What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? CA
My grandmother very recently passed away at 94, leaving $6K in credit card debt. She had a trust (about $3K) for burial or cremation, but since that didn't even cover the cost of a plot, I had to choose cremation. I can't afford to pay anything out of pocket. There will be a small amount left over, about $1.5K. She has no other assets at all, my mother did an excellent job of wiping her out financially and then kicking her to the curb, just as her health started to deteriorate three years ago. My mother didn't know about the trust, as she could not find the paperwork (Nana was a hoarder). My grandmother had no other debts. To make a long story short, I was made executor of the estate and my mother was written completely out of the will.. There are no other relatives. I need to make some repairs to my home, as over the last three years there were many "accidents" that I tried to clean the best I could at the time... some of the carpets need to be replaced.
What should I tell the credit card company? Do I need to pay them what ever extra is left over from the $3K? Do I need to declare an insolvent estate? If so, How? I'm very worried that if I pay any amount to the CC, which is supposed to be fairly low on the priority for payments, that other claims might surface where suddenly I am liable for those debts because I paid the unsecured debt first.
Thanks,
Naomi in CA
My grandmother very recently passed away at 94, leaving $6K in credit card debt. She had a trust (about $3K) for burial or cremation, but since that didn't even cover the cost of a plot, I had to choose cremation. I can't afford to pay anything out of pocket. There will be a small amount left over, about $1.5K. She has no other assets at all, my mother did an excellent job of wiping her out financially and then kicking her to the curb, just as her health started to deteriorate three years ago. My mother didn't know about the trust, as she could not find the paperwork (Nana was a hoarder). My grandmother had no other debts. To make a long story short, I was made executor of the estate and my mother was written completely out of the will.. There are no other relatives. I need to make some repairs to my home, as over the last three years there were many "accidents" that I tried to clean the best I could at the time... some of the carpets need to be replaced.
What should I tell the credit card company? Do I need to pay them what ever extra is left over from the $3K? Do I need to declare an insolvent estate? If so, How? I'm very worried that if I pay any amount to the CC, which is supposed to be fairly low on the priority for payments, that other claims might surface where suddenly I am liable for those debts because I paid the unsecured debt first.
Thanks,
Naomi in CA