Revision 10-1; Effective March 1, 2010

An exclusion to the home as a countable resource is possible if the person or spouse has ownership interest in the property and the property currently is the principal place of residence of either the person or the spouse. Exclude the property as a home even if the person leaves the home without the intent to return as long as a spouse or dependent relative of the person continues to live in the property.

If a non-institutionalized person is a victim of domestic abuse and is fleeing from an abusive situation, exclude the property as a home even if the person leaves the home without the intent to return but still maintains an ownership interest in an otherwise excluded home. Continue this exclusion until the non-institutionalized person establishes a new principal place of residence or takes other action rendering the home no longer excludable.

F-3110 Principal Place of Residence

Revision 09-4; Effective December 1, 2009

An exclusion to the home as a countable resource is possible if the person or spouse has ownership interest in the property and the property currently is the principal place of residence of either the person or the spouse. Exclude the property as a home even if the person leaves the home without the intent to return as long as a spouse or dependent relative of the person continues to live in the property.

F-3111 The Home as the Principal Place of Residence

Revision 19-2; Effective June 1, 2019

Only one place may be established as a person's or couple’s principal place of residence. If the person or couple lives in more than one place or owns more than one residence, they must designate only one as their principal place of residence.

If the person or couple is unable to make this decision, and they have a guardian or authorized representative, make the determination based on the statements provided by the guardian or AR and:

• the address the person or couple uses on their voter registration, federal benefits, federal income tax returns; or
• the home that’s listed in the appraisal district property records as the homestead.

The home can be real or personal property, fixed or mobile, and located on land or water.

The property ceases to be the principal place of residence and not excludable as the home as of the date the person or couple leaves the home if they do not intend to return to it.

Note: Form H1245, Statement of Intent to Return Home, should reflect the property the person or couple chooses to exclude as their homestead.

Related Policy

The Home and Resource Exclusion, F-3100
Principal Place of Residence, F-3110
Intent to Return Home, F-3120
Intent to return Home Policy, F-3121

F-3112 Spouse or Dependent Relative Living in the Home

Revision 09-4; Effective December 1, 2009

See also Section F-3500, Out-of-State Home Property.

If a person lives in a long-term care facility and his or her spouse or dependent relative lives in the person's principal place of residence, the home is not considered an available resource.

A relative is a son, daughter, grandson, granddaughter, stepson, stepdaughter, half sister, half brother, grandmother, grandfather, in-laws, mother, father, stepmother, stepfather, aunt, uncle, sister, brother, stepsister, stepbrother, nephew or niece. A dependent relative is one who was living in the person's home before the person's absence and who is unable to support himself/herself outside of the person's home due to medical, social or other reasons.

See Appendix XVI, Documentation and Verification Guide.

F-3120 Intent to Return Home

Revision 13-4; Effective December 1, 2013

An exclusion to the home as a countable resource is possible if the person or spouse has ownership interest in the property, the property was the principal place of residence of either the person or the spouse while having ownership interest, and the person and spouse no longer live there but intend to return to the home.

The primary evidence of intent to return home is the applicant's/recipient's statement, as documented on a signed Form H1245, Statement of Intent to Return Home, or a comparable written statement from the applicant's/recipient's spouse or authorized representative.

F-3121 Intent to Return Policy

Revision 14-4; Effective December 1, 2014

Consider intent to return policy if the person:

• has ownership interest in the property, and
• previously resided in the property while having ownership interest.

The primary evidence of intent to return home is the applicant's/recipient's statement, as documented on a signed Form H1245, Statement of Intent to Return Home, or a comparable written statement from the applicant's/recipient's spouse or authorized representative.

The property cannot be excluded as a home with intent to return if the person:

• has ownership interest in the property, but
• has not resided in the property while having ownership interest.

Exception: If a home was excluded for intent to return and the individual purchases a replacement home, the replacement home retains that exclusion even if the individual has not physically occupied the new home.

Exclude the property as a home even if the person leaves the home without the intent to return, as long as a spouse or dependent relative of the person continues to live in the property.

See Section F-3400, Replacement of the Home; Section F-3500, Out-of-State Home Property; and Section F-3121.1, Temporary Absence from the Home.

F-3121.1 Temporary Absence from the Home

Revision 09-4; Effective December 1, 2009

Absences from home for trips, visits and medical treatment do not affect the home exclusion as long as the person continues to consider the home to be his or her principal place of residence and intends to return home. If a person owns a residence but lives elsewhere, HHSC determines whether the person continues to consider the home to be his/her principal place of residence and whether he/she intends to return.

See Appendix XVI, Documentation and Verification Guide.

F-3130 Home and Other Real Property Placed for Sale

Revision 16-3; Effective September 1, 2016

The value of real property, including a home, life estates and remainder interests in the property, is exempt if the person places the property for sale. The exemption continues until the proceeds of the sale are available to the person.

Reasonable efforts to sell the property require the individual take all necessary steps to sell it. Reasonable efforts to sell property include:

• listing the property with a local real estate agent; or
• advertising in local media, placing a "For Sale" sign on the property, conducting open houses, and showing the property to interested parties.

An individual must accept an offer to buy the property that is at least two-thirds of the current market value of the property. If an offer is rejected, the individual must present evidence that proves the offer is unreasonable and that the individual is continuing to make reasonable efforts to sell the property.

The value of the resource is not counted until the proceeds of the sale are available. See Section F-1260, Conversion of Resources, for treatment from the proceeds of a sale of a resource. Determination of resources is completed as of 12:01 a.m. on the first day of the month. However, if the individual is purchasing a replacement home, the proceeds of the sale of the original home are not countable resources for three full months following the month of receipt.

See Section F-3400, Replacement of the Home.

Note: This policy also applies to out-of-state home property. See Section F-3500, Out-of-State Home Property.