Question:

My adult son and I were the caregivers of his mother’s mother for a couple years before her dementia got bad enough that she needed to be put in long term care. This was last November and my son and I have been living in the home of his grandmother since. There was no legal designation for either of us as legal caregivers. One of her daughters got power of attorney just before we put her mother in a nursing home. Now it’s nearly a year later and she is moving into the home and my adult son and I fear she will ask us to leave. Can my son and I stay on her property until his grandmother’s passing because we were her caregivers for years?

Response:

Unfortunately, the care you provided gives you no legal rights to stay in the house. However, your son may have some rights. I take it from what you say that your son’s mother has passed away. If that’s the case, your son (along with his siblings, if any) would likely succeed to her rights.

But what are those rights? Technically, none right now. The house belongs to his grandmother and must be managed by her daughter in the grandmother’s best interest.

The next question is what would that be. You and your son should have a strong argument that, given the care you provided, she would want you to be able to stay in the house.

After his grandmother dies, your son’s rights will depend on whether his grandmother wrote a will. If she did, the will would govern. Without a will, the house would pass under the rules of intestacy, which probably gives your son (along with his siblings, if any) the same interest as his aunt and any other aunts and uncles. If the grandmother’s care is being paid by Medicaid, the state also may have a claim to recover its expenses from the equity in the house.

 

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