Do I have to give vehicle back or fair market value to step grand daughter
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Do I have to give vehicle back or fair market value to step grand daughter
My father n law gave my husband his
1994 f150 on 10/24 . It is now titled
in our name. He passed on 12/8. His
wife was put in nursing home and step
grand daughter is in charge of
grandmothers estate and is demanding we
bring truck back for her to sell to
deplete grandmother assets. Truck was
titled to father n law OR step mother n
law. Do we have to give truck back or
money?
Asked on December 14, 2016 under Estate Planning, Mississippi
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 7 years ago | Contributor
You don't necessarily have to give it to the step-granddaughter, but if the state (i.e. medicaid) seeks to get it to pay for her care, you'd have to give it up then. Medicaid can "look back" up to 5 years after someone applies for Medicaid to pay for a nursing home and undo ("vacate" or "void") any transactions or transfers which were not for fair market value--such as the gift of a truck to family. (If you paid him fair market value for it, they cannot due this.) They have the ability to do this to prevent people from sheltering or hiding assets by placing them with friends or family, thereby forcing the taxpayers to pay more than they should. Even if the truck was titled to him, since he died before her, it would have come to her and been an asset available to be sold for her care.
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