Breeze

The key here is with their permission, you can legally act and get the POA. If dimentia/ahltzeimers is not a factor, if you cannot convince them to give their permission-you have no recourse, they are adults and can p*ss away their home and their living any way they want.

I would definitely talk to an attorney, get some financial advise from a variety of sources, think about setting up their estate as a trust so that you can step in when it's necessary in the future, they should consent to that. (They can even name a third party as a trustee if they don't trust their children.)

Can you gather their friends and relatives, your siblings, their brothers and sisters, anyone that they will listen to and conduct a financial intervention?

Is your dad's stubborness a result of dimentia?? Do you know the signs?

Thanks for the responce. I dont know the the signs but will study up on it.

Dear Breeze,

I'm not an attorney, so I can't give legal advice. But, I do work for a commercial debt management company. Although I handle business debt, not consumer debt, some things I know can help you. First off, you are not liable for your parents debt, unless you have signed off on it. Second, your parents need to recognize the money is out of control, and they need to give you power of attorney over their finances. How this happens, varies from state to state, and there are many different kinds of powers of attorney, so you have to find out how it works, what's available (egads, did I say that?) in your state.

Next, the credit card debt can be dealt with, once payments on the card/cards stop for about 6 months.

About being upside down in the house, if the bank takes it, where would they live?

There are solutions, Breeze, and it may not be as difficult a situation as you think. If I were you, I would find a really good attorney, who can empathize with your parents situation.

The thing is, it takes money to settle debt. If your parents are being totally milked dry, you need to stop it, like now.

Hope this helps.

Thanks. We're looking into assisted living for them. Thanks for the suggestions.

Hopefully someone out there has found themselves in a similar situation and can offer some suggestions. To make a long story short my 85 year old dad and 80 year old mom has found themselves in a terrible financial situation. They owe 200,000 dollars on a home that is worth 180,000. which is costing them 1800.00 a month. They have ran up 30,000 in credit card dept. My dad has somehow managed to get mixed up with some scam that promises to send him 1000000 if he fills out these crossword puzzles and sends 20.00 to a P.O. box, which he sends 10 a day. He is convinced that this is not a scam and wont stop. Apparently he is not able to manage his own finances any longer. My questions are 1. How do we get control of the finances legally ? 2. Does their debt get transfered to me after their death. Oh and by the way 5 years ago they declared bankruptcy. I didnt know that they refinanced the house and ran up the credit dept again. Can they just call the bank and say take the house back we cant afford it ? And what about the credit card debt ? I want to do the right thing but dont know where to begin. Any ideas?

WG, no offence taken, I enjoy your posts, alot of good memories. And he wasn`t loafing he just did`nt know what he was doing. Waysider, to answer your previous question, probably painting the roof of the BRC with aluminum paint.

Is anyone still interested in talking about Fellowlaborers? As I look back at different things in my life that had major impact on me, my two years in Delaware/Powell OH certainly comes to mind. I had taken PFAL two years before, couple years out of high school,never been away from home and knew next to nothing. As I drove away from home pulling my U-Haul with my parents waving at me though my side mirror, well, it`s a feeling I`ll never forget. I have nothing but fond memories of the friends I made, the things I learned, and the experiences I had. I appreciate the anonymity of GS, some of your memories of me might not be as fond as mine are of you. Watered Garden, I remember you well, intelligent, articulate and a big heart. And from reading your posts these past years it sounds like you have`nt changed. If I could relive my life I`d do it again.