My mother needs to go into a nursing home. The only way we can afford it is to get a line of credit on her property. Can I apply as POA?

I would get advice from a CPA or a tax and estate attorney who is familiar with property in the area.

Alfred, thanks for the excellent and knowledgeable answer. We're not even remotely in the area of estate tax, so I guess this won't apply. But it's interesting to know. I'm going to share that with the investment rep the next time I speak with him; he was the one who raised the issue.

One less decision for me to make...!

GardenArtist - an election can be made to value an estate's assets six months after death, but only if such an election results in a decrease in the estate tax. Your attorney may be thinking of the old rules which would allow the election to be made even if the value increased from the date of death.

Before the law was changed, you would make this election if there was no estate tax due so that you could claim a higher basis when the asset was sold, and pay less in income tax. Now, you can only make the election if the value decreases and results in a lower estate tax. With the significantly higher estate tax exclusions now available, which make very few estates subject to the tax, this election would be very rarely used.

Sorry, I missed the point of your original question. Read the DPOA carefully and see if it authorizes property management and/or sale. Then discuss that with the bank you've chosen as potential mortgagee on a HELOC. The bank probably would want a copy of the DPOA document for review by its legal team.

So before doing anything else, find out if your bank would approve a HELOC signed by a proxy.

Getting a HELOC would avoid the issue of drawing down on what liquid assets she does have.

The question remains what would be done with the house during the time that your mother is in a facility.

You're thinking is on the right track by addressing these issues now.

Barb and Alfred both raise good, legitimate points.

If the house is vacant, insurance will soar. I'll be paying almost $1K extra to insure my father's property until I can sell it. And coverage will be less extensive...more for less.

If the property is rented out, you'll need to create management and security systems to ensure that value of the property isn't degraded by tenants. We had a rental lake cottage which for the most part produced good income. But problems occurred with some tenants, sloppy care resulted, as did the need for repairs which my father handled himself.

Eventually, it became too much (including for me as I had to handle the winter issues while my parents became Snowbirds).

If the property is rented, you might want to consider a professional manager with a real estate management firm.

With a $1M value, you are in the tax bracket that Alfred addresses. Tax advice from an accountant or tax attorney might be useful.

I learned something new about step-ups. I thought that the value of assets were stepped up on the date of death, but one of the investment advisors told me that I can actually select the step-up date.

I want to discuss this with my attorney (who also practices tax law), but if this is true, and if I can hold off selecting a step-up date, I'll track the stock and wait till it hits a peak, research the predictions, and decide on a step-up date then.

Be careful of the income tax consequences of selling the property. Assuming your mom is single, she can only exclude the first $250,000 of gain on the property. A line of credit may not be a bad idea. If you sell the property after she passes, then the basis is "stepped up" to its value at death, and there may be no income taxes to pay.

Why not sell the property to fund her care? Or rent it out?

Is the house going to be empty once mom enters a care facility? That brings high insurance costs, for one thing.

Is the home her only asset? How much income does she Have?
If nothing else, you should seek the advise of an eldercare attorney about how best to fund mom's care.