Elder Law News

Are you a nature lover who is the owner of acres of undeveloped land, looking for ways to preserve it and provide a community benefit? It could be property that you also live on, or land that you use just for recreation. Perhaps the idea of selling to a developer makes you unhappy. Even if you are planning to preserve the land for lifetime benefit of your heirs, there are ways you can preserve...

With costs of nursing home care skyrocketing, aging middle class couples who saved for their golden years find that their savings start to vanish when one spouse needs 24/7 care. The community spouse may have many years of good health ahead of her, but could face poverty and dependency if she does not plan things out for Medicaid to take over the cost of her beloved’s care. Careful...

When talking with your attorney about your new Will, be sure to find out if any of the assets is an IRA – an Individual Retirement Account —  and be sure to check out your current beneficiary designations. Tax-deferred IRA accounts typically have beneficiaries designated by the account owner so that upon death of the IRA owner, the account will be transferred to one or more people...

Deeds for real estate are recorded at the county clerk’s office to “put the world on notice” as to who owns the property. If you and your parents are talking about transferring the home, it would be a good idea to first order a title search through a Title Insurance Company to confirm the state of the title and the absence of liens. Suppose that your great aunt owned a house...

When a person is moving into a nursing home for long-term care, there are many papers that are presented to them by the admissions office. While the resident has many federally-protected rights once they move in, at the time of entry the facility is asking them to sign a Contract which can be enforced in court. You should ask your elder law attorney to review the contract before you sign it,...

When a person applies for Medicaid to pay for long-term care services, his resources must be less than a specific amount, which is generally $2,000 if the gross monthly income is less than $2,130, and $4,000 if the income is higher than that. “Resources” and “income” are treated differently. If the applicant owns an annuity contract, it may be counted as an excess...

Generally speaking, if a Medicaid applicant made gifts of assets during the 5-year look-back preceding her Medicaid application, eligibility will be denied for a period of time called a “transfer penalty.” There is a special exception to this rule for transfers that were made to disabled children.   In this case , M.C. v. Union County Div. Soc. Serv. And DMAHS, HMA- 8967-2013, the...

I love to see these types of stories of finding love in assisted living or other senior community setting.  Many times, our clients have developed new relationships in nursing homes or assisted living.  They may even want to get married!  It’s so romantic, but as attorneys, we have to look past the romance and see how a new spousal relationship will affect the individuals’ estate...

We have a lot of clients who are caring family members of incompetent parents or other relatives.  Frequently, these clients want to be the guardians for their relatives so that important decisions can get made:  medical and treatment decisions, financial (including public benefits), and residential.  Sometimes, the guardian lives out of state–that’s ok, though it may lead to more...

Very happy to hear about this program from the New Jersey Chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association that provides a one-time only $1000 “scholarship” to caregivers who need respite from caregiving for their spouses or other loved ones.  These monies can be used toward home health aide time or a stay in assisted living for the loved one short-term.  One scholarship per family,...