Michigan’s BEM 400 asset limits vary by program: the Family Independence Program, State Disability Assistance, and Refugee Cash Assistance allow up to $15,000 in cash, investments, and retirement plans plus up to $200,000 in real property; SSI-related Medicaid caps countable assets at $2,000 for an individual and $3,000 for a couple; most Food Assistance Program households have no asset test at all; and the Child Development and Care program ignores assets entirely.1Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. BEM 400 – Asset Eligibility The dollar figure that matters to you depends on which benefit you are applying for, and so does the definition of what counts.
The Limit for Each Program
FIP, SDA, and RCA
These three cash-assistance programs share one two-part limit. You can hold up to $15,000 in cash, investments, and retirement plans combined, and up to $200,000 in real property assets. The property cap sits apart from the cash cap, so a modest rental property does not reduce the $15,000 you can keep in savings and investments. Only four categories of assets are evaluated for these programs: cash (including bank accounts), investments (including 401(k) plans and Roth IRAs), retirement plans, and trusts. Other property types are not considered at all.1Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. BEM 400 – Asset Eligibility
Food Assistance Program
Most FAP (Michigan’s name for SNAP) households face no asset test. Categorically eligible groups, which cover the vast majority of applicants, have had the asset requirement eliminated. An asset limit still applies if the household is disqualified for an intentional program violation, disqualified as a fleeing felon, subject to an employment-related disqualification, or has gross income above the 200 percent categorical eligibility threshold. For those households, the limit is $4,250 when an elderly or disabled member is included and $2,750 otherwise.2Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. FAP Asset Changes – BPB 2024-005
Medicaid
SSI-related Medicaid applies the strictest ceilings in BEM 400: $2,000 in countable assets for an individual, $3,000 for a couple.1Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. BEM 400 – Asset Eligibility The Healthy Michigan Plan and several other Medicaid categories do not apply an asset test; eligibility turns on income instead.
Child Development and Care
CDC has no asset test. Eligibility is based entirely on household income. The MDHHS-1171 application form notes that the asset page is not required for childcare applicants.3Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. MDHHS-1171 Assistance Application and Program Supplements
What Counts as an Asset
BEM 400 defines an asset as anything of value you own that could be converted to cash. Liquid assets are counted at face value because the money is available on demand: cash on hand, checking and savings balances, certificates of deposit, stocks, bonds, and mutual funds.1Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. BEM 400 – Asset Eligibility
Non-liquid assets count at equity value, meaning market value minus what you owe and what it would cost to sell. That covers real property other than your homestead (a vacation home, vacant lot, or rental) and any second vehicle that does not qualify for an exclusion.1Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. BEM 400 – Asset Eligibility Remember that for FIP, SDA, RCA, and CDC, only cash, investments, retirement plans, and trusts are reviewed, so non-liquid property outside those categories drops out of the analysis for those programs.
What Is Excluded
Several categories of property never count. Your homestead, meaning the home you live in and the land it sits on, is excluded regardless of market value. Personal belongings such as clothing, furniture, appliances, and jewelry are excluded as well.1Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. BEM 400 – Asset Eligibility
One vehicle per household is excluded regardless of value. Additional vehicles can also be excluded if they are used for a household member’s employment or to transport someone with a disability. Any vehicle that does not meet one of those conditions is counted at its equity value.1Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. BEM 400 – Asset Eligibility
How Retirement Accounts Are Treated
Retirement savings get different treatment depending on the program, and this is where many applicants are caught off guard. For FIP, SDA, RCA, and CDC, 401(k) plans and IRAs are countable. Their value is whatever you could withdraw today, minus any early withdrawal penalty, but not minus taxes.1Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. BEM 400 – Asset Eligibility That means the $15,000 cash-and-investments limit includes your retirement balance.
For FAP, Michigan excludes a long list of retirement accounts, including traditional and Roth IRAs, 401(k) and 403(b) plans, SEP plans, federal Thrift Savings Plans, and employer-sponsored annuities.1Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. BEM 400 – Asset Eligibility If food assistance is what you need, retirement savings will almost certainly not disqualify you.
Life Insurance
Policies with a cash surrender value are countable. Term policies that build no cash value are not. For SSI-related Medicaid, the entire cash surrender value is excluded when the total face value of all policies you hold on the same insured person is $1,500 or less. Burial insurance and policies irrevocably assigned to fund a funeral arrangement are also excluded.1Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. BEM 400 – Asset Eligibility
Jointly Owned Assets
Sharing a bank account or property with someone outside your household does not automatically mean the full balance counts against you. An asset is treated as unavailable if you cannot sell or spend your share without the other owner’s consent, that owner is not part of your assistance group, and the owner refuses to agree.1Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. BEM 400 – Asset Eligibility You will need to document the refusal. Jointly owned real property follows a separate rule: it is only excludable if selling would create a hardship for the other owners, and the caseworker evaluates that on a case-by-case basis.
Medicaid Long-Term Care: The Divestment Look-Back
If you are applying for Medicaid to cover nursing home care, a MIChoice waiver, the PACE program, Home Help, or Home Health services, a separate set of rules reaches back five years. Michigan reviews any assets you gave away or sold below fair market value during the 60 months before your baseline date, which is the first date you were both eligible for Medicaid and receiving or approved for long-term care services.4Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. BEM 405 – MA Divestment
Flagged transfers trigger a penalty period during which Medicaid will not pay for long-term care. The penalty equals the total uncompensated value of the transfers divided by Michigan’s average monthly private long-term care cost, which is $12,216.30 for 2026. There is no cap on how long a penalty can last, and multiple transfers inside the look-back are combined before the calculation.4Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. BEM 405 – MA Divestment A waiver is available only for undue hardship, which requires a physician to certify that necessary medical care is not being provided and the applicant needs treatment for an emergency condition. The MDHHS-1171 application asks directly whether anyone in the household has sold, transferred, or given away assets in the last five years.3Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. MDHHS-1171 Assistance Application and Program Supplements
What to Put on the Application
You apply using the MDHHS-1171 Assistance Application through MIBridges or at any local MDHHS office, and you can submit it by mail, fax, online, or in person. The asset section asks for each account’s type (checking, savings, 401(k), and so on), the institution’s name, and the current balance. For vehicles, you report the year, make, model, and estimated mileage. For property, you list houses, buildings, land, and rental property. The form also asks about jointly owned accounts and about any transfers made in the last five years, or 90 days for FAP and State Emergency Relief applicants.3Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. MDHHS-1171 Assistance Application and Program Supplements Complete, accurate reporting prevents the follow-up verification requests that slow a case down.
If You Are Denied Over Assets
If MDHHS denies your application or reduces benefits based on an asset determination you believe is wrong, you can request an administrative hearing. The request must be in writing, signed, and received at your local MDHHS office within 90 calendar days from the date on the notice of action. For FAP cases, the request can be made orally, and you can dispute your current benefit level at any time within the benefit period.5Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. BAM 600 – Hearings
Within 11 days of receiving the request, the local office schedules a prehearing conference with a supervisor who reviews your documentation and explains the department’s position. Many asset disputes resolve at this stage, especially when the question is whether a joint account was available or whether a vehicle qualified for exclusion. If the conference does not resolve it, the Michigan Office of Administrative Hearings and Rules sets a formal hearing before an administrative law judge, where you can bring a representative at your own expense, present evidence, and request accommodations. Final action, including implementation of the decision, must be completed within 90 days of the request, or 60 days for FAP-only cases.5Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. BAM 600 – Hearings