Mississippi Administrative Code › Title 23 - Division of Medicaid › Part 103 - Resources › Chapter 3 - Non-Countable Resources › Rule 23-103-3.7 - Real Property Exclusions

Current through June 25, 2024
A. Home Property
				Exclusion.
1. An individual's home is property
				he has ownership interest in and is his principal place of residence;
				and
2. It may include the shelter
				he lives in, the land on which the shelter is located, and all buildings on the
				land.
a) A principal place of residence is the
				dwelling that an individual considers his/her principal home. It may be:
1) Real or personal property;
2) Fixed or mobile;
3) Located on land or water.
b) Example: If a person owns and
				resides in a houseboat on a lake, the boat may qualify as home
				property.
3. If a person
				owns land and intends to reside on it, it may be considered home property if
				there is no other principal place of residence. If a person owns the land, but
				not the shelter, the land is considered the residence.
a) Example: A person owns the land he lives
				on, but lives in a mobile home owned by his parents. If a person owns the
				shelter, but not the land, the shelter is the residence.
b) Example: A person owns the mobile home,
				but rents the lot on which it is located.
4. Applying the home exclusion.
a) The home exclusion applies to:
1) The shelter in which the individual
				lives;
2) All buildings on the
				property;
3) The land on which the
				shelter is located; and
4) Any land
				adjoining it as long as it is not separated by land that neither the individual
				nor spouse has an ownership interest in.
(a)
				Easements and public rights of way (utility lines, roads, etc) do not separate
				other land from the home plot.
5. Home Out-Of-State.
a) If an applicant's home property is located
				out-of-state, policy governing state residency applies.
b) It is not permissible for the individual
				to intend to return to his principal place of residence out-of-state and at the
				same time intend to reside in Mississippi.
c) If the applicant intends to return home to
				another state, he cannot be considered a Mississippi resident for Medicaid
				eligibility purposes.
d)If the
				applicant intends to reside in Mississippi, home out-of-state cannot be
				excluded as his principal place of residence.
6. Treatment of Home Property Under SSI
				Resource Policy.
a) An individual's home,
				regardless of value, is an excluded resource if the individual:
1) Resides in the home; or
2) Is absent and intends to return to the
				home.
(a) An individual is residing with her
				children due to an illness, but intends to go home when health permits The
				intent is based on the person's desire to return home.
(b) If the individual leaves the home and
				does not intend to return home to it, it is no longer considered the person's
				principal place of residence.
(i) The home
				exclusion no longer applies as of the date the individual leaves with the
				intent not to return or the date the individual no longer intends to
				return.
(ii) The month after there
				is no intent to return, the property will be considered a countable resource
				unless another exclusion develops.
b) A home can be excluded without intent to
				return, if:
1) A spouse or dependent relative
				of an institutionalized individual continues to reside in the home while the
				individual is institutionalized;
(a)
				Dependency may be financial or medical;
(b) Relatives may include child, step-child,
				grandchild, parent, step-parent, grandparent, sibling, step-sibling, half
				sibling, aunt, uncle, cousin niece, nephew, in-laws;
2) Sale of the home would cause an undue
				hardship to a co-owner due to loss of housing.
(a) Obtain a statement from the dependent
				relative or the co-owner to apply either of the above exclusions.
c) Multiple Residences.
1) Only one residence can be excluded as home
				property.
2) If there are multiple
				residences, the principal place of residence must be determined, considering
				such points as how much time is spent at each residence; where the individual
				is registered to vote; and which address the individual uses for mail and tax
				purposes.
7.
				Treatment of Home Property Under Liberalized Resource Policy.
a) Home property can be excluded regardless
				of intent to return home or whether a dependent relative lives on the
				property.
b) Each client is allowed
				one home that can be excluded regardless of its use.
c) If more than one residence is owned,
				exclude the property that would be most advantageous to the client.
d) For long term care applications filed on
				or after January 1, 2006, there is a disqualification for individuals with
				equity interest in their home of greater than $500,000. This provision will not
				prevent an individual from using a reverse mortgage or home equity loan to
				reduce the total equity interest in the home.
1) This disqualification period means that
				the homeowner who is in long term care can qualify for all Medicaid services
				except vendor payment of nursing facility services as long as equity interest
				exceeds the $50,000. limit.
2) If
				Medicaid eligibility is dependent upon participation in the HCBS waiver, the
				individual is ineligible for full Medicaid services as long as equity in the
				home exceeds the limit; however, a Medicare Savings Program can be approved if
				criteria are met.
3) Undue hardship
				can be found to exist if a lien or legal impediment exists causing the
				individual to be unable to access the equity.
8. Reverse Mortgages.
a) A reverse mortgage is an agreement in
				which a lending company:
1) Makes a lump sum
				(subject to being counted as a resource the month following month of
				receipt);
2) Available line of
				credit (subject to being counted as a resource the month following month of
				receipt; or
3) Regular payments
				(treated as loan proceeds) to a homeowner during a specific period of
				time.
b) The amount of
				payment is determined by the amount of equity the homeowner has in the
				home.
c) The homeowner is allowed
				to remain in the home until his/her death. At that time, the home is sold
				and/or the lender is repaid.
d)
				Reverse mortgages are available to homeowners age 62 or older who own a
				debt-free or nearly debt-free home.
e) Funds received from a reverse mortgage in
				any form that are transferred, either in the month of receipt or subsequent
				months, are subject to a transfer penalty unless an allowable exception applies
				(such as spousal transfers).