How come when a person dies their debt goes to their living relatives?

I%26#039;ve never understood that. Could someone please explain why this happens? Its not the relatives fault that the deceased is in debt.


What happens if the relative is not able to pay off the deceased%26#039;s debt?

How come when a person dies their debt goes to their living relatives?
I%26#039;m sorry for your loss.





Debt isn%26#039;t passed down. Who told you that? If it was a credit card company then they are being unethical. However, if the deceased was a joint card holder and another card holder is still living, they are responsible for the balance. Same goes for a mortgage, etc. If the deceased was the only party, then the debt is settled through the person%26#039;s estate.
Reply:Technically, a person%26#039;s debts are considered part of their estate as %26quot;negative funds.%26quot; All outstanding obligations must be paid out of the estate. You may argue that it%26#039;s not fair to you, but it%26#039;s also not fair to the people or companies owed money that they should have to lose money.





And legally as long as there are debts, the deceased%26#039;s estate doesn%26#039;t belong to you. You get whatever is left over. If the full estate isn%26#039;t enough to pay the full debt, the creditors have to write off the balance, and the heirs get nothing.
Reply:It doesn%26#039;t, unless it was a joint mortgage, joint credit card, or a loan you cosigned.





However, you may not inherit anything either, if the deceased%26#039;s debts were larger than his/her assets.





That%26#039;s not to say that banks, credit card companies, or whomever won%26#039;t send letters and statements to relatives in hopes that someone is dumb enough to send a check.
Reply:it doesn%26#039;t - it goes to the deceased person%26#039;s estate - if cash is not in estate from life insurance, etc to pay it, must sell any other items (house, car) that were also included in estate to pay debts - if not enough assets to pay debts - debts don%26#039;t get paid - it%26#039;s not the survivors responsibility to pay the debts - creditors go away unhappy and short handed - not your concern or problem
Reply:Most loans have a clause in them that says your heirs are responsible for the loan.

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