Will buying a car under my name affect my CalWORKs cash aid & CalFresh benefits if it's for my dad?

This is a really bad idea that could definitely impact your benefits. When you're on CalWORKs, any asset in your name counts toward your resource limit - including vehicles beyond the one exempted vehicle. Plus, if your dad misses payments, YOUR credit gets destroyed, not his. And yes, this arrangement could potentially be viewed as fraud if you're not disclosing the vehicle as an asset or if the county thinks you're hiding income/resources.

i did something like this with my brother and it was a NIGHTMARE!!! he stopped making payments after 6 months and my credit is still a disaster 3 years later. plus they counted the car against my resource limit and i almost lost my benefits. dont do it!!!

This is definitely something you need to be careful about. In California, CalWORKs allows one vehicle per household to be exempt from the resource limit (up to any value if used for transportation). Any additional vehicles will count toward your $10,000 resource limit (as of 2025). More importantly, this arrangement raises several red flags: 1. You must report any changes in household property within 10 days 2. Having your name on a loan means you're legally responsible for it 3. If your father claims he's making the payments, the county might view these as undeclared income to you 4. If the arrangement is discovered during an audit or data match, you could face an overpayment and possibly fraud investigation There are better ways to build credit that won't risk your benefits - like a secured credit card with a very low limit that you manage responsibly.

My cousin did this exact same thing and the county found out when they did some kind of cross-check with the DMV. They counted the car value against her resource limit AND counted the monthly payments as income even though her boyfriend was making them! She got hit with a huge overpayment notice and they reduced her benefits for like a year to pay it back.

I'm curious why your dad can't just get the car in his own name? There's something fishy about wanting to put it in YOUR name when he knows you're on benefits. Sorry if that sounds harsh but I've seen family members take advantage of relatives on aid before. If he has bad credit and can't qualify, that's even more reason not to do this - banks already determined he's a credit risk.

if ur dad wants to help ur credit why dont he just add u as authorized user on HIS credit card?? that helps ur credit without all this risky car stuff. my aunt did that for me and my score went up like 60 points

Just want to add that if you're having trouble reaching your CalWORKs worker to ask about this officially, try using Claimyr.com. I was on hold FOREVER trying to talk to someone about a resource question similar to yours, and their service got me through to a real person in about 15 minutes. They have a video showing how it works at https://youtu.be/jzISHxCPLwE - definitely worth it for important questions like this where you need an official answer from your worker.

One additional point I wanted to clarify: when you're on CalWORKs, the county welfare department regularly does data matches with various agencies including the DMV, tax authorities, and financial institutions. This means even if you don't report the vehicle, there's a high likelihood they'll discover it during routine verification processes. This could result in: 1. Immediate discontinuance of benefits 2. Requirement to repay all benefits received during periods of ineligibility 3. Possible administrative penalties 4. In serious cases, referral for fraud investigation Always ask your eligibility worker BEFORE making changes that might affect your eligibility. Better to get an official answer than risk your benefits.

I'm glad you're asking about this before doing anything! As someone who's been through benefit reviews, I can tell you that transparency with your worker is always the best policy. Even well-intentioned arrangements like this can create serious problems down the line. A few safer alternatives for building credit while on benefits: - Secured credit cards (start with $200-300 limit) - Credit builder loans from credit unions - Becoming an authorized user on a family member's existing card (like someone mentioned) - Some banks offer "credit building" programs specifically for people with limited credit history The risk just isn't worth it with the car situation. Your benefits are too important to gamble with, especially when there are other ways to build credit that won't put your eligibility at risk. Stay safe and keep asking questions like this - it shows you're being responsible!