The following general rules are applicable.
Value of
resources must be established by objective measurement. In some instances,
it is possible for a piece of property to have no market value if
it can be established that the property cannot be sold for any price.
A statement that the property is not saleable due to a specific condition
from one or more knowledgeable sources (i.e., bankers, realtors, etc.)
in the applicable geographic area could be used for this purpose.
Such condition should be reviewed at each redetermination to ascertain
if there have been any changes and to adjust the value, if appropriate.
It is also possible that a client may own a marketable piece of property
with no equity value such as when encumbrances exceed the market value.
In either instance, the property shall be deemed to have no value.
Resources
must be available. Resources are considered available when an applicant/recipient
has a legal interest therein and the legal ability to make them available.
A resource shall be considered
unavailable when there is a legal impediment that precludes the
disposal of the resource. A legal impediment is a barrier to a
person’s ability to use or enforce some rights in property or
at law. Property is considered unavailable due to legal impediment
if the individual does not have the legal right to access property
and the property cannot be sold on the open market or, for non-cash
property, converted to cash. The refusal or failure of an individual
to take actions to make property available, if within the individual’s
legal rights to do so, does not constitute a legal impediment.
For food assistance, also see 5200(6)(c).
An example of a legal impediment may include property
held pending final action by a court, such as in a divorce proceeding
or boundary dispute as the individual does not have access to
such assets. However, the refusal of a joint owner to sell property
does not constitute a legal impediment, as the remaining owner
has the right to sell their share. The existence of a lien is
not considered a legal impediment, but rather an encumbrance against
the property thereby reducing the countable value.
For a legal impediment to exist, the following are required:
Verification of the impediment.
The impediment must be documented through copies of deeds,
titles, wills, court orders, etc. in order to verify the status
of the property. A detailed, written explanation of the situation
may also be provided as evidence to support the alleged impediment.
A reasonable attempt to
overcome the impediment. Prior to establishing a legal impediment,
the individual must demonstrate that reasonable steps have
been taken to overcome the impediment. If such attempts have
been made and verified and a resolution does not appear to
be immediate, the property is considered unavailable. However,
the individual must continue to pursue reasonable steps to
overcome the impediment. Such actions must be scheduled and
routine, with the frequency and nature dependent upon the
situation. If it is determined the cost of overcoming the
impediment would exceed the gain to the individual, the property
is considered unavailable. However, should changes occur which
might change the outcome, or result in the availability of
the property, it may become necessary for the individual to
again attempt to overcome the impediment. As applicants and
recipients are required to cooperate and pursue potential
resources , failure to do so may result in negative action
as per KEESM 2124 (not applicable
to food assistance).
For all programs, if the individual
owns excess nonexempt real property and such property is available,
assistance shall be provided if the individual is making a bona
fide and documented effort to dispose of the property. Evidence
of a bona fide effort could include a current listing with a real
estate company, statement from a realtor that the client is actively
showing the property, for sale sign on property, and ads in the
newspaper. The initial asking price should be consistent with
the fair market value of the property and shall be regularly adjusted.
Reasonable offers for the property should be accepted. Bona-fide
effort activities should be reviewed on a semiannual basis.
(Food Assistance Only) A resource
shall also be identified as unavailable if its sale or other disposition
is unlikely to produce any significant amount of funds for the
support of the household. For the purposes of this provision,
if the household's equity in the resource is less than half of
the applicable resource limit ($1,125 or $1,625), then the sale
or other disposition is unlikely to produce any significant amount
of funds for the support of the household and the resource shall
be exempt. Documentation is required for a resource to be excluded
under this provision.
Also to be
excluded as unavailable resources are non-liquid assets against which
a lien has been placed as a result of taking out a business loan and
which the household is prohibited by the security or lien holder (creditor)
from selling. Examples of such non-liquid assets could be land, crops,
buildings, farm equipment, or machinery.
Ownership
of excess nonexempt personal property shall result in ineligibility.
For all programs, resources shall also be considered
unavailable to persons in shelters for battered persons and children
if: (1) the resources are jointly owned by the shelter resident and
members of the former home; and (2) the shelter resident's access
to the value of the resource is dependent on the agreement of a joint
owner who still resides in the former home.
Ownership of property is determined by legal title. In absence of legal title, ownership shall be determined by possession. Note special provisions related to SSI in item (11) and to HCBS arrangements in item (9), (10) and (11).
Joint
Ownership - The pro rata equity value of jointly owned
real property and the full equity value of jointly owned personal
property shall be considered in the determination of eligibility
except as noted in item (b) for food assistance.
For a resource held jointly with an individual who is not a member
of the household or assistance plan, the resource may be excluded
from consideration if all of the following conditions are met:
The individual can demonstrate
the household/assistance plan member has no ownership interest
in the resource;
The household/assistance
plan member has not contributed to the resource; and
Any access to the resource
is limited as acting as an agent for the other owner.
Joint
Owner Who Refuses to Comply (Food Assistance only) -
A resource shall be totally inaccessible to the household if the
resource cannot be practically subdivided and the household's
access to the value of the resource is dependent on the agreement
of a joint owner who refuses to comply.
The resource
value of property shall be the client's equity in the property. Equity
is defined as fair market value less encumbrances.
Resources
of all persons whose needs are included in the assistance plan must
be considered. For TANF, eligibility must be determined as though
the unborn child was born and living. Thus, the resources of the father
of the unborn child, if present, must be considered. For food assistance,
the nonexempt resources of excluded and disqualified members count
in their entirety to the remaining household members. The nonexempt
resources of non-household members are NOT considered in determining
eligibility.
The total
resources of both spouses shall be considered in determining the eligibility
of either or both for assistance for if they are living together (including
physical separation while maintaining a common life). For TANF and
food assistance, this provision would also not be applicable when
one or both spouses enter an institutional arrangement but would be
applicable to HCBS arrangements if the care is being provided in the
home and the couple continues to live together.
If a parent enters an institutional living arrangement
(whether or not the facility is Medicaid approved) for other than
a planned brief stay (not to exceed the month of entrance and the
following two months), his or her resources shall be considered in
determining the eligibility of a minor child only for the month the
arrangement begins. For TANF, Child Care, and Food Assistance, if
the parent receives HCBS services in the home and continues to live
with the child, that parent's resources must still be considered.
The resources
owned solely by an SSI recipient (including a spouse or parent) are
excluded from consideration. For food assistance, resources owned
jointly with an SSI recipient are exempt, but considered available
to the client for all other programs.
A resource
shall not be considered as property and as income in the same month.
For instances when income received in a month is deposited into a
checking or savings account, the value of such account for that month
shall be determined by subtracting the total amount of income deposited
from the lowest balance of the account. This is not applicable to
spousal impoverishment assessments in which the highest value of the
account in a month would be used.
Also see item (7) for establishing the value of a checking or savings account.