It's a long story but the basis is 3 yrs ago my mother in her right frame of mind signed the family mineral rights over to me her only living child. Now for the get hardship emergency help I have to A) sign them back to her and sell them or B) have charges filed against me? I've done nothing wrong I help her in every financial way needed and when this was done no one this was coming. These are family mineral rights from generations back, I do not want to sell or give back. They are not money makers but they are my families.
After your Mom has assets below $2000 and income below $2000 per month....then she applies for Medicaid. (You cannot apply before you need it). Medicaid will require that 12 full months ($5000 X12 equals the $60,000 in this example) be paid before Medicaid will start picking up the bill. This is the penality period.
Doesn't matter if it is paid by you, by returning the gift and the. Selling it, or doing a go-fund-me Just, once your mom cannot pay...somehow the facility bill has to be paid until the amount of the gift is used up.
After your Mom has assets below $2000 and income below $2000 per month....then she applies for Medicaid. (You cannot apply before you need it). Medicaid will require that 12 full months ($5000 X12 equals the $60,000 in this example) be paid before Medicaid will start picking up the bill. This is the penality period.
Doesn't matter if it is paid by you, by returning the gift and the. Selling it, or doing a go-fund-me Just, once your mom cannot pay...somehow the facility bill has to be paid until the amount of the gift is used up.
O&G royalties are common enough that it was one of the ?'s on the annual renewal questionnaire that my mom got for TX Medicaid. Some states Medicaid are used to dealing with O&G. So maybe your state doesn't OR this caseworker doesn't understand how royalties are done.
If it was still moms asset it can be probably be dealt with. If this was an old, old line - unless it was a new Spindletop - it doesn't pay much in royalties as they get tapped out, usually within 30/40 years. Unless its on a new fracking field, it's value is minimal. The royalties paid if amortized annually could be well within medicaid asset & income limits.
MaxStressed, pls look at the amount paid like last 3 - 5 years, could it be within Medicaid asset / income limits? Could the payments be that mom got nothing like forever and just in the recent past it's paid a decent amount but now checks have reverted to a tiny amount?
To me, it's that a transfer was done that's the hook on this for dealing your with Medicaid. They've got you & mom in transfer penalty dead to right.
BUT if you were to gift the O&G back to mom, could she qualify?
I'd ask Medicaid in writing as to this. I bet she can & whatever royalties she gets is included in the required income copay. Then you as dpoa start to figure out how to sell it. It's probably not going to be sellable & going to be an inaccessible asset OR value so minimal you or someone in the family can buy it with little fallout for moms Medicaid.
Btw TX railroad commission has pretty informative podcasts on O&G, like what does a landman do, how are royalties determined, etc.
If you want to keep the mineral rights, get with an attorney that specializes in oil and gas development to find out the value. Then pay mom for them. The value may be negligible if there is no oil and gas development occurring in your area.
I do understand that the prospect of losing something that has been part of the fabric of your family's history is heart-rending. And perhaps there will be some way of holding on to this land.
But look at it from Medicaid's point of view. Your mother disposed of a valuable asset three years ago. Now she is unable to afford medical care, and has applied to the state for financial assistance. Surely you can see that there is justice in the policy that expects people to support themselves as far as they can before they are entitled to help from the public purse? And had your mother not gifted these mineral rights to you, she would now have a saleable asset that could be used to support her.
What sort of money are we talking about here? Would you have any way of raising funds to buy the land from your mother?