It is no secret that obtaining care from a nursing home is an expensive proposition. Being a resident in these facilities can often cost many thousands of dollars a month. While some people are able to afford this cost out of pocket, others will rightly be concerned about how this treatment will impact their long-term ownership of assets.
The contracts that nursing homes use to obtain payment for their services often attach to physical property. This can even include a family home or other valuable real estate. If you can no longer pay your bill out of hand, they may place liens on this property or demand a liquidation. Consulting with our elder law attorneys could help you protect assets from a nursing home in Cranberry Township. We can work to explore your options, explain the relevant laws, and draft documents that anticipate a potential future move.
When nursing homes attempt to collect payments from residents, they make inquiries into the full extent of your assets. One simple way to avoid the possible seizure of these assets is to transfer ownership to another party. The most popular way to do this is to create a trust.
A trust functions as a way to transfer control of an asset from one party to another. As soon as an item goes into a trust, the original owner no longer owns that item. This can even apply to high-value assets such as real estate.
One possible option is to create an asset protection trust. These arrangements allow you to continue living in a home for as long as possible while transferring legal ownership to the trust. According to Pennsylvania Consolidated Statute § 7732, you can create a trust as long as you intend to do so in writing, nominate a trustee to oversee the property, and name a beneficiary to receive the property. Our Cranberry Township attorneys are prepared to discuss protecting your assets from a nursing home in greater detail.
Another option to protect a family home from a nursing home in Cranberry Township is to place that property into a life estate. This means that you become a tenant on the property while the recipient becomes the remainderman. This remainderman understands that they will take ownership of the property after your death. However, most of our clients choose trusts over life estates, and they are typically the better option.
People looking to protect their assets in the future should consider the impact that an eventual need for nursing home care will have on that property. Especially as it concerns a family home, there are many flexible and powerful estate planning options that may provide effective solutions. These solutions can help you retain the value of your property while ensuring that it moves on to your heirs after your eventual death.
Our attorneys are ready to talk with you. They may suggest the creation of trusts that allow you to continue living in your home while transferring control to another party. They may also recommend the creation of a life estate that serves a similar function. Reach out to us to learn more about protecting assets from a nursing home in Cranberry Township.
