What happens to my parents debt after they die?
Jan Meriss Alfonso Assistant at Ascent Law LLC What happens to my parents' debt after they die? When a married couple dies with debt, the rules can be complex about who is responsible for paying it back. In a friendly tone: When a married couple dies with debt, the rules can be complex about who is responsible for paying it back. Estate The reason for this is that the debt belongs to both spouses equally, but after death, one spouse may have no assets available to repay the amount owed, which leaves only the estate of the other spouse to pay off their half of the debt. Two ways that this can happen 1. In community property states, all debts incurred during marriage are considered joint debts and legally belong to both spouses. 2. Even in non-community property states, if there is no prenuptial agreement in place then the law will consider both spouses equally liable for any debts acquired during the marriage. Debt Division The issue of debt division usually only becomes a problem...