Hi there,
My husband is on home hospice care after an intense 3-year battle with stage 4 colon cancer. He is a 100% disabled, retired veteran, and we have all the ducks in a row for VA pay, SSDI, and social security for the kids. We just bought a house a month ago, and he ended up in the hospital 5 days after we closed. Sucks, but it is what it is. I'm his caregiver 24/7, and he has been the primary person in charge of our finances for our entire marriage, but has been setting things up so I've been able to slowly take over/do it with him. I'm nervous, but ready.
I have questions about what happens to debt that is solely in his name after he passes? I read, and he told me, that I won't be responsible to pay off his things, and that those accounts will be closed as well, so I won't have access to them. The accounts in his name only include 3 credit cards (2 are completely or nearly paid off, one is at about 25% usage) and a loan, total about $17,000. There is another credit card that I think I'm only an authorized user for, but I'll have to look into that more closely (honestly, I'm not sure where, and we've been sharing finances for so long, and I've been a stay at home mom, worked part time, and now am a 24-hour caregiver for his every need. Have been for the better part of the last 2 years.) I have two cards in my name only, and a student loan with a moderate amount left to pay (about $8000.) I know those don't apply.
Anyway, I'm just not sure what the best thing is to do here. I don't really have established credit, since I haven't been the main person working or using any cards. Nothing is late or delinquent or anything, I just really haven't utilized much credit at all. The car, home, etc. have all been in his name with me added to them at the end.
When this happens, and it will happen in the next several weeks or sooner, what do I do? Continue paying monthly payments? Call and let them know he has passed? I assume they'll close the accounts I'm not actually on. If they do, do I still make those monthly payments, or will they expect me to pay the full amounts due when I call? Should we have me added to those accounts now, and will that help my credit score, and then nothing really changes? (do I even need to worry about a credit score this very moment, since we've just purchase a house and have a totally reliable car?) We've had his cards for years and years, and my two cards for only about a year, so his limits are generous and there's a long history of our financial responsibility, whereas mine has very little usage and no real time to establish much yet. I'm just trying to figure out what the correct thing is to do, and when, and google isn't giving me straight answers. I would greatly appreciate any helpful advice here because this is all overwhelming.
Thanks!
Submitted June 29, 2018 at 03:36AM by pacsunmama https://ift.tt/2N9iYSt
