in the property.
Can you call your brother and get more specifics on the lien and share them with us?
When you have that information, these references might be helpful:
https://www.azag.gov/seniors/resources-for-seniors
https://arizona.myresourcedirectory.com/index.php/component/cpx/?task=search.query&view=&page=1&search_history_id=47312917&unit_list=0&akaSort=0&query=%20&simple_query=&code=PX-1850.4000,
with information on contacts: AARP and AAA.
The third - sixth hits may be of help to you.
Anyway - one of the things that certain sections of the press were bursting their editorial blood vessels about was that the contractor hired to run the screening process was American (read - cold-hearted capitalist skinflints, à la George Clooney in Up In The Air; I apologise but I'm sure it won't be the first time you've heard the stereotype). I assume this company did have some experience of the assessments??! - but perhaps not as a government contractor, then.
Can anyone confirm - I thought there were exemptions from Medicaid recovery when the Medicaid recipient's child is also dependent on the Medicaid recipient through disability and has been resident in the home since (whenever)?
But anyway - given the level of your disability and the modifications that have been made to this home to allow you to live independently, I can't imagine Medicaid wanting to kick you out - you'd cost them a lot more anywhere else!
Found it!!
Call your local Area Agency on Aging on behalf of your mother. They may be able to point you to a pro bono legal service or legal clinic that can straighten this out for you.
Do you have a caseworker, or does mom have a Medicaid caseworker? S/he may be a source of clarifying information.
If the Title Company confirms it’s valid, they can provide you/mom with lien holders information so you/mom can contact them directly. I wish your current health and disabilities mattered but it’s not your home, it’s hers. You’re not on the Title so you’re simply a beneficiary of whatever equity is left upon her passing. Liens can be paid so don’t fret until you have all the information,. Please just make certain it’s valid before anyone moves, signs anything, or gets more grey hair.
Its a damn shame people prey on others homes, they got my x MIL to sign over her entire home to them, people visited and entered and had the paperwork, she failed to tell me thinking she’d done something wrong, They were aggressive and sounded legitimate to her.
Start with a Title Company before calling any numbers on that notice. Get the lien holders information and proceed from there with The Who, why, how to remedy.. Liens are serious and should be taken as such so don’t ignore it, but get the facts. I find it strange that no notices were sent prior to lien being placed! That’s my first red flag.
Please contact a senior center or legal aid to help you and get some answers....blessings to you!
1. I would take any lien very seriously. Liens can accrue interest and become substantial liabilities, decreasing the equity value in the home, reducing the eventual sale profits.
Liens do have to be discharged before property can be sold.
2. Depending on the type of lien, they CAN be foreclosed. This is a good explanation on foreclosure of various types of liens:
https://www.alllaw.com/articles/nolo/foreclosure/enforcement-non-mortgage-liens.html
3. A lien for property taxes is subject to time constraints, depending on the jurisdiction. E.g., if an unpaid tax lien remains unpaid for that specific time frame, the taxing jurisdiction can acquire title and may be able to dispose of the property.
This has been a serious issue for people who have ignored tax liens and found their once valuable property sold for the lien value plus interest. AARP Bulletin has addressed this issue periodically. Some folks have been appalled that a local taxing authority has acquired their house for a fraction of its market value.
4. Lien priority is an issue in the decision to foreclose, as well as the disposition of the lien.
https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/what-is-lien-priority.html
5. Different states have different lien laws. What might be required in one state might not be in another (i.e., mechanic's liens and requirement for what's known as "perfecting" the lien.
It is not my intention to criticize or repudiate anyone else's post, but I do think CrippledGuy needs to be aware that this is a serious issue and needs to be addressed quickly, by legal counsel if necessary.
CG, I'm definitely not trying to frighten you, just to alert you.
You might want to do some research on whether there are (a) legal aid groups that assist people in need and/or (b) pro bono attorneys who provide work to qualified clients, on a gratis basis.
Additionally, your state may have a legal agency that provides free information to elders, or perhaps to people with challenges. I've gotten good advice from the Elder Law Agency of Michigan.
