In Colorado, once a party to a lawsuit has won a judgment, he or she can convert that into a judgment lien against real property by filing what is called a transcript of judgment with the clerk and recorder in any given county.  For a period of six years (or twenty years if the judgment is revived), any property in that county owned or acquired by the person the judgment is against (called the judgment debtor) will automatically have a lien against it to satisfy the judgment. It does not matter if the judgement debtor owned the property for just one day. The judgement lien attaches to the property and does not go away even if the judgement debtor's name is subsequently taken off the title to the property.

        For example, let's say dad has two children and one of them has been down on his luck and has moved back home. Dad may not appreciate the full extent of his son's bad luck but wants to help him out and gives him a free room.  Dad is told by his neighbor that he will avoid probate if he puts his children's names on the title to the house as joint tenants. Later, dad changes his mind and the children all convey title to the house back to dad.

        When dad passes away, probate is opened and the estate needs to sell the house to pay debts. The house is put up for sale and goes under contract.  When the title work comes back, it shows that a transcript of judgment was recorded against the son's name. The title company will not allow the sale to go through until the judgment is paid off.  Since there is not enough equity in the house, and since there is more than one beneficiary, the estate suddenly has a very large and very unexpected problem. All the rest of the children end up paying for the one child's debt because the lien attached to the real property. As you might guess, everybody is mad except for the son's creditor.

        The question of whether or not there is an enforceable lien is a very complicated question. It might involve a lawsuit to quiet title or negotiating with creditors to settle things.  What is important to remember is that putting someone else on the title to your property -- whether for estate planning or other purposes -- can expose that property to their judgments, even judgments that have happened in the past. Always talk to your lawyer before you take this step.

        Health inspection ratings are based on state survey team inspections, which occur every 12 to 15 months. The visits include a checklist of about 180 items, including infection control and food preparation, as well as medication management, residents' rights and quality of life. Investigators also review complaints from residents and their families. Ratings depend on how many "deficiencies" are found, how serious the deficiencies are, and how many residents were or could have been affected. CMS wants to know how many nurses a facility employs, and calculates how much time, on average, nurses and nurse's aides spend with each resident per day. 

        Like all rating systems, nothing takes the place of your own personal inspection. Reviews and inspections always lag behind. A facility that has a positive rating may have recently changed management or been purchased by another company. We always recommend that you consult with a professional to assist you with the placement of a family member in any facility.

For more information on the nursing home ratings, including the searchable database, please visit:
http://health.usnews.com/sections/health/best-nursing-homes/index.html.