Can Medi-Cal Take My Canoga Park Home If I Need Nursing-Home Care?

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Usually, no. Medi-Cal does not simply “take” your Canoga Park home because you need nursing-home care.

Under California law, your principal residence can remain exempt for Medi-Cal eligibility if, for example, you intend to return home, your spouse lives there, or certain dependent relatives live there. 22 Cal. Code Regs. § 50425. California restored asset limits in 2026, but DHCS still lists the home you live in as a non-countable asset.

The bigger issues are how the home is titled, whether you transfer it, and what happens after death. Transfers made on or after January 1, 2026 can trigger Medi-Cal’s 30-month lookback for long-term-care benefits.

So don’t panic and deed the house away. First figure out whether the home is already protected and what planning, if any, is actually necessary.

Can I Get Medi-Cal Nursing-Home Care and Still Keep My Home?

Yes. You may be able to receive Medi-Cal nursing-home care and still keep your Canoga Park home.

California’s 2026 Medi-Cal rules count assets again, but your principal residence can still be exempt if you intend to return home, or if your spouse, registered domestic partner, or certain dependent relatives continue living there.

That means moving into a nursing home does not automatically mean you must sell your house.

The more important questions are whether the home remains exempt, whether any transfer could trigger the new 30-month lookback, and how the property will pass after death.

Do not transfer the house just because you are worried about Medi-Cal. Get the eligibility and estate-recovery analysis first.

Can Medi-Cal Take My Canoga Park Home After I Die?

Usually, Medi-Cal cannot take your Canoga Park home after you die if the home passes outside probate.

For Medi-Cal members who die on or after January 1, 2017, California estate recovery is generally limited to assets in the deceased member’s probate estate. DHCS specifically states that property passing by trust, survivorship, or transfer-on-death is generally outside that recovery claim.

That is why proper trust funding matters. If your home is actually titled in your living trust, it can usually pass without probate.

The simple takeaway: Medi-Cal recovery is often more about how your home passes at death than whether you received Medi-Cal during life.

Should I Put My Home in a Trust Before Applying for Medi-Cal?

Maybe—but not because a living trust magically makes your home invisible to Medi-Cal.

Your principal residence may already be excluded from the Medi-Cal asset limit. And assets in a revocable trust are generally still considered available to you because you retain the power to revoke the trust. 22 Cal. Code Regs. § 50489.9.

The bigger advantage is what happens later. A properly funded living trust can keep the home out of probate, which may also keep it outside California’s current Medi-Cal estate-recovery claim.

So the practical answer is: use a trust for good estate planning and probate avoidance—not as a last-minute Medi-Cal eligibility trick.