What is a countable asset?
Countable assets, as defined by Massachusetts law, include cash, retirements accounts, stocks, bonds, the cash surrender value of life insurance policies – but only if the face value is more than $1,500.00, and real estate other than the principal residence. For most of these assets, the state does not care whose names may be on the account. If either spouse’s name is listed on the asset, the total value of the asset will be countable. There are exceptions to this rule: jointly owned savings bonds and brokerage accounts are two of the exceptions. For example, if there are 4 savings bonds, and two of them are jointly owned by a spouse and a child, only 50% of that value is countable. If the other two are jointly owned by both spouses, 100% of the value is countable.
