parents change of circumstances

[monique7]

up until december of this year my mother (69 yrs old) had no assets and has been living on ss, ssi, old age pension, and state and federal assistance. my father died last november and left me the trailer ($48,000 still owed) my mother lives in in colorado and the house he owned in south carolina (free and clear). they had been divorced since 1972. we applied for my mother to receive dependency indemnity compensation from the military and in december of this yr they decided to give it to her. she received back pay from december of last year (over $9000) and will now receive a check monthly ($935). i am selling the house in south carolina ($20,000) and thinking of having my mom buy the trailer using the proceeds from the house and the back pay from the milatary. would this be a smart move? what would the ramifications be?
any help would be appreciated.
thank you, monique

 

[ALawyer]

I do NOT know what obligation, if any, she has to repay the assistance she has received to date, but unless there is some exemption for home equity, I can't see whay she'd buy a home and tie up her small cash.

Quite frankly, I have NO IDEA why your mother should buy the trailer, particularly with $48,000 owed on it. It seems almost outrageous and how could she carry it on $11,000 in income?