Should car title be transferred when the person goes to memory care?

My dad (age 96) is in a similar situation. We have chosen not to transfer his name from the title as we still use it to transport him to outside doctor visits, etc. Only my brothers and I drive the car and only if it is for Dad to go someplace. Transferring the title would be easy with the POA, but it is not necessary st this point. My husband has LBD with Parkinsons. I did take his name off of titles, cars, house, insurance papers etc. and most bank accounts for financial protection for both of us to protect our assets so we can continue to stay at home. I also applied for guardianship to further protect our accounts from scammers or others that might try to take advantage of him.
It is a decision that must be made by weighing the options and circumstances based on individual/family needs.

Thank you for your response. I am using DPOA to manage my wife's assets. You removed your husband's name from assets "...so we can continue to stay at home." Was this motivated by a security concern or related to some requirement about staying at home? My wife is in a memory care unit.

Thank you for pointing this statement out as it is not very clear. If my husband manages to do something (a wide range of possibilities here) that cause harm to someone or their property, they can only sue us for what he owns. Therefore, our home and other assets are protected from a law suit. My goal is to keep him at home and the financial cost has the potential to be quite large. Therefore, I have to protect assets as much as possible. I just tried to give you two sides of what we have dealt with. If he does go into a memory care unit, I will probably wait a while to see if this will be the best permanent environment for him, then, yes, I would remove him from everything else.

We are a long way from needing this point, but I found your post very sad and helpful at the same time. You sound very caring and also proactive for yourself and your loved ones. Where does one go to get solid advice on the steps to take, and learn when they should be initiated? I’m not being a downer; my husband has been diagnosed 2 years ago, with MCI but his sister recently passed away from Alzheimer’s. We are on a list for another 3-hour evaluation but were told it could be Spring before we move up the list to get an actual appointment. I feel things are changing a little faster of late. You sound like a very wise person. Best wishes to you going forward. Signed, also a teacher, (back in the day)

Thank you for the uplifting response. The most helpful advice came from an elder care attorney. He was the one that encouraged me to protect our assets that we worked all of our lives to have, and he helped file the papers to get the house in my name. (We just thought we were saving for amazing experiences during our "Golden years" but instead they are here to take care of us in our LBD journey.) I also have a friend who is an accountant that has given his helpful opinion whenever I have asked. Some of the best advice has come from the others right here in this support group. Just keep searching and asking. Answers will come. I hope you can keep after the doctors to get in much sooner than spring. There have been times when I have called every day until someone cancelled and we got in early. You are the best voice for your loved one- speak LOUDLY! Please don't hesitate to ask anyone anything here - all want to help you.

Thank you. I applaud your goal and wish you strength in your endeavor.

I’m not sure if there are elder care attorneys in our area, but you can be sure I’ll be looking into it. I like when you said “answers will come.” You’re right, of course. And thank you.

It’s easy and less expensive to add your name to the car title if it’s in your husband’s name only, then when he stops driving (agrees to/has to/is admitted to AL), it’s easy to sell the car and transfer the title to the buyer. My husband was admitted to the hospital and I sold the car to the dealer three days later. He was a totally unsafe driver (I could see and people started calling me) and beyond stubborn about not driving. He was not happy to discover the car gone- I blamed no driving on his PCP (true). I decided I didn’t want to go through the hiding the keys thing, making excuses, trying to be the one to drive “his” car. He was soon fine with me driving him in my car.

Thanks, I will add my name to my wife's car title.