Full question:
My mother made me Personal Representative in her will and left her assets equally to me and my 2 brothers. Mortgage company says I need to probate will to sell her house and I need Letters Testamentary to name me administrator. My mother has $13000 in credit card debt, which hopefully the house sale will cover. Will I be personally liable to pay off these debts as Executor/Administrator if the house doesn't bring enough to cover all debts? The house is in Alabama. I live in KY.
- Category: Wills and Estates
- Subcategory: Probate
- Date:
- State: Alabama
Answer:
A deceased's debts should be paid with the property in their estate (the property left at their death). A child doesn't typically inherit the parebt's debts unless they created a co-signor/guarantor/surety/joint account relationship to the debt, so that the child's name is on the debt also, and it isn't a separate debt. An executor is generally not personally liable on claims or lawsuits against the deceased person or the estate itself, unless he or she was negligent or engaged in some sort of wrongdoing.
Only after the debts are paid will the remaining assets be distributed among the beneficiaries of the will. Be advised that when a beneficiary inherits property that is collateral for a debt -- for example, a car that is not paid for or a house with a mortgage -- the debt comes with the property. If there is insufficient money or assets to pay all creditors, then the estate must be divided up as equally as possible, with secured creditors receiving priority. This means that if the deceased person died with little or no money in their accounts and didn't own a home, unsecured debt, such as credit card debt will not be paid to the creditors.
As executor, you must give notice of the probate of the estate to creditors so that they may be able to present their claims. However, if the assets of the estate are insufficient to pay all the debts, unsecured credit card debt naming only the deceased is not the responsibility of family members to pay personally.
This content is for informational purposes only and is not legal advice. Legal statutes mentioned reflect the law at the time the content was written and may no longer be current. Always verify the latest version of the law before relying on it.
