Who can sign for the sale
The person who owns the house signs, unless someone else has legal authority to sign for them. With a parent moving to care, that’s usually one of three situations:
| Situation | Who signs | What’s needed |
|---|---|---|
| Parent can still make decisions | The parent | Their signature at closing; a mobile notary can come to the facility |
| Parent signed a durable power of attorney | The agent | A power of attorney that covers real property, recorded with the county recorder |
| No power of attorney, and the parent can’t decide | A court-appointed guardian | Probate court appointment and approval of the sale |
Under R.C. 1337.45, general authority over real property lets an agent sell, convey, mortgage and lease, unless the document limits it. Ohio’s recording rule in R.C. 1337.04 is the step families miss: a power of attorney used to sign a deed must be recorded with the county recorder where the house sits, before the deed is recorded. Same-day recording counts. The power of attorney also has to be signed and acknowledged no later than the deed. The power of attorney guide and the guardianship guide cover each route.
How the house and the sale proceeds look to Ohio Medicaid
If long-term care Medicaid is part of the plan, the timing of a sale matters, and an elder law attorney should look at it before anyone signs. A few Ohio rules set the frame:
- Resource limit. Ohio Adm. Code 5160:1-3-05.1 sets the resource limit at $2,000 for an individual and $3,000 for a married couple.
- The home. Under Ohio Adm. Code 5160:1-3-05.13, the home that’s the principal residence is excluded regardless of value. A temporary absence doesn’t change that if the person signs a statement of intent to return, and it stays excluded while a spouse or dependent relative lives there.
- Cash from a sale. Once the house is sold, the proceeds are money in the bank, which is generally a countable resource.
- The look-back. Ohio Adm. Code 5160:1-6-06 looks back 60 months for transfers of assets. Selling or giving the house to a family member for less than fair market value can trigger a penalty period.
Estate recovery is the last piece. Under R.C. 5162.21, Ohio seeks recovery from the estates of people 55 or older for Medicaid paid on their behalf, but not while a surviving spouse is alive. The Medicaid estate recovery guide covers how that touches a house.
The care-facility rule for capital gains
Parents who have owned and lived in a house for decades often have a large gain. The federal home sale exclusion, $250,000 for a single owner, normally requires living in the house two of the last five years. IRS Publication 523 has a specific exception for a move to care.
If the owner became physically or mentally unable to care for themselves, and used the house as a main home for at least 12 months in the five years before the sale, time spent in a care facility counts toward the two-year residence requirement. The facility must be licensed by a state or other government entity to care for people with that condition. That can preserve the exclusion even if the house sits empty for a few years. A tax professional should confirm it for your parent.
Gather the paperwork early: the deed, the most recent tax bill, any mortgage statement, and the power of attorney or guardianship letters. Having these in one folder makes the title company’s job faster.
Reverse mortgages and a move to care
If the house has a reverse mortgage, the move itself may set a deadline. Under 24 CFR 206.27, an FHA-insured HECM can come due when the borrower has been away more than 12 consecutive months because of physical or mental illness and no other borrower lives there. See selling a house with a reverse mortgage for the timeline after that.
Timing the sale with the move
The hardest part is usually the overlap: the facility wants payment, the house needs emptying, and family members are juggling jobs and distance. Two approaches tend to work. Sell first, with a closing date a few weeks out so the family can sort belongings without strangers walking through. Or move first, then sell an empty house on whatever date suits the family.
If your parent is downsizing to a smaller home rather than care, selling when downsizing fits better. When you’d like a number to plan around, tell us about the house.
