Timeline for Should I take out a loan to pay off a relative's credit card debt?
Current License: CC BY-SA 4.0
17 events
| when toggle format | what | by | license | comment | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 7, 2019 at 17:12 | comment | added | Julius Seizure | She does not have a money problem, she has a behavior problem. Just stop paying the credit cards if she is judgement-proof, which if she does not own a home or IRA / 401K accounts, then she is. This will help her because her credit will be ruined and she will not be able to get more credit, which is a good thing! | |
| Jun 21, 2018 at 10:30 | comment | added | BugFinder | I found myself in a similar position. It is hard to watch someone you know and care for struggle (especially credit cards which frequently have high interest rates), this was their choice, as others have said, if you bail them out they dont really learn.. You could offer to manage her money, give her an allowance to spend and thats all she gets, you get her wages paid to you and you may take out a loan (cos you can) and use her money to pay it and her bills and let her have "whats left" or, even less where possible.. make her budget. Few would agree to it though. | |
| Jun 20, 2018 at 8:55 | comment | added | ctrl-alt-delor | Depending on where you live, bankruptcy is not the only option to allow you to default on a debt. | |
| Jun 20, 2018 at 6:55 | comment | added | user12515 | @Cloud Well for one thing, not declaring bankruptcy could save the $2500 or whatever it costs to declare it. (I always found it funny that bankruptcy cost so much money until I realized if you can't afford bankruptcy then it doesn't really offer you anything for the money...) | |
| Jun 19, 2018 at 20:03 | comment | added | Hart CO | @quid People get away without paying anything on unsecured debt without filing for bankruptcy with some frequency, that's the avenue that should be pursued first, before bankruptcy. Debt collection only works if there is means to pay and people care about their credit score, if they don't believe they will get paid, even with legal action (because it would force bankruptcy) that is preferred to bankruptcy, nothing to do with her age or ability to repay. | |
| Jun 19, 2018 at 18:49 | comment | added | quid | Sure, I think this answer jumps to bankruptcy because of the person's age and other circumstances. Maybe 20 years of life left, no assets to protect, fixed income likely below the state median income which puts a clean chap 7 in play. Sure, you could stop paying everyone for a couple months, then try to use that saved money as a settlement pot, but right now there's no settlement pot from which to pay anyone. A 70 year old isn't going to just pop back in to the workforce and deliver more pizzas. If this was a 30 year old, I'm sure this answer would be different. | |
| Jun 19, 2018 at 18:41 | comment | added | Hart CO | @quid Very true, I wasn't proposing paying off the debt, just shouldn't jump to bankruptcy if not needed. | |
| Jun 19, 2018 at 18:35 | comment | added | quid | @HartCO, OP could be the cosigner on her rentals at likely a substantially lower cost than paying off this debt. | |
| Jun 19, 2018 at 16:18 | comment | added | Hart CO | @Cloud Since she doesn't own a home, she'll need to secure rentals for the remainder of her time, bankruptcy makes that harder than a defaulted credit card account. | |
| Jun 19, 2018 at 16:12 | comment | added | Cloud | @HartCO at 70 yrs old, who cares? | |
| Jun 19, 2018 at 16:10 | comment | added | Evan Steinbrenner | I agree assuming her debt isn't medical in nature (which does seem entirely possible given her age) just paying off the debt with little to no strings attached is possible the worst thing you could do. That level of debt is likely accumulated over time via repeated poor financial decisions. Paying off the debt doesn't magically change their decision making or break bad habits. Any help you provide needs to address the cause of the debt as much as the debt itself or it will just be enabling and ultimately not fix the issue. Another thought. Given her age it's possible she was scammed. | |
| Jun 19, 2018 at 15:54 | comment | added | Harper - Reinstate Monica | Why are you telling a person to preemptively declare bankruptcy? Unless there are certain secured assets at stake, just stop paying the debts. They will cry and moan and blow up her phone, but in the end, will do nothing unless they are confident they can attach assets. It is likely the statute will run. Whereas, by declaring bankruptcy, you are causing this attachment and seizure. Why willfully climb the gallows? | |
| Jun 19, 2018 at 15:08 | comment | added | JimmyJames | If she owns a home, a reverse mortgage is something to consider. | |
| Jun 19, 2018 at 13:48 | comment | added | Hart CO | You can get away from credit card debt without bankruptcy in many instances, don't jump straight to bankruptcy, better to have some defaulted credit card accounts thank a bankruptcy on your record, imo. | |
| Jun 19, 2018 at 13:38 | comment | added | jacknad | It is also possible to do the bankruptcy without a lawyer. There are books at the library and information online. It is not that difficult. | |
| Jun 19, 2018 at 1:02 | vote | accept | Jeremy | ||
| Jun 19, 2018 at 0:35 | history | answered | Brythan | CC BY-SA 4.0 |