My concern is that the home remains in your mom's name...and here is where legal advice is imperative. Even though you are the beneficiary, this does not protect you to inherit the home. And if you are on Medicaid ownership could be in peril for you. With that, I am now out of my league........and hope you can speak to someone capable to guide you through the legal hoops. Good luck to you.
And another alleged flipper called to inquire about my father's house, which surprised me as there's no way he could know to call me unless a neighbor told him. Coincidentally, he sounded just like someone with a different name who called about my house a few days ago.
I asked him for his company's name, whether or not there was an LLC involved (there was), and then told him that to even consider his stated flipping interest I would require (a) a financial report on him and on the owner of the company as well as (b) a Dun & Bradstreet report on the LLC. Poor guy; he had no idea what I was talking about.
I traced the LLC to an iffy sounding outfit that searches for homes to convert to rentals. Low class outfit too; one of the seminars was titled "WTF is a lease option". I wouldn't consider dealing with anyone using that vernacular.
What I think is that some aggressive pretend realtors are contracting soliciting for homes to boiler room operations, perhaps using immigrants as the dual personality one who called me could barely speak English, and clearly had difficulty understanding it.
(I couldn't help wondering if some of them are using migrants and exploiting them.)
But I'd like to know more about the alleged lien.
Questions:
From which governmental department, SPECIFICALLY, did the letter originate?
Was there any indication what the lien was for, the amount, and the rationale?
Was the purpose of notifying you to provide remedies to avoid the lien? If so, what did the letter advise being done?
Was the letter addressed to you, as occupant, or to your mother, as owner?
Do you still have documentation addressing a non lienable home due to your disability? And are there any documents you have addressing the issue of your residing there even though your mother owns the home?
Do you have a caseworker who helped you get disability, and are you still in contact with her/him?
I echo FF's concern about potential scammers. This is a very valid reason to confirm with the alleged government entity ASAP.
Most of the Senior Centers in my area have visiting attorneys once or biweekly; they provide limited advice, generally on nonspecific topics, but it's worth considering. Someone might be able to give you a lead to an attorney who could help you pro bono (w/o a fee).
But, first, please provide more information on the letter. It seems that if they notified you of intent, there would be options to remedy whatever the issue is. If they had notified you that a lien was placed already, that's a different story.
I'll look forward to more information from you on this unsettling issue.
Nextly it is important to my mind that you have some legal advice. I understand you have nothing to pay them but your good heart, so it is crucial that you get hooked up with some legal aid. Call your medicaid caseworker first to get hooked in to some help. Then call everyone everywhere you can think of, even to the churches in your area. I know that certain Senior Centers can hook you up with legal aid. You do have a need to know now. I am assuming that your taxes are being paid. That is a big one.
Wishing you good luck. Hope some of our legal eagles will weigh in as they often have good advice.
If there are back taxes or not, please be careful of scammers who use tax files to find houses where the owner hadn't pay their real estate taxes or if the owners are elderly, thus the scammers will send out a lien to the property owner using a letter that resembles a local government letterhead. Thus the owner will be paying the scammers and not the local government.
Call your local government [don't use any telephone numbers on the letter as if this is a scam, you will get the scammers jerry-rigged phone number] to see if they had infact sent you a letter about a lien.
Now as to what happens when ownership changes due to the death of the legal owner I cannot say. You may have to find some way of paying the debt.
Just calm down and start looking for a senior legal service in your area that can provide you with the answers.
Here in Nevada this service is called Senior Citizen's Law Project.
It may a simple but scary error on the part of a recent hire clerk.
Good luck and best wishes.
I take it that your mom is in Medicaid and that they are paying for AL?
I think the way it works is that Medicaid places a lien on your mom's home. The lien dies not mean that you are losing your home. It means that you can't sell the home without satisfying the lien.
Do you have a Medicaid caseworker? I would ask that person about the condition of the lien.
Never mind, doesn't matter. Don't panic: have you called the people who sent the letter to query it?
I am so sorry you are going through this experience.