Lost??

by Adrianne
(Cheektowaga, NY)

My grandma died and had a lincoln finacial account (which was left to my mom), my grandma also has a $60,000 medical bill and now the creditors are threatening to take the house (which was also left to my mom and that we've been living in for the last 3yrs) unless they get their money. the money that was in the lincon finacial account has been spent on various things (mostly after my step dad died, and the rest to fix up my grandmas house of things that needed to be fixed etc. ex: paint, carpet, so on and so forth) what kind of rights do we have so my husband, daughter and I are not out of a place to live and have no place to go?

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Aug 21, 2012
 Lost??
by: Debtcollectionanswers.com

When someone dies, regardless of whether or not they had a will, their estate must go through the probate process so that as many of their debts as possible can be paid out of their assets. If there is not enough money in the estate to pay all of the debt, then assets must be sold. Legally, any assets that the deceased may have left to people cannot go to them until all debts have been paid.

If your grandmother left a will behind, the person she named as executor of the will must begin the probate process by filing the will at the probate court in her area. If there was no will, then someone in your family must go to court to be named administrator of the estate and begin the probate process. The executor or administrator is legally obligated to notify all of your grandmother's creditors of her death so they can file claims to be paid.

All of this is a long way of saying that the medical creditors to whom your grandmother owed money are entitled to be paid from her assets, and assuming the house is still in her name, they could go after the house -- sue your grandmother's estate for the funds -- if there is not sufficient funds in the estate to pay them. If there is not and your family wants to keep the house and assuming your grandmother left it to your mother, father or someone else in your immediate family, then you will need to figure out a way to pay the medical debt.

I recommend that you discuss what to do with an estate planning attorney or probate law attorney in your area. You risk getting yourselves in legal and financial hot water if you do not handle the situation correctly. Another option is to go here, Ask Estate Lawyers Now.

